With gyms and swimming pools closed, team sports banned and our movements restricted, many people have had to find new ways of keeping fit, such as walking or cycling. Keen runner Nancy Dowling reflects on how her exercise regime has changed over the past year, to include online Pilates and aerobics, as well as taking a dip in her local river.

At Lords Meadow Leisure Centre a military operation is underway. The sports hall, usually abuzz with fitness, badminton or martial arts sessions, has been transformed into a vaccination centre where local medical staff are working tirelessly to deliver jabs to all their patients. Our editor Rosemary Stephenson went along to help out and reports here on an impressive campaign involving the whole community. 

In this moving report, one NHS manager describes the extraordinary challenge of getting a mass vaccination clinic started in just a few weeks, a process that would normally have taken months.

In his next blog about his favourite local walks, Tom Davies follows a 5 mile circular route, mainly on footpaths, from the Crediton Leisure Centre to Shobrooke and back again.

If you are a busy person, with others to care for, you probably feel you don’t have the time to look after yourself and do the things you enjoy. But introducing a self-care routine can have unexpected benefits, as counsellor Laura Sollis explains. 

Since the start of Covid 19, many counsellors have transferred to online or telephone consultations. Whilst some are slowly going back to seeing clients face to face, it would certainly seem that remote therapy is here to stay and might well play a bigger role in the future. Local counsellor Laura Sollis suggests some questions to ask when considering remote counselling.

If you are young, stuck at home with an uncertain future, it’s quite likely your mental health is suffering. Jake Cole is a wellbeing advisor at Exeter College and is well aware of the challenges facing young people. He advises students to research and reach out. 

Running has become popular during this time for all the obvious reasons: it is free, you can do it nearly anywhere, the kit is minimal and the government even sanctioned it as a suitable form of outdoor exercise during lockdown. Nancy Dowling of the Crediton Running Network explains why she loves running and shares her tips for those new to the sport.