Crossfit Health Fitness

How to improve our mental health through movement

As Australians, we love being outdoors, keeping active and spending time with friends and family. However due to COVID-19, these things have been forced to change, causing disruption to our routines.
Our mental health has been suddenly affected as a result of these disruptions and not being able to do what we love. Accredited Exercise Physiologist Kate Zoch explains how to improve mental health through movement during this difficult time.
How can movement improve mental health?

We all know the positive effects and benefits exercise has on our physical health? But what about our mental health? There is a strong link between exercise and mental health and exercise improving symptoms of mental disorders such as anxiety and depression.

A regular and consistent exercise routine is associated with improved mental health and overall emotional well-being. So as the current pandemic continues to effect Australian’s mental health, it is more important than ever to start participating in a regular exercise routine.

Here’s how exercise can improve our mental health:

– Releases endorphins which make us feel happier
– Improves mood
– Improves social connection and relationships with others\
– Improves sleep
– Increases energy
– Great stress relief
Tips for boosting physical activity levels during isolation
Online workouts

Choose the type of exercise we love and find exercise videos online. Whether it’s pilates, yoga, boxing, dancing, cardio or strength training, many businesses are offering these types of exercise/workout videos at our fingertips.
Read more: Exercise Right Home Workout Videos by our accredited exercise professionals
Virtual real time exercise classes

There are many local studios and clinics which are offering real time exercise sessions. Consider supporting these businesses and signing up to their resources and join in their live exercise classes right from our living room
Get outdoors

Daily walking, cycling or running to get fresh air, vitamin D and maintain our aerobic health
If you don’t have a lot of time break these up into smaller 10-minute bouts
As simple as maybe walking to our local supermarket, post office or walking our dog
10-minute lunch time exercises

Are we working from home? Home with our kids? Studying at home online? Break up our day with short 10-minute exercise sets without feeling guilty
Simple movements such as squats, lunges, heel raises, wall push ups and many many more are some of the exercises which can make up our 10 minute sets throughout the day to keep us moving and active
Exercise with family members

Get moving with our family. It might be our kids, husband, wife, house mates or siblings, it doesn’t matter just motivate each other to move together!
How much exercise should I do?

Individuals should be doing at least 30 minutes a day or 150 minutes a week of moderate intensity exercise. We can break this up into smaller bouts to make it more achievable for us, but remember, SOME exercise is better than nothing at all! If we’re struggling to start, just start small and build up at our own pace.
Get the “right” advice

3 bodyweight exercises we can do at home this festive season


Bodyweight exercises are a great way to stay in shape over Christmas. They’re effective, don’t require equipment and we can do them anywhere, making them a perfect solution for the chaos of the festive season!

The festive season is a time for family, fun and for most Australians, food! It’s also a time where travel and numerous social events can get in the way of our fitness routine.

If we’re struggling to get to the gym, or just want to work off our Christmas pudding, we’ve got our back. Here are a few simple bodyweight exercises we can do at home to keep fit this this festive season.

1. Squats
The squat is a staple of any bodyweight program for our legs! Anyone can squat, and we can make them harder or easier depending on our level of fitness. Here’s how to do the perfect squat:

Start with our feet slightly wider than our hips and our arms crossed over our chest. Our weight should be evenly distributed in our feet. Next, slowly move our hips back and down until there’s roughly a 90-degree angle at our knees. We can make squats easier by not going down as far.

Make it harder – Want to add some intensity? Try adding a jump at the top of our squat to make it a plyometric exercise that really lifts our heart rate.

2. Dynamic Lunges
The lunge provides a great opportunity to challenge our strength and balance once we have mastered the squat. Start standing with our feet hip distance apart.
Next, take a big step forward and bend our knees until both front and back knee are at a 90-degree angle at the bottom of the lunge.

Make sure we stay balanced and controlled by keeping everything moving in a straight line. Next push off our front foot and bring our front leg back to a standing position. Repeat the process by stepping forward with the opposite foot.

Make it harder – Rather than stepping forward when changing legs, we can jump to alternate legs. These are called “plyometric lunges” and are really tough, so if we’re new to lunges, stick with either static or dynamic lunges.

