Mind Matters

Regular exercise releases endorphins in the brain which make you feel relaxed and happy, so if you are suffering from a mental health problem, it really is key in your recovery.

Liz Tucker says exercise need not be that strenuous - and the ideal thing is to start off walking: "I tell people to get stepometers and then get them to set themselves a goal.

"If people with depression feel they've got to go to the gym, it can be too hard to fit it in and hard to do something new, particularly as they may be isolated and do not feel like meeting new people."

Get stepping

Liz says the aim is to work up to 10,000 steps a day - which works out at about 5 miles - but that includes day-to-day movement, such as going to the shops or walking around at work.

"The best exercise to do is the one that you enjoy most. You're going to find it really difficult to get motivated if you don't like the exercise. It might not actually be an exercise it might be an activity - for example amateur dramatics - where you are busy doing things.

"It's much better to do something that makes you feel good that you enjoy than just doing 20 sit-ups as there's no purpose in that.

Start simply, says Liz

"The key is to do something that you feel comfortable with and enjoy doing. We love walking - but you'll never find me down the gym!"

In the early 90s, Liz suffered burnout from a busy job running a business refurbishment company and had ME for four years.  She is now known as a health detective where she helps people look into their total lifestyle to pinpoint why their health is failing.

"One of the key characteristics of stress and depression is that people tend to have unrealistic expectations and set themselves impossible goals," explained Liz. "So starting with a stepometer and doing 500 more steps each day then takes that over expectation away from them and makes it easy for them to succeed, which then makes them feel like they can achieve rather than setting themselves up to fail.

Low energy levels

"People with depression also have low levels of energy so many will not be able to do five miles and so this way they can build up their energy."

Simple walking can help

Doing exercise or a past-time can also help people with mental illness re-focus on their current lives and bring back some of the fun things their illness has taken away from them, Liz continued:  "One of the things when you see people who have depression and you get them to talk about their day, you find that they're sense of fun has gone and they set themselves up to have very depressing lives.

"They have no energy so cut out the enjoyable things. They stop doing sociable things as they don't feel up to it and they are left with a very gloomy environment.

"People with depression fill their lives with chores and duties and forget about how to enjoy themselves. Starting exercise can put that back in to their lives."