Wellness habits you can start now - at no (or little) cost

Wellness has become a bit of a buzzword - and one that often comes with a hefty price tag.

Luxury spa days, floating sound baths in five-star hotels, retreats costing thousands of pounds; these are all wonderful, if you can afford them.

But what about the rest of us? From health experts, entrepreneurs and influencers, here are ways to pursue a healthy body, mind and soul without exhausting your overdraft.

The cost of studio memberships can be pretty high, so people are increasingly organising their own free or affordable wellness-based gatherings - these can usually be found through local groups on social media, and on platforms like Meetup.

Yoga teacher Anastasiia Mirraslavska, for example, hosts a meetup called Sunday Reset in London. Every month the group meets in a different city park to do yoga and meditate together, and they also come together for online meditation sessions over Zoom. Some of the sessions are paid-for - about £10 - and others are free.

"I wanted to create a space where people could experience [yoga and meditation] in a simple and accessible way," she told the BBC.

Erica Correa, a model, is trying to do something similar in Liverpool. She's started arranging a regular meetup called Soft Sunday, where people come together for curated wellness experiences. The last session was a pilates class, followed by a beauty experience.

"Everything about Soft Sunday is intention over expense," she told the BBC. "Wellness is more about the decisions that you make in life, how you protect your time."

For now they're invitation-only, but she's hoping to open them up to more people soon.

Gardening is often described as boosting physical and mental wellbeing, and it doesn't have to mean spending hundreds of pounds on plants and equipment. Research by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) found that people who garden every day report higher wellbeing and lower stress levels , external .

If you don't have your own garden, many councils offer allotments where you can rent a plot for a relatively small annual fee.

Community gardens are another option - you can find ones local to you on the Good to Grow map , external , or the RHS's website , external . Many welcome volunteers free of charge and provide tools and equipment, making it easy to get outdoors, meet new people and learn new skills.

Thrive, a charity that uses gardening to support people's health and wellbeing, says community gardens are about much more than growing plants.

Damien Newman, Thrive's training, education and consultancy manager, said they provided "the opportunity to be engaged in gardening and connect to a welcoming social group".