Sitting in the gym this morning at 6am I had a sense of Déjà vu. No, not because I was up early again - training on a dark winter morning, but for the second time this year gyms (along with many other businesses) are to close as part of a nationwide lockdown in the UK.

I have a feeling that it's not going to be easy to maintain positivity in the depths of winter. This swiftly leads to my biggest concern about peoples physical and mental health - of which for many, including me, going to the gym and exercise is a huge part of their routine. However, trying to find the positives is what I do.

So, I started to think back about what I took out of the last lockdown, in particular - learning that training at home can be awesome! Not to mention, developing the skill of making the most of 20 minutes - to keep developing my fitness and to help Kirstie engage in her health after some time off!!

Here at Proverb, we want to help you to keep your mind and body active during these troubling times. Although we can’t promise that these will necessarily work for everyone, it’s worth a shot isn’t it?! Here are our top tips on how to help with your lockdown 2.0 mental health.

Exercising with someone from your household:

It’s tough when exercise has such a positive impact on mental health that gyms are having to close – but that doesn’t mean that you can’t get some form of exercise in. Whether it’s going for a walk, run, bike ride or anything you see fit – try doing it with another member of your household.

If you live by yourself, try using apps like Strava to connect with your friends and family to track each other’s progress. By helping each other, you are staying fit, releasing endorphins and keeping up motivation.

Use the time you would spend commuting by focusing on you:

Whether you would spend 10 minutes, 30 minutes or an hour commuting to work every day – that is now time you have for yourself. Whether it’s getting a little longer in bed, working out, reading a book or just more time to spend with your family – you have it now.

Eat cleaner and greener:

It goes without saying that this time of year, it’s not easy to eat clean and green – especially when shops are stocked with Christmas selection boxes. But getting into the habit of eating healthier has massively proven to help increase your mental stability, not to mention getting in all the vitamins that are generally lacking this time of year!

Build yourself a routine:

One of the most difficult of them all, especially when you have the stress of children and work is to build yourself a routine. On average it takes minimum 18 days to build a habit, whether that be washing your face every morning and evening, reading a book before bed or going on a walk every day. It all adds up to create a healthier and happier mental stability.

Set a water drinking alarm:

Now, it may sound silly to remind yourself to drink water. However, during the winter your skin can become dehydrated from central heating, in addition to your water consumption having a huge effect on productivity. The average adult man should be drinking around 3 litres of water per-day and the average woman should be drinking 2.5 litres of water per-day.

Let us know on Instagram @proverbskin what you have planned for the next lockdown and together let’s aim to move forward in a positive way.

Humans are immensely adaptable and achieving progress under seemingly impossible circumstance - take Digme Fitness, who for the second time have to close their seven: spin, HITT and yoga studios.

They have undertaken the challenges and launched 'Digme at home' - the ultimate package, including; your own spin bike, that you can take home along with world-class training to not only maintain you fitness but stay connected, snaps to them.

Never has a situation called for our ethos more - GET OUT WHAT YOU PUT IN.

So, let’s move forward, be positive and stay healthy.