Earlier on this month I spent a few days in Mallorca. My family have a place in a beautiful village up in the mountains and we go there frequently throughout the year. Every time I’m there I realise just how different and healthy the lifestyle is over there. Firstly when we’re there we do so much more walking. There are a lot of roads within the village that you can’t get a car down easily which means that people tend to walk to most places. In fact, there’s a 1km walk from where we park our car up to the house and so over the course of a day the number of steps you walk soon racks up! There’s also lots of really lovely walks around the village, down to the beach and along the coastline. Last time we were there we discovered an amazing trail that takes you right up along the cliff tops so we took some snacks and water and spent the afternoon walking.
All of the local people, regardless of age, are really fit – they all walk, swim in the sea and cycle regularly and exercise seems to fit easily into their daily lives. When we’re there I really enjoy being able to exercise outdoors and vary the kinds of activity that I do. Last time we did paddle boarding in the sea, cycling along the coast and rock climbing which were all so much fun. Especially in the sunny months, the local people spend most of their free time outdoors, whether it be meeting with friends at the beach after work or eating dinner outside in the garden.
The other thing I love about being there is that everyone grows their own fruit and vegetables. We have lemon, orange, avocado, mulberry and olive trees as well as grape vines in our garden. It’s so nice to be able to go out in the morning and pick some fresh fruit to make a juice or to add to your breakfast.
What struck me from my last visit it that it’s easy to make small changes back at home in order to lead a more active lifestyle. We’re so used to jumping in the car to pop down to the shop or sitting in front of the TV when we get back from work in the evenings. You don’t need to make any drastic changes but I think if you can try to make the effort to walk instead of drive to local places sometimes and get out in the fresh air, then it makes you feel so much better and active. Small changes like this can really have a big impact long term both physically and mentally. Don’t let the weather put you off either as it’s coming into winter – layer up and you’ll be fine!