Everything you need to know about foam rolling

If we’ve visited a gym recently, we’ve probably seen someone rolling around on a large piece of foam. Foam rollers are often cylindrical-shaped and sometimes have bumps and unusual shapes on them. But the question is… why are people foam rolling?

We asked Accredited Exercise Physiologist, Harry Beresford, to give us the low down on foam rolling.

Let’s roll…
What is foam rolling?

Firstly, foam rolling is different to stretching. Stretching involves moving a limb (like our leg) to the end of its range of motion, holding this position for 15-60 seconds, and then repeating 2-4 times.

Read more: 5 reasons you shouldn’t ignore flexibility

Foam rolling is a tool for self-myofascial release (SMFR). This is a technique commonly used for promoting soft-tissue healing (like your muscles and tendons), increasing flexibility, reducing soreness, and targeting muscle knots.
A foam roller is usually a lightweight, cylindrical-shaped piece of foam, with different sizes and degrees of firmness available. Lying or pressing your body against a foam roller it creates pressure on that area which helps to perform SMFR.

What are the benefits?
The research is starting to grow on the benefits of foam rolling on the body. Whilst current research is limited, foam rolling can be more effective at increasing flexibility when compared to static and dynamic stretching. It’s often recommended as part of a warm-up to improve muscular performance.

Foam rolling after a workout can also be effective for reducing delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS), which is the soreness we can get after a tough workout. It can also help to improve recovery time after intense workouts.
Lastly, foam rolling may be beneficial in improving blood flow to our muscles, increasing our range of motion, and simply relaxing after a tough workout.

I’m sold! How do I do it?
Like with any type of exercise it’s important to make sure we’re doing it right. Here’s how to foam roll:

STEP 1. Choose a muscle or muscle group you want to focus on (see below for ideas on where to roll).
STEP 2. Use the foam roller and your bodyweight to apply moderate pressure to the chosen area.
STEP 3. Roll slowly on the foam roller and pause for several seconds when you find areas that are tight or slightly painful. After a few seconds you should begin to feel the muscle “releasing”.
STEP 4. If it’s too painful to apply direct pressure, then slowly roll the surrounding area. Foam rolling is not a pain contest!
STEP 5. If you’re new to foam rolling you may feel sore the next day. Rest that area for a day or two before rolling again.

A practical perspective on exercise for weight loss

More than 2 in 3 American adults are overweight or obese. There’s a lot of information out there about how to lose weight and it’s easy to lose track of the basics.

We asked an Accredited Exercise Physiologist for some practical tips on exercise and weight loss.

4 practical tips from an Accredited Exercise Physiologist

1. Find our why

Emotion drives behaviour. If we are familiar with this concept, we may be well versed in the philosophies of Mr. Simon Sinek, an unshakable optimist.
In one of the most viewed TED talks of all time, Simon speaks about the importance of identifying our ‘why’ and how powerful emotions are in driving behaviour.

The concept is simple; if emotion drives behaviour, identifying why we are looking to achieve something will drive our actions to achieve it. In order to make sustainable change, we must first start with why.

2. Focus on process, not just outcome
Focusing on the process rather than outcome may be the most effective way to evoke behaviour change. What does that mean?

Instead of focusing on losing 5kg (the outcome), focus on the small changes we’re making every day (the process) such as increasing our daily steps or adding in some brisk bursts when walking to work.
Identifying key milestones and progress towards goals can be a useful way to help us reach weight loss goals.

3. Track your progress
More traditionally, we have used body weight and waist circumference to evaluate the effectiveness of weight loss efforts, and whilst these measures are both valid and reliable, they’re also end goal (or “outcome”) focused.
It’s important to use additional measures that are “process” focused. This can increase our motivation levels and help us to maintain ongoing participation.

Additional “process” measures can include:
Wearable devices that track physical activity participation
Functional exercise measures (e.g. how many times can we sit and stand without noticeable fatigue)
Physical activity diaries which can track trends over time

Monitoring progress nurtures a more positive mindset and encourages a healthy attitude towards movement. It’s all about embracing the process.

