Rebuilding your health and fitness abroad requires starting fresh, as you’ll need to get used to the new way of life in your chosen country. The most effective approach is to embrace your new surroundings while relying on familiar habits like daily walking and structured meal planning to make sure your days are running smoothly. It’s all about finding the right balance and that’s what we’re hoping to help you do within this guide.

Continue reading if you’ve recently moved to a new country and are looking to get your health and fitness back on track. We’ll provide you with some tips and tricks to help you settle into your new routine.

Rebuilding Your Health and Fitness in a New Country

Find a Local GP

In the UK, you should register with a General Practitioner (GP) for free regardless of your immigration status, as this will give you a local doctor to visit if you are worried about your health. The NHS website has Find a GP, which finds surgeries or doctors in your local area so that you can contact them and apply for a place. This can save you a lot of money in the long run, as the NHS is free and helps you to avoid paying the high fees of private hospitals.

Your local GP can give you insight into any illnesses you might have, or recommend you to professionals who can look into your health and fitness.

Read: Why Your Morning Routine Matters More Than You Think

Social Prescribing

If you need help finding local community sports, walking groups or mental health support, ask your local GP about social prescribing. This helps to connect new residents to non-clinical activities that boost wellbeing and promote a healthy lifestyle. It’s also a good way to begin fitting into your new community, as you get the chance to chat with local people and form new friendships. If you meet people in a mental health support group, you can find like-minded people who will all be willing to help each other with their problems.

Moving to a new country can be difficult, so interacting with more people will help you to feel comfortable with your area and can support your wellbeing.

Green Spaces

Have a walk around your local area or use Google Maps to scout out some green areas that you can use for exercise. You can find local trails for running or outdoor bodyweight workouts in your immediate vicinity, as working out in nature is proven to be better for you than doing it in an enclosed space. If you live in a city centre, it can be difficult to find a large open space for workouts, but there is likely some on the outskirts to enjoy.

If you’re moving to the UK, there’s many places where you can move to that have some wonderful green spaces. Yorkshire is often touted as being the best county for green spaces.

Local Cuisine

Eating local produce is a great way to take care of your health in a new country. You can embrace local ingredients, but balance your diet by locating supermarkets to stock up on familiar lean proteins and whole foods that can give you that sense of being at home when you’re not. Go to local fishmongers to purchase locally caught fish, which will be much better for you than buying frozen food.

Finding your ideal balanced diet from local cuisine will be your best friend. Make sure to shop from independent stores to support your local economy too.

Start Exercise Slowly

Once you’ve moved to a new country, you’ll be tempted to get started right away with intense training to get you back into the swing of things. However, if you’ve travelled a long way, this can take a lot out of your body and make you feel even worse. Begin with 20-minute daily walks or simple, at-home mobility stretches to readjust to your timezone and environment. This can help you get into the right type of mindset for regular exercising.

You can introduce a schedule that helps you get back into your flow. Set yourself a date for when you feel like you’ll be able to exercise properly and slowly build up to it.

Join a Run Club

Run clubs are all the range at the moment with many like-minded people grouping up to run together through a town or city. Not only is it great for boosting your physical health, but it can also benefit your mental health as you can meet new people and begin to fit into your new environment. It can also be good at helping you find a new pace for your workout, as you can run alongside other people.

Before you focus on obtaining indefinite leave to remain in your new country, your health should be the number one so always put yourself and your body first.