May is Mental Health Awareness Month and Get Fit will be highlighting the mental health and movement connection. Movement of any kind is one of the most underused mental health tools. It impacts the brain in so many positive ways. Brisk walking and running lifts mood, reduces anxiety, and improves sleep. Stretching or yoga helps release tension and stress. Other types of exercises train focus, build confidence and resilience. When you are in a running or walking club, or take group classes, you also get social support and connection with others. Building these relationships can turn into lifelong friendships.
On May 30th, we are partnering with Asics for the Blue Jean Mile. To participate, we are asking that each person wears a pair of blue jeans and run or walk 1 mile from our Hillside location. This idea came from pro Asics runner Johnny Gregorek, who in 2020, decided to break the record for the fastest mile run in blue jeans. He was running in honor of his late brother, Patrick, who took his own life in 2019 after a terrible battle with mental illness. Johnny described Patrick as a fun loving and lighthearted guy and thought running in blue jeans would be a unique way to commemorate him. Asics was happy to partner with Johnny and NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and they raised over $14,000. Asics is the perfect sponsor for our Blue Jean Mile. The name ASICS is derived from a Latin phrase, “Anima Sana In Corpore Sano”, meaning “A sound mind in a sound body.” Please keep an eye on our social media and website, as more information on how you can participate will be coming soon.
One thing I would like to highlight is how Johnny described his brother - fun loving and lighthearted. People struggling with their mental health do not often show it. They interact with people normally, they hold jobs, they meet obligations, laugh and joke. They do not share their true thoughts with most people, if anyone. That is what is difficult about living with mental struggles; feeling alone. While it is becoming less stigmatized to share about mental struggles, the stigma still exists, if only in one’s own thoughts.
Our mission statement embodies the mental health and movement connection: Encouraging, educating, and strengthening our community through movement. So join us for our Blue Jean Mile and start a conversation with someone. You may give someone the courage to open up.