​​​​​​​Love exercise or hate it, we cannot deny that a little bit of fresh air and physical exercise is good for our mental health and wellbeing. It can help keep our immune systems healthy by increasing white blood cell circulation and raising body temperature – all of which help the body fight infection.

As well as the physical health benefits, keeping active is a great way to help our psychological health too, especially as we face being cooped up for an extended time each day. Being active helps lower stress hormones and promotes the release of feel-good hormones.

To encourage pupils to maintain some physical exercise during PE and Games timetabled sessions, the PE department have uploaded to Teams some great suggestions and videos that pupils can join in with.

Alternatively, pupils can devise their own programmes and ways of keeping fit – there seem to be many celebrity fitness videos popping up on YouTube – or perhaps it’s time to dust off ‘Just Dance’ for the Wii!
All we ask is that pupils log their exercise in the activity diary which can be found in the PE / Games group Team and which has been set as an assignment. Any pupils who are unable to access this, can send an e-mail to their teacher with a record of their activity. Teachers will monitor Teams during designated PE and Games lessons and are available at these times to offer any support or answer any questions that pupils may have.

It has been lovely to see some photos of pupils keeping up their fitness whilst on lock down. Please keep sending them in!

Above we can see Holly McClure has been keeping up her Netball skills at home. We also have a screen shot from PE and Games pupil of the week, William Edmeades Stearns, who has provided a brilliant activity diary of his first week of remote learning.