Since the beginning of 2020, every one’s life has turned upside down. Most of us are working from home, or in a continuous quarantine. Even if some essential stores are open, most cities closed all gyms, wellness centers, and other dispensable services.
This, although necessary, puts a strain on everyday self-care, and it’s hard to not let yourself go. Moving from the bed to the desk to the couch is becoming a never-ending loop, and it’s not good for our emotional and physical health. A lot of times it has depressive consequences, like sleeping in, letting go, not moving, and getting lazy.
So it’s very important to break the cycle, and get back to your habitual routine. This won’t only boost your productivity in your work but will help you feel more energized and motivated to get out of bed every day.
Exercising
The first thing to get started is getting enough exercise. A lot of people didn’t go to the gym or classes before the virus hit either, but chances are, that they walked to work, or school, or the store every day, and that’s better than nothing. Now that that’s not even in the picture, it’s time to get motivated again.
Exercising is not about building muscle and getting tired each day. It’s about moving your body through walking, stretching, toning, or anything you feel like doing. Summer body is not the goal. The goal is to engage your body because it’s not getting anything by just sitting and laying down. 15-20 minutes a day is enough, or maybe a long walk after working hours if you can go outside.
Yoga
Mix exercising and self-care, and you get yoga. Yoga stretches your body while toning your muscles, and it’s perfect for people who sit all day. Also, it’s known to balance your hormones and emotional health.
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A lot of great yoga instructors upload videos to YouTube, and they’re only about 20 minutes long, making it just as long as a Friends episode, and everybody knows that those episodes fly by. So 20 minutes a day to help detox is really not so much.
Pilates
Pilates is similar to yoga, but it focuses on toning and building muscles while engaging and stretching your body. For those who don’t like lifting, and vigorous muscle building, this is the perfect exercise.
Pilates is very fun, and not monotonous, instead, it has an enjoyable flow, like yoga, and that half-hour will go by very quickly, but you’ll feel the burn.
Skincare
Skincare is very important. When we go out each day, most of us apply makeup, so of course, we spend some time prepping and throw on some creams after washing them off as well. But even though we don’t have any makeup on, it doesn’t mean that we don’t need to wash and hydrate our skin regularly.
Same as when going to work, spend a few minutes each morning washing, toning, and hydrating your skin, and before going to bed, do the same. It’s surprising how much gunk can come off of your skin even after sitting at home all day. And if you apply makeup for those video conferences, don’t forget to wash it off and let your skin breathe a little. This lockdown is a vacation for our skin, it can finally breathe and recuperate.
As we’re already on the subject of creating a care routine, it’s worth interjecting that you should also take good care of your teeth. Brush them twice a day, floss every evening, and consult a dentist personally if possible. You can check out this dentist in Denison if you don’t have a dentist yet.
Get Out of Your Pajamas
While it’s easy to stay in your pajamas all day, don’t. Getting ready each day, as if you’re going to work will give you a better attitude, and freshen you up emotionally and physically. This doesn’t mean putting on pantyhose, heels, and skinny jeans, there are limits of course.
But put on a comfy shirt, some leggings, or wide pants, and brush your hair. Mix it up a little, it’s a dream come true to get to work in comfy-wear, seize the moment. We all know the feeling when after a week of not washing your hair, and switching the same two shirts each day, taking a long shower, using perfume, and putting on fresh clothes is the equivalent of a spa-weekend. So why not do it every day?
Cooking
Eating properly is very important. If you’re a parent stuck at home with your children, you probably know this better than others, and have a system for cooking fresh meals. But a lot of young adults are working or studying at home, and it might be a struggle for these few.
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You don’t have to be a gourmet chef, you don’t need to experiment, just throw some meat on butter, and add a sauce and some rice, and eat a full hot dish every day instead of just snacking and microwaving leftover ordered food. Also, it’s much cheaper than takeout each day. For some, it’s even a therapeutic activity. Two birds with one stone.
Fresh Fruit and Vegetables
Besides eating healthy, hot dishes daily, it’s also important to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. This is especially hard for those who are under lockdown, or in cities where markets like this closed during the virus. But find a way to get some fresh vitamins, and eat a lot of them.
In quarantine, it’s hard to keep all this in order, especially when we don’t want to go outside because of precautions, but it’s doable, and worth it because vitamin deficiency is nothing to joke about.
Taking care of yourself during a worldwide lockdown is very hard because a lot of everyday possibilities go out the window. But these need to be replaced, because without them, we soon become lazy and unmotivated, and after a while, this lifestyle becomes unhealthy. People are not built to be closed inside. We need sun, fresh food, exercise, and now we’re much more responsible for these than before when these were daily activities and possibilities. So be cautious, conscious, disciplined, and stay as healthy as possible.