.png){kind=icon}
5 reasons to join the January fitness boom (hint: none of them involve losing weight)
Posted by Claire Boote, on January 12, 2021.
Estimated reading time: 1 minute(s)
After what has seemed like the longest 12 months in living memory, we’ve made it to 2021! January always ushers in a tidal wave of fitness plans, fad diets and fussy makeover ideas – how to ‘improve’ your unimpressive self and become a new lithe, fit and beautiful person.
But we don’t think that’s the right attitude for this (or any) new year. Focusing on ‘perfect’ bodies and embarking on a daily regime of denial is more likely to leave us feeling like a miserable failure. However, there is one January trend we’re getting on board with – exercise. Here are five reasons to get fit (and absolutely none of them are about losing weight!).
1. Exercise makes you happy
Online fitness guru Joe Wicks says his main motivation for encouraging everyone to keep fit and active is that it’s great for your mental health. Studies have shown that an increased heart rate helps pump more oxygen to the brain, and a well-oxygenated brain helps manage anxiety and depression. 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise encourages your body to release mood-enhancing chemicals including endorphins, serotonin and dopamine, leaving you with a post-workout high.
2. Exercise could make you smarter
Some studies have found that regular exercise can actually change the structure and function of your brain by generating new neurons in the hippocampus, the area associated with learning and memory. Researchers claim that just an hour a day for three days a week can help improve your brain function in the long-term.
3. Exercise makes us feel in control
Through the ongoing challenge of the Covid era, most of us have felt a distinct lack of control over our own destinies. But exercise is one way to regain some of that control – control over how we move and how we feel, and control of our immediate environment (our lockdown homes and local parks become our gyms). Incorporating goals into our regular exercise helps us regain a sense of control – so increase your daily step count every few days; aim to nail that tricky yoga pose by the end of the month; go for 15 minutes longer on each run. By focusing on achievable targets we get fitter and feel more in control of our lives.
4. Exercise gives us a sense of community
Have you found your fitness tribe? At a time of social distancing and isolation, exercise has been one of the few activities that has brought people together – both in real life and virtually. In full lockdown, government guidelines allow one-to-one meet-ups outside which means you can find a like-minded friend to go running, cycling or walking with. And when restrictions start to ease, your chosen mode of exercise can open the door to new friends and communities – running clubs like Park Run, outdoor swimming societies, Zumba classes or yoga groups. Even when we’re separated in lockdowns or tiers there are a wealth of online fitness communities from wild swimmers to trail runners and HIIT trainers sharing Instagram updates and live online workouts. Get involved and find your new fitness ‘gang’
5. Exercise is for everyone
Fitness isn’t about the perfect body of a yoga influencer, or the super-fit triathlete, or that person at the gym who crushes her daily spin class. That is fitness, but not the whole picture. Fitness is for everyone, whatever your body shape, whatever your age, and whatever your fitness level. So, whether you exercise to give yourself more energy, to increase your happiness, or to escape the house for an hour, we see you!
And because we recognise that women of all shapes and sizes are into fitness, we’ve created a range of workout-friendly, wirefree sports bras across the size spectrum from an A all the way to a K cup.
Introducing…Aerocool
We are truly thrilled to unveil this game-changing sports bra, the Aerocool. Available to buy February 2021, Aerocool is the UK’s first high-impact, wirefree sports bra for G-K cups. A combination of innovative fabric and clever design, this bra keeps you cool, comfortable and fully supported during high-impact activity due to its internal side slings, wide underband and high neckline which restrict vertical and horizontal bounce.
Coming soon…Impact Free Adjustable Fit in black
At the opposite end of the size scale, smaller-chested women can look forward to the new black version of the Impact Free Adjustable Fit. This sports bra, especially designed for smaller frames, features an adjustable racer back which anchors the bra closer to the chest to provide the best fit.
Browse our full range of wirefree sports bras for low to medium activity.
Available in A – K cup
