The COVID-19 pandemic has spread throughout the globe and has forced many of us to stay at home to help mitigate further spread of the disease.
During this pandemic, you may experience stress, fear, anxiety, and loneliness. You may feel uncertain and overwhelmed. However, during this time, taking care of your health – both physically and mentally – is more important than ever.
In this article, we share key tips to help you stay physically and mentally healthy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tips to Stay Physically Healthy
Here are some tips to help you stay physically healthy, even when you are stuck at home during this lockdown.
- Keep Moving
Being quarantined indoors at home can lead to a sedentary lifestyle. So, make sure to keep moving! A sedentary lifestyle can lead to some serious health issues, so, even if you can’t go to the gym or go out on a run, make sure to continue exercising at home. There are numerous home exercises – like push-ups, crunches, squats, and plans – that you can do with just a little space.
Gym equipment you can use at home
Also, just getting up to walk around, do simple stretches, or to do household chores can help with improving concentration, increasing blood flow, lowering anxiety, and enhancing immunity. Even dancing around your home can be great exercise! You can also check out YouTube exercise videos or exercise apps for some motivation and inspiration.
- Eat a Healthy, Well-Balanced Diet
While staying at home, delicious food and snacks are constantly within your reach. With your anxiety and worries about COVID-19 increasing, and with all the free time you have, snacking could become an unhealthy coping mechanism. Lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and obesity are mainly caused by unhealthy eating habits and it can worsen the body’s immune response.
Today, having a strong immune system is crucial to fighting off this disease. The best way to fend of illness is to make sure that our bodies are strong enough to do so. But, how do you do that? We do this by giving our bodies the best fuel it can take – healthy fats, low-glycemic carbohydrates, and lean proteins. However, finding nutritious foods can be difficult due to the lockdown, so even if you don’t have access to the healthiest food options, just try to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet as much as you can. As much as possible, continue to avoid sugary foods, junk foods, and unhealthy beverages. Also, make sure to stay hydrated by drinking enough water throughout the day.
- Get Enough Sleep
With schools closed down and most employees working from home, staying up too late and sleeping in can easily become a habit. However, getting enough rest and sleep is crucial to staying healthy. A good night’s sleep is very important for your health; in fact, it is just as important as exercising and eating healthy.
Even if you don’t have to get up as early to go to work or school, you shouldn’t use this as an excuse to stay up too late – make sure that you still get enough sleep every night. To establish a healthy sleep routine, make sure to go to bed and get up at the same times every day. Also, stick to your typical schedule, even if you are staying at home.
Tips to Stay Mentally Healthy
Maintaining your mental health is just as vital as maintaining your physical health. Here are some tips to help you stay mentally healthy during this pandemic.
- Keep Your Regular Routine
Maintaining your regular routine is important to your mental health. Sticking to your usual routine can help you manage your anxiety and can help you adapt more quickly to this new reality. In addition to sticking to a regular bedtime routine, make sure to keep consistent times for bathing, getting dressed, exercise, and meals. Also, set aside time for activities that you enjoy – read your favorite book, listen to good music, watch your favorite TV show – just do something that you love doing.
Also, if you are working from home, make sure to establish a distinction between your work and non-work time. Working from home gives you access to your work 24/7, but this doesn’t mean that you should continue working around the clock. Set your work schedule and stick to it. Also, make sure to take regular breaks – this can help you maintain your focus and help you avoid burnout.
- Maintain Connections
Social distancing measures – including lockdowns and quarantines – have forced us to distance ourselves from others. However, this doesn’t mean that we have to cut ourselves off completely from other people. But, what can you do to stay connected with your loved ones?
In today’s highly technological world, there are various ways for us to stay connected. We can maintain virtual connections through texts, emails, FaceTime, or other similar apps. Even if we can see each other personally, we can still see each other virtually through video chat platforms. Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are great ways to stay updated with loved ones as well. Maintaining your connections during this time of social distancing is important to your mental health.
- Be Compassionate
During this difficult time, be compassionate with yourself and with others. There is much that is out of our control right now, but how we talk to ourselves during these difficult times can either amplify our distress or provide a powerful buffer to these challenging circumstances.
Feeling overwhelmed and constant worry often come with thoughts such as “This is too difficult,” or “I can’t do this anymore.” The COVID-19 pandemic is causing a lot of stress for many of us, and we cannot be our best selves all of the time. However, we can maintain a sense of compassion – both for ourselves and others. During these difficult times, reach out to the people around you – ask for help when you need it or extend a helping hand when help is asked of you.
The Bottom Line
During these difficult times, staying physically and mentally healthy is very important. So, make sure to keep these tips in mind as you continue to practice other COVID-19 health measures like frequent hand washing and social distancing.
Stay strong – we can beat this pandemic together!
Gym equipment you can use at home
