Better Gym Bournemouth and Dorset Mind Collaborate to Improve Mental Health

Every January, Dorset Mind set out an initiative called ‘Move Your Mind’, where it encourages participants to commit to getting active for 30 minutes everyday with the goal of improving mental wellbeing. Mental Health First Aider, MYM Ambassador and Fitness Instructor, Liv has been working with the staff at Move Your Mind to collaborate for this event and beyond. At Better Gym Bournemouth, we will be putting on a 30 minute class every day throughout the month of January, open to Move Your Mind participants with a few slots available to our members. These classes will range from Box fit to Slow Flow Yoga and Mobility, from HIIT to Dynamic Vinyasa Flow, allowing participants to check off their 30 minutes a day and keep their commitment to better mental health. We are also going to be installing a mirror sticker, which will allow participants to take photos before or after their workout, so that they are able to document their 30 mins. You can sign up to Move Your Mind, by following the link of their Instagram @move_your_mind.

Alongside this, and moving into the future, we are going to be keeping this collaboration with Dorset Mind going, with a focus on eating disorders, body image and balancing exercising and food in a healthy way. It’s no surprise that body image issues and eating disorder diagnoses have risen exponentially throughout the pandemic, so we are striving to be a pillar of support, alongside Dorset Mind, offering workshops, leaflets, stands and talks. This topic is particularly relevant to Liv as a fitness Instructor who turned anorexia around into fuelling her body and getting stronger by undertaking her FI and Yoga qualifications. The gym should be a safe space for all, where our members feel supported in not only their physical health, but most importantly, their mental health; if we can help one person move towards a healthier mind, then we have more than done our jobs.