4. Get the right advice
There may be several health care professionals involved in our weight loss journey and this can be great if they’re all on the same page, however, it can be confusing and overwhelming if messages are inconsistent.

An Accredited Exercise Physiologist can work very effectively alongside members of the health care team such as dietitians, psychologists, and GPs to make sure we’re getting the best possible advice and care, ultimately setting you up for success.

Thinking of quitting our New Year’s Resolution? Here’s how to stay on track!

If we kicked off a new exercise routine in 2025, you’re not alone. “Doing more exercise” is one of the most common New Year’s Resolutions, but as January draws to a close, many of us tend to fall off the wagon (just like last year, right?).

In fact, data released by Strava predicts that most people lose motivation and give up on their New Year’s Resolutions by January 19th. So, what can we do to make this year different? Exercise Scientist, Mitch Finn, gives us his tips for staying on track…

Make a Plan
Whether it’s exercise or any other endeavor worth pursuing, if we fail to plan, we plan to fail. It’s important to sit down and outline our goals. Once we have set our overall goal, break it up into more manageable milestones to keep us from getting overwhelmed.

Results take time, and reaching regular, realistic and measurable goals along the way will help to keep us motivated from week to week.

Make Time
Once we’ve outlined our goals, it’s important to set aside time each week to prioritize health and exercise sessions. Think about any challenges we may face, such as time or money, and plan for them as soon as possible so that they don’t become barriers that derail our exercise routine.
It can be helpful to book our workouts into our planner just like we would for any other appointment so stop us from deprioritising this time.

Start Small
When motivation is at its peak at the start of a year it can be attempting to completely overhaul of our health and lifestyle. Making a series of huge changes at the same time can actually be counterproductive.
Keeping up with all these changes into February and beyond can be extremely challenging once that motivation begins to fade. If we’re feeling overwhelmed by our New Year’s resolution, maybe we need to take a step back.

To remain consistent and make long lasting improvement, it’s important to start small and change one or two habits at a time. This might be going for a walk during our lunch break instead of eating at our desk.

Regardless of the behavior we choose, achieving this small win will perpetuate even greater achievements for the rest of the year!

Make it Fun
Let’s face it, one of the reasons we struggled to stick to our last exercise routine is the fact that we just got bored. This year it’s time to make our exercise more fun and engaging by exploring the myriad of exercise options available.

Make a point of having an exercise highlight to look forward to each and every week. Whether it is a game of social sport with friends, playing in the backyard with our kids or finding an environment like the beach or bush to go exploring, there’s always plenty of ways to get active (and they don’t all involve a gym!).

Why teenagers are dropping the ball when it comes to exercise

Did we know 80% of teenagers around the world aren’t getting enough exercise? So, why aren’t they meeting the physical activity recommendations and what can we do about it?

Teenagers are growing increasingly inactive world wide. Worse still is the fact that Australia, a nation that prides itself on its outdoor culture, is doing particularly poorly. We’re currently ranked 140 out of 146 countries for teenage exercise levels. Something needs to change.

There’s also a trend that girls are less active than boys. The data shows that 85% of girls are physically inactive compared to 78% of boys. This was consistent in all but four countries around that world. In Australia, less than 1 in 10 adolescents aged 12 to 18 are meeting the recommended levels of physical activity.

How can we get teens to be healthier and more active?

It’s the big question. How can we get teenagers to exercise more? In 2018 the World Health Organisation made a declaration to reduce insufficient physical activity by 15% through the “More Active People for a healthier world” campaign.

So, where do we start? Firstly, high schools should place more importance on lunch time and allow 1 hour breaks that priorities exercise facilities. We should also encourage teenagers to be active on their lunch break and break down the stigma.

Parents and guardians also have an important role to play and should aim to dedicate 1 hour a day to moving more. This does not need to be 1 full hour and can be broken down into 2 x 30-minute blocks.
The most important factor is to identify our teenager’s interests, level and needs surrounding their physical activity. Do they already play a sport and train twice a week? What is something you can do on the other days of the week that is similar or different?

