Blog Article

TAKE IT EASY

While there’s nothing wrong with pumping iron, or rushing off to an F45 class to sweat buckets, it’s definitely better on your body (and your mind) to mix it up with a ‘softer’ approach to health and fitness.

While there’s nothing wrong with pumping iron, or rushing off to an F45 class to sweat buckets, it’s definitely better on your body (and your mind) to mix it up with a ‘softer’ approach to health and fitness.

“If you keep putting that kind of stress on your body and not letting it recover and repair, you’re going to end up with injuries,” says Simon Anderson, founder of SOMA Collection, a luxury gym in the Sydney CBD, adjacent to Quay Quarter. “That’s why we try to mix things up.”

And by mixing it up, Anderson advices his clients to alternate their high intensity days with softer health options such as Pilates, yin yoga, barre, stretching, or simply a session in the infrared sauna.

“I see soft health as an adjunct to hard core training,” Anderson says. “It’s all about balance. And that balanced approach should be across all aspects of your life, from diet, to sleep, to partying. If you do anything to extremes - lifestyle, alcohol, caffeine - your body gets really inflamed and toxic, which is terribly bad for your health. Take the middle path.”

Another benefit of soft health is you don’t necessarily need any special facilities to pursue it. Walking is a fabulous low impact way to get your body moving; just getting outdoors and hitting your 10,000 steps can be enough. During your lunchbreak, go for a walk or jog in the Botanic Gardens rather than heading into the gym and using a treadmill.

According to Anderson, people are getting good results from soft health.
“It’s about feeling good, not just looking good. It comes down to getting your body moving to its maximum potential.”

As the owner of Bend+Mend, Physio and Pilates, Fiona Godsall is a great advocate for Pilates as a soft health alternative. Her fully equipped studio at Macquarie Place next to Quay Quarter sees many people who have been injured by not balancing their workouts.

After treating the injury with physiotherapy, Godsall recommends Pilates to build strength and a stable core (Pilates is all about stretching, strengthening and mobilising).
“Most of our patients spend all day sitting in their office. Their glutes are weak, their back and hips are tight, and they have weak abs,” she says.

Godsall says Pilates should be combined with some cardio fitness. This can be as simple as a brisk walk, or a bike ride. “You don’t need to don the lycra, just cycle around the park with your kids. As long as it’s enjoyable.”