For many of us hearing the news that all our sports were to stop, that our fitness classes had to end and gyms and leisure centres around the country were to close, our next thoughts were ‘how are we going to stay fit? and stay sane?!’
We all know how important sport and fitness is to our physical and mental wellbeing, from controlling our weight, strengthening our heart and circulation, in reducing our chances of chronic diseases to improving our mood and decreasing feelings of depression and anxiety through the release of chemicals. So, it is a worrying time for us all to find ourselves without our normal fitness and exercise routines. But with many situations in life, we are a nation of ‘adapters’, to quickly think outside the box and find a solution, and many of you have done just that!
If you can’t get to the gym, your yoga, Pilates or conditioning class, let the class come to you!
We’ve been amazed at just how many classes have been popping up, both nationally and locally and so we thought we’d take a look at a handful of these for you!
PE with Joe Wickes, live online via YouTube weekdays at 9.00am (but the session can be viewed on YouTube anytime). These 30 minute classes are predominately aimed at school aged children to provide them with exercise that they would have otherwise received in school. These free sessions are proving extremely popular, with people from all over the World joining in, including celebrities! The Body Coach TV – YouTube.
Sevenoaks’ finest ballroom dancer Anton du Beke is offering free online dance classes live every morning at 11am via Twitter (then available to view after on YouTube). ‘Elevenses with Anton’ is a fabulous introduction to dancing, with step by step guides to the classics from the Charleston to the Waltz. All coming live from Anton’s living room! @TheAntonDuBeke – Twitter.
West Kingsdown Boxing club are posting free boxing workouts every Monday evening at 7.00pm via their Instagram and Facebook pages. They are also uploading regular boxing and fitness sessions, including workouts and challenges that can get the whole family involved! @wkdbox on Instagram & Facebook.
Core Belief Pilates in Sevenoaks are running a full programme of live and interactive Pilates, fitness and mindfulness classes. Classes are available from £10 per class and £20 for access to all the classes per week and £50 for full access for a month. Classes are fully interactive, and the instructors are even able to communicate with their participants directly during class as if they are in the same room as you! www.corebeliefpilates.co.uk.
Sevenoaks Boxing Club are offering 19 Live Virtual Box Fit weekly sessions. Monday to Friday at 9am, 12.30pm and 5.30pm and then 8am and 9.30am on Saturday and Sundays. Classes run for 30mins and are £5 per class or £75 per month for unlimited classes. www.sevenoaksboxfit.co.uk.
It is really appreciated that so many clubs and fitness professionals are offering their classes, their time and their wealth of knowledge for free, given the current economic climate and especially with our own personal finances right now. When we’re back up and running, we need to get behind these guys and girls and support them when and where we can.
In contrast, if your local class are now offering online classes, but for a fee, please do continue to support these clubs by signing up to their classes, where you can.
We all need to do what we can to support our local businesses during these turbulent times, and after all, we do need our classes to still be here when all of this is over!
