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Mind Gym
Healthy Living Skills
4 Steps to Good Recreational Habits

Step 1: Assess Your Present Recreations

Record your present recreations with a small notebook. Write down what you do, how long you spend on it, with whom you are sharing that activity and the pleasure you get from it. Keep an accurate record day by day for at least a week or maybe longer.

Step 2: Review Your Present Recreations

Do your present recreations provide you with enough of the followings?

Step 3: Plan Your New Recreations

If you have identified gaps or imbalances in your present recreation menu, you should make plans to fill the gaps and correct the imbalances. Are you missing out on relaxation? How about refreshment? What to add? You may find some ideas in newspapers and reports of local activities. Let your imagination flow; you will find activities you would like to try.

Step 4: Try Out Your New Activities

It is possible to try a new recreation and not like it. Give yourself a pat on the back for trying, drop it, and plan something else to replace it. Trying to do too much too quickly can just set you up for failure which in turn leads to discouragement. You probably need to revise your plans from time to time to accommodate changes in your interests, capacities and interpersonal relationships. Try to satisfy your own needs according to the above-mentioned principles.

Exercise is Good for You!

Some Guidelines for Exercise

1 Keep cool. Dress lightly. You exercise your muscles, not your sweat glands.
2 Listen to your body. Stop if you feel strained as you go on.
3 Never hold your breath while you are straining. You may faint or even result in a heart attack as a result.
4 Drink plenty of water. Your body needs water to remove waste.
5 Warm up your heart and muscles before vigorous exercises.
6 Do not stand still after exercise – you may have a chance of passing out! Walk around, or sit down; contracting muscles in your limbs helps circulation.
7 Take it easy. If your exercise programme becomes unpleasant, you are just more likely to drop out and you end up not doing yourself any good.

Is it an exercise?

  • You have achieved the minimum physical maintenance if you meet the following five requirements each day:
  • Turn and twist your body joints as much as you can;
  • Stand for a total of 2 hours;
  • Lift something unusually heavy for 5 minutes
  • Increase your heart rate to 120 beats per minute, for at least 3 minutes; and
  • Burn up 300 calories in any physical activity, for example: Clean the windows for 1.5 hrs, Do ironing for 1 hr and 10 mins, Make beds, mop floors, or play golf for 55 mins, Play tennis for 45 mins, Cycle for 40 mins, Jog for 30 mins, and Swim for 25 mins.

The Golden Rules to Fitness

1 Don’t lie down when you can sit.
2 Don’t sit when you can stand.
3 Don’t stand when you can move.
4 Beware of labour-saving devices; they may save you labour, but cheat you out of life.

References:

Montgomery, B. & Evans, L. (1993). (2nd ed.). You and stress. Melbourne: Viking O’Neil.

Kugler, J., Seelback, H., & Kr-skemper, G.M. (1994). Effects of rehabilitation exercise programmes on anxiety and depression in coronary patients: A meta-analysis. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 33, 401–410.

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