If our child is not interested in sports, what do they like and how can we incorporate that into them being more active?

An exercise physiologist’s guide to functional training

Have we heard of “functional training”? It’s all the rage right now, but what exactly is it and should we be doing it? We asked an exercise physiologist to break it down for us…

Step aside traditional 70’s-style gym-based programs and hello functional movement. We know those cages, green artificial grass, kettlebells, ropes, deadballs and therabands we see in a small section of our gym?
That’s there for those ‘out-of-the-box’ people using a more functional approach to training.

What is functional training?
If we’re confused as to what function training is, we’re definitely not alone. Let’s break it down.

Functional: An activity that is natural to or the purpose of a person or thing.
Movement: The act, process or result of moving.
Functional Movement: The ability to move the body with proper muscle and joint function for effortless, pain-free movement.

Based on that definition it seems like we should all be doing functional movement, right? So, why aren’t we?

How to make our workouts more functional

There are a wide range of exercises you can try to add some functional training to our workouts. Below are just a few examples:
1. Hard Roll

This exercise increases our core engagement with hip extension in a diagonal pattern that improves our rotary stability movement.

Begin lying on our back, arms overhead, feet shoulder width apart.
In a diagonal pattern, flex one elbow to the opposite knee so that they are in contact over the abdominal area.
The other leg and arm should remain in a neutral position and in contact with the surface.
Without losing contact by keeping our elbow and knee touching, roll to one side and return to starting position.
Don’t forget to breathe and keep control.

The power of deep diaphragmatic breathing

When life gets stressful, someone might tell us to take a deep breath. We might roll our eyes and think “surely a breath isn’t going to fix anything?”. Well, think again. Exercise Physiologist, Leanne Horsley, explains how diaphragmatic breathing can make a real difference to our well-being – both physically and mentally.

Breathing: the power of the breath
Currently, we’re inundated with an overwhelming amount of information about how to relax. There’s mindfulness, guided imagery, meditation, progressive muscle relaxation… the list goes on. However, I think the most simple, easy to administer, time efficient, and adaptable therapy is the basic breath.

Breathing: the power of the breath

Currently, we’re inundated with an overwhelming amount of information about how to relax. There’s mindfulness, guided imagery, meditation, progressive muscle relaxation… the list goes on. However, I think the most simple, easy to administer, time efficient, and adaptable therapy is the basic breath.

What is Deep Diaphragmatic Breathing (DDB)?

Put simply, DDB utilises the full capacity of our lungs and diaphragm and can increase our inspiration capacity from an average of 500ml per breath to over 3000ml. In turn, this assists our bodies’ cells to utilise more energy from the oxygen we breath as well as stimulating our Vagus Nerve.

Top 4 Exercise Tips for Tradies

Tradies are used to a lot of hard yakka which brings with it a heap of aches, pains, and sometimes, injuries.

You spend a lot of time and money looking after your tools, but it’s important to know how to Exercise Right and look after the most important piece of equipment – YOU!

1. Control the Core
If you were to ask what the biggest pain issue for tradies is – the most likely answer would be back and neck.

Now besides not lifting properly (yes, you know who you are) the biggest cause of issues with the body is the fact that you have a weak core.

The core is so much more than having a six-pack, it’s the whole area of your body that has a knock-on effect on most other parts. The core is used in pretty much every activity you do – carrying, sawing, lifting, crawling, digging.

Our number one piece of advice to you is to care for the core!

Take note of this equation:

Stronger core = stronger muscles = stronger joints = better function and movement

Some of the exercises that may suit you include (make sure you do a gentle warm-up set first):

Crunches
Planking
V-Sits
Straight leg crunches
Superman

Top tip: Even a little work on your core during the day can go a long way to creating a stronger body. For example, every time you’re in the ute and stopped at a traffic light – engage the core by internally working on the muscles – try pulling your belly button in towards the back of your seat.

2. It’s not about being “muscle man” – it’s about being “enduro man”

Having the biggest muscles doesn’t mean you are the fittest.

