Fitness Tips

The Importance Of Taking Regular Breaks

I'm very lucky. I have an outdoor studio and once I have finished writing this article, I will get myself ready to take a break out there. I’ll actually lie down on my mat, I'll get my bolster out and I’ll use my lovely lavender eye cushion. Ready to take a short break. And the reason I do this is it improves creativity, it improves focus, it improves productivity. I see me getting better value from the work I do by taking regular breaks, and it is not just me, it is not just anecdotal evidence. Fitness tips with Leanne Spencer | www.bodyshotperformance.com

The Benefits Of Short Breaks

Some of us are still in lockdown and working from home. Work and private live can blur together into one long day for some of us. In those circumstances, taking regular breaks can be a game changer. As I mentioned briefly above, this is not just anecdotal. There have been lots of studies around the benefits of taking regular breaks. There is a 2011 study that I was reading earlier, from the University of Illinois, that found multiple benefits from employees taking regular breaks in their day. And by break, I mean it could be two minutes in an hour, it could be taking a solid lunch break, or 10-minute breaks every few hours, maybe one in the morning, one in the afternoon. But they found that employee engagement went up as well as improved focus, improved concentration, improved creativity as well, and better problem solving. So tonnes of reasons why it's really valuable to take a break.

Sun, Fresh Air And Walking

Now, you may not have a studio, you may not want to meditate or lie out with a bolster and an eye cushion. Maybe you stand in the sun, get some glorious benefits of Vitamin D3 and the energy that the sun provides. Maybe you go off and do something completely different, but try and make it non screen-based whatever it is you do. And what would be fabulous is to go out and just take a 10-minute brisk walk somewhere. Get fresh oxygenated blood flowing around the body, good for neurogenesis, the creation of new brain cells, good for the whole body to move. That is what we were designed to do. We were designed to locomote. We were designed to move.

Human Movement

So that is my tip for you. I know most of you are still working from home. You probably have sat your desk, you are getting those tight quadriceps, you are getting those slumped shoulders. A lot of our clients are reporting that they are feeling stiffer than ever because they are just not moving at all, not even to get on a train, or to go to their manager's office, or walk around the building. So please do move and please do take breaks. Both of them are going to have work wonders for your professional and your personal life, and make you feel better.

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The BuyThemACoffee_KCH fundraiser was set up on March 23rd. I have lived in this area for nearly 20 years so I know a lot of people who work at Kings; my eldest son was born there and a number of friends have received essential and sometimes lifesaving treatment from the hospital. www.gofundme.com/f/buy-them-a-coffee-kch | Instagram buythemacoffee_kch/

When the pandemic started, I searched to see if there were any local initiatives set up to support Kings during the crisis, and not finding any, I decided to do it myself. Early on, I was advised to speak to the hospital to find out what support they needed: King’s was already handling covid patients when we spoke to them - and the management quickly decided that staff wellbeing needed to be an essential part of their response to the crisis. They centralised all the wellbeing through the hospital boardroom

“Just providing small things for staff like a place to just come and sit has gone a long way in making people feel relaxed. Staff have realised that someone is there for them; that Kings and the community have thought of them. The fact that someone is looking out for them is so appreciated and its now week 9 and they are so grateful that the support has continued.” Khadija E (redeployed non-evasive cardiology staff member working in the wellness hub)

which was set up to serve staff with a growing set of support services: within a week meditation, massage, counselling support, chaplaincy; meal deliveries and food donations were all being centralised through the hubs. BuyThemACoffee_KCH was lucky enough to speak to the right person on that first Monday and, with overwhelming support from the community and local businesses, we delivered 30 boxes of fruit to stock the wellness hub within 2 days of launch. Since then we have continued to partner with local businesses to deliver food and supplies to the wellness hubs; whether that partnership has been via fundraising events (e.g. the sale of NHS t-shirts by Hospital Records in Herne Hill; Wine Box Sales by @SalonWineStore in Brixton; Yoga Classes by @ taniabrownyoga; gourmet dinners hosted by guest chefs and delivered by 161 Food and Drink) or weekly food orders made for staff visiting the hubs (Ayres Bakery; Suzanne James Catering; Cinnamon Tree Bakery; Smith and Brock; or food donations by the likes of Bermondsey Street Bees, Odyssey; Petitou and countless others. The generosity and kindness demonstrated is testament to our fabulous community of people and businesses. At the end of the first week, there were 14 Covid wards at Kings’ peaking at 31 wards during the height of the Pandemic (Easter weekend). Initially, our fundraiser focused on getting food to the frontline staff who had little time to leave their wards, whether that be delivering groceries for them to take home with them or supplying meals to eat before, during or after shift. The volume of support from local businesses, charities and fundraisers swelled with the crisis and the wellness hubs were required to handle and distribute thousands of meals each day as well as servicing the hub spaces for a shared space for staff to step away to during their shift. The wellness hubs are staffed by redeployed King’s staff and volunteers so the learning curve has been steep and challenging, but throughout it all they have kept staff wellbeing at the heart of their intentions and it’s been amazing to see what is possible with the right support from the community and industry. 10 weeks on and there are still over 2,000 staff visiting the wellness hubs every day; there are 5 wellness hubs at Denmark Hill and staff continue to need a place to step away to and the wellness focus is shifting away from delivering to food to the wards to providing a shared space that provides essential staff services and a place to enjoy a socially distanced cup of tea and a doughnut with others. BuyThemACoffee_KCH has now raised over £43,000 and we continue to deliver food to the wellness hubs four times a week. Our plan is to continue supplying food through the end of June if our fundraising allows for it. We hear that there a desire by King’s to continue this commitment to wellness hubs and staff support informed by the learnings of the crisis. If there is a positive to this crisis, this feels like one to celebrate.