Embark on a Shared Wellness Journey: 6 Wellness Activities to Enjoy with your Inner Circle

Intro: Wellness habits, shared with family and friends, make for richer experiences, stronger social bonds, and broader fulfilment

Picture this. It’s the end of a work day, and just as you are about to shut down your laptop, the ‘Calendar’ app on your phone chimes with a reminder for you to attend the yoga session you booked weeks ago. You tense up, and rub your neck. You should go to the yoga session; after all, you booked it with the very intention of taking on a new challenge in your quest for wellness. But you just cannot bring yourself to do it. It’s been a long day. You would much rather head straight home, to your comfort zone.

Now, let’s switch up that Calendar app notification to a text message from a friend – “Are we still on for the yoga session this evening?” Instantly, the promise of having this experience with a loved one is so much more appealing. You feel energized. You are about to spend time with someone you cherish, while getting your wellness fix.

As a naturally social species, it is without doubt that human beings coming together as an inner circle – a family, a group of friends, or a collective of individuals united by a similar interest – promises to be far more rewarding. Apart from being a welcome change to the constant stream of thoughts that pepper our minds while we go for a solo walk, or try our best to meditate, shared activities have the power to restore our zest for life, fill our cups while our bodies and minds get the necessary nourishment, and make us stronger in every way.

Here are a few ways to transform wellness activities that feel like chores into fun group experiences with loved ones:

1. Seek out Enjoyable Forms of Movement

Swap the headphone-donning daily gym workout for a fun sporting activity or a group fitness class with friends. Maybe rent a few bicycles and experience the city you live in like a tourist. Join a football mini-league and get some healthy competition going. Wake up at dawn on a workday and hike up the mountains with your buddy by your side. Or can we interest you in a high-energy Zumba or Dance Aerobics session? You are guaranteed to have far more fun, and your body will thank you for it. Win-win!

2. Get creative

Tandem painting challenges, attending pottery or gardening workshops, jamming with your musically-talented friends and crafting something new with your hands, are all great ways to beat stress, feel the vibrance of novelty and originality, and guarantee a great laugh with your pals.

3. Join a Reading Group, or better yet, start a Book Club

Reading has long been a go-to for those on a wellness journey – whether it is reading for pleasure, expanding one’s imaginative horizons, or providing a sense of calm. Transform this activity into a social experience, and you have the chance to discuss prose with friends who bring different perspectives, express thoughts and emotions freely, bring alive scenarios from the pages, and strengthen collective empathy and make space for healthy discourse. An amazing way to work out the mental muscle.

4. Two words – Digital Detox

We are not talking going days without your devices. But at least a few hours? Host a weekly game night, a potluck dinner or movie screening, and have everyone leave their phones in a bowl at the start of the evening. Life is so much better really lived, than second-handedly experienced through a screen. Putting them aside while socializing gives you space to have those deep conversations, listen and be heard, and nurture relationships; all while enjoying the lasting feeling of having your soul filled and heart warmed, long after the evening winds down.

5. Build Consistency through Shared Accountability

Wellness is all about consistency, and being consistent is easier when loved ones can gently hold each other accountable. Share your wellness goals, check in with each other regularly, try to ease scheduling challenges while working around life’s curveballs, and ensure shared accountability comes from a space of genuine care and mutual progress.

6. Try Something New Every Month

Getting yourself out of your comfort zone, while trying out an activity that a friend recommends, is an important exercise in keeping yourself open to new experiences that may blow your mind, bring you a new hobby, and give you the opportunity to make new friends. And if you hate it, you have a story to reminisce and laugh about in the future!

This wellness weekend – marked on 18-20 September globally – grab a friend, revive that group chat, make a new schedule for the family, and get started on a shared wellness journey.