Gabrielle

My husband, son and I put together this short video to show some of the ways I like to stay healthy & active - both physically and mentally - with my family during our long Edmonton winters, especially in these pandemic months.

Physical activity and quality time with family and friends is so important for maintaining a positive and engaging outlook, especially when trying to juggle working full time, running for City Council in Ward O-day'min & caring for a family cooped up together at home 24 hours a day. I love to go for walks around our amazing river valley with my puppy Rocky (although on long walks in the winter he gets carried!).

This past Christmas, I made an advent calendar with daily family activities instead of chocolates. Some of the activities included touring the Legislature ground lights and the Botanical Gardens, as well as taking in some downhill ski days (in a socially distanced and safe way) at Marmot Basin in Jasper. At home, I like to create family scavenger hunts that have clues and tasks to complete (like the British game show TaskMaster). It's a great family fun day and we are super competitive :-).

We've put some gym equipment in the basement so we can exercise indoors on cold days, but our cat, Ares and Rocky the Dog like to use the space to play fight. For mental wellness, I also keep up my singing. I love music - it makes me happy. Finally, my favourite way to stay in shape is using Virtual Reality Gaming - in particular Beat Saber. It's a game where you feel like you are in the middle of the music itself, and getting a workout at the same time. There is so much potential in VR for mental and physical health & well-being, and for targeted training.

As I walk around the many diverse communities in O-day'min, I will be staying active and looking forward to making real connections with people who make a difference every day!