SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom kicked off Mental Health Awareness Month at the California State Capitol on Wednesday.

The Move Your Body, Calm Your Mind event highlighted the importance of daily mindfulness and movement to improve one’s mental health and well-being.

Siebel Newsom is the co-chair of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Physical Fitness and Mental Well-being, which organized the event.

“Our physical and mental health are inextricably linked,” said Siebel Newsom, who shared she enjoys nature walks, meditating, pilates, and yoga.

Wednesday’s event featured different physical activities for kids and adults to take part in as they learned more about the health benefits of exercising on a regular basis.

“We know that in this fast-paced society with technology kind of consuming our lives, we’re all in overdrive — kind of in flight or fight — and [we need] more time to slow down, more time in nature, and in community,” said the First Partner.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regular physical activity improves brain health, weight management, and reduces the risk of disease and chronic illness.

As a mother of four kids, Siebel Newsom encourages parents to model the behavior they want to see in their children.

“We have to put our devices down and focus on the kids,” she notes. “It is essential that we model daily mindfulness, daily physical activity — even if it’s just a walk around the block or situps, push-ups, jumping jacks, yoga postures.”

Some of the other speakers who attended the event include Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi and Drew Robinson, a former San Francisco Giants player who survived a suicide attempt.

Robinson is now a mental health advocate who hopes to help others struggling with depression to ask for help. He says incorporating daily movement in his daily life is key for his mental health.

“It’s more of a mental and emotional gain than any kind of physical gain,” said Robinson.