Movember and Getting More Active

Movember and Getting More Active

Did you know that across the world, men die on average six years younger than women, for reasons that are largely preventable? This blog is all about Movember and raising awareness of things we can do to improve men’s health.

The Movember Foundation is the leading charity changing the face of men’s health, addressing some of the biggest health issues faced by men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health and suicide prevention. Since 2003 Movember has funded more than 1,320 men’s health projects around the world, challenging the status quo, shaking up men’s health research and transforming the way health services reach and support men. By 2030, their aim is to reduce the number of men dying prematurely by 25%.

Throughout the month of November you will notice men up and down the country growing moustaches and beards to show their support and raise money for this fantastic charity. Movember have shared their 5 top tips to living healthier, happier and longer lives.

One of these areas is to encourage more movement, but how can this be achieved as we get older? Simply walking, stretching and doing gentle exercises in a chair can all help. Why not try these 7 simple exercises? The benefits speak for themselves:

  • Together, exercise and lifestyle changes, such as becoming more active and eating healthy food, reduce the risk of diabetes in high-risk older people. In one study, lifestyle changes led to a 71% decrease in diabetes among people 60 and older.
  • Older people who exercise moderately are able to fall asleep quickly, sleep for longer periods, and get better quality of sleep.
  • Researchers also found that exercise, which can improve balance, reduced falls among older people by 33%.
  • Walking and strength-building exercises by people with knee osteoarthritis help reduce pain and maintain function and quality of life. (Source: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/encouraging-wellness-older-patients).

So we’re encouraging everybody to get a little more active this November. You can find more hints and tips to keep moving on our blog about exercising indoors.  You can also find out how you can get involved with Movember here.
p.s. We’d love to see any photos of your developing beards and moustaches throughout the month!