Easy to Learn Sports That Cleanse Mind and Body

Contributed by Taylor Hartley

It is pretty well known at this point that keeping yourself active is key not only to maintaining physical fitness but also your mental well-being. There have even been studies done that show athletic activity can improve things like concentration and focus at work.

Unfortunately, many women and mums are mentally scarred by memories of bad experiences with sport, often due to terrible coaching practices that seem left over from the dark ages.

Thankfully, the world of sports coaching has moved on a great deal from those days when it was mainly driven by a certain brand of testosterone and off-putting bravado.

More women than ever before are taking to sports fields and gyms, creating new and exciting communities and friendship groups as a result. Is it time you got involved?

Boxing and Other Self-Defence

It seems counter intuitive to imagine that women would be welcome in a place that channels aggression and violence, but you will soon learn upon entering a boxing or boxercise gym that this couldn’t be further from the truth, with control and discipline at the forefront of everything they do within their four walls.

Women’s boxing is also booming thanks to the likes of professional fighters such as Katie Taylor and Terri Harper blazing a trail for others to follow.

It is also a sport women excel at due to their ability to think when under duress, as everything from footwork to breathing needs to be kept in mind while you are ducking and diving under punch pads or unleashing your own combinations against the heavy bag.

Most gyms usually offer a free trial session, so why not pop along and give it a go? There is a good chance you will be hooked in no time. Who knows, you may even become a fan of the sport itself and begin following Anthony Joshua or the aforementioned Katie Taylor, whose fights you can even place an oddschecker free bet on.

Caption: Boxing clubs are far more inclusive and welcoming these days, with female members often outnumbering male members

CrossFit

Following fast on the heels of boxing and other self-defence clubs is the ever-popular CrossFit franchise.

At these clubs the focus is on doing everything you need to get into peak condition. This is done via a combination of body weight exercises, weightlifting and cardio circuits.

The overall result after a session is that you feeling completely shattered, but make it through the first couple of weeks and you will be amazed at how quickly your body adapts and starts to be sculpted into a shape you never thought possible.

CrossFit posts plenty of content online to give you a taster of what is in store, but don’t despair at the rippling muscles and toned stomachs on show, because the dedicated onsite instructors will ensure that a training program is put together to suit your capabilities and fitness level.

Yoga and Pilates

Of all the activities on this list yoga and pilates are by far the most popular sporting activities undertaken by women in the UK and beyond.

This is mainly down to the fact that both practices cross the intersection between sport and well-being, providing a safe space for physical health to be improved, all without the need for competition and rigid training schedules.

The great thing about yoga and pilates is the range of ways in which they can be practiced. If you like being part of a group, you can always join a local club or gym that is dedicated to the craft.

Whereas if you prefer to do things at your own pace there are a whole host of amazing apps and websites that offer pre-recorded courses run by experts, or you can even hire your very own personal yogi, beamed to you via a Skype or Zoom call.

Open Water Swimming

So many aspects of modern life disconnect people from the natural world around them and so it is more important than ever that women do what they can to reconnect.  

What better way to go about doing just that than to brace yourself before diving into a freshwater lake or the crashing waves of a local beach?

Obviously most open water that is available in Britain is pretty chilly, so this is an activity best left until summer and even then you would be well advised to purchase a wetsuit that will keep you toasty warm. You should also ensure that your swimming is up to scratch before you take on too much too soon. After all, the sea must always be respected.

Although this is clearly a sport that takes time to settle into, once your confidence is high you will be amazed at why you never thought to take it up earlier. Find the correct beach and you may even find yourself frolicking with seals out in the big blue.

Caption: There are few better ways to connect with nature than to take up open water swimming

Trail Running

If the idea of being exposed to the whims of something as powerful as the sea terrifies you, then the next best thing is probably Trail Running, which is basically a fancy way of terming running on countryside paths.

The excellent thing about this sport is that so little equipment or planning is required to literally get up and running.

But why would I run on unsurfaced paths when I could run on roads or a treadmill? You might well ask. The main benefits are that dirt tracks, generally speaking, are better for your muscles and joints than hard manmade surfaces. On top of that, you will be out in the great outdoors, where your running efforts will pay off with hilltop views, cliff vistas and fields of crops flowing in the wind. What more could you want?

Another bonus is that because you are required to focus on your footing when traversing more rugged terrain you virtually forget about the physical exertion you are undergoing, meaning you will hardly realise quite how many calories you are in the process of burning.