As a tradie, you do the same physically draining repetitive work each day, and that can lead to injuries and pains in your knees, elbows, shoulders, and wrists – in fact, all over your body.

You need to train your body to be used to working repeatedly to get it moving like a well-oiled machine and put a stop to the aches and pains.

Top tip: Why not work on your core and endurance at the same time by using a ‘circuit’ method of training? Not only is it a great workout for the whole body, it is also great if you don’t have a huge amount of spare time.

A typical circuit would include:

Limited – It’s not about packing in hundreds of exercises, choose only 6 – 12 exercises with two to three sets of each
Planned – Take some time to plan in advance what different exercise you would like to do and then write it down and take it with you
Mixed – add a variety of different exercises that use as many muscles as possible

You can start with 10 minutes – e.g. 6 exercises with two sets of each lasting 30 seconds.

3. Can’t forget the Cardio

Luckily if you are a tradie then sitting all day isn’t really an option for you.

Yet, do you know how many steps you actually do? Our best piece of advice is to borrow or buy an activity tracker and become aware of how much (or little) you do. If you are constantly reaching over 10,000 steps a day then well done…if you’re not, you know you have to up the movement.

Cardio work isn’t all about running on a treadmill – it can be a game of footy, it could be running around with the kids at the park, or punching the boxing bag in the garage.

Remember if it makes you ‘huff and puff’ then you are on the right track.

Top tip: You do move all day so it can be a real chore exercising when you get home so create a plan that is workable for you and try and stick to it. It can start off as little as 10 minutes three days a week and then build up from there.
4. Don’t ignore the warning signs

At the building site, you see signs everywhere of potential dangers right?

Well, your body does the same thing, it tells you when you either need to take it easy or stop and see a health professional.

What are the top warning signs you need to be aware of?

Pain – pain is the easiest way for the body to say STOP. If it is a pain that keeps occurring then it’s time to do something about it.
Head spins/dizziness – Spinning around may be ok for Kylie Minogue, but if you are regularly getting a spinning feeling in your head after exercise or lifting heavy things at work it’s time to take notice.
Numbness – if you get an uncomfortable tingling or numbness in your body that could mean something is not quite right.
Chest pains – whether it’s at work or during exercise, it’s time to stop NOW and seek medical attention straight away.

Does Exercise Make Pain Better or Worse?

This article was contributed and written by Accredited Exercise Physiologist, Biara Webster.

Ongoing pain, sometimes referred to as chronic pain or persisting pain, impacts every part of our lives. Similarly, every part of our lives can also impact pain. In other words, pain, although felt in the body, is influenced by a mixture of biological, psychological and social factors all pulling on the pain volume k**b.

This means chronic pain can be complex and confusing.
Adding exercise to the mix can add a whole new layer of complexity, but it can also bring relief and hope. We can end up with questions like,

Why are doctors telling me to exercise?

How does exercise help pain?

What is the best exercise to do?

If it’s safe, why does exercise increase my pain?

QUESTION 1: WHY ARE DOCTORS TELLING ME TO EXERCISE?

Exercise can be beneficial for pain

Physical activity is important for those suffering from chronic pain for the same reasons it’s important for everyone else:

It’s proven to protect against the development, or worsening, of many health conditions such heart disease, type 2 diabetes, lung diseases, osteoporosis, dementia, depression, anxiety and some cancers.
Increases and maintains fitness and strength to continue enjoyment and independence of everyday activities.
Improves longevity and quality of life.

QUESTION 2: HOW DOES EXERCISE HELP PAIN?

The cool thing about exercise is that it can be used to address many factors that contribute to pain, like sleep, mental health and general muscle tension.

Researchers suspect there may be a protective role of exercise against developing persisting pain due to the effects on the nervous and immune systems.

EXERCISE AND PAIN: WHERE TO START

The best exercises to start with will be what you can tolerate, this includes specific movements as well as how many repetitions and for how long. Two things that will make a huge difference are to relax and breathe!
Pain can cause conscious and unconscious movement compensations including excessive bracing and muscle tension which are actually perpetuating pain.