These are different times. Unexpected, confusing, frustrating, and all together a big interruption in our daily lives. This is not the time for panic. Not the time for frenzy. And NOT the time to let your health and wellness fall by the wayside!!
Most gyms are shutting down, restaurants are closing down one by one, and the grocery store is running out of toilet paper and bananas faster than you can imagine. What is one to do? With all this uncertainty, it could be weeks before normal life resumes. You can’t let that time go by and forget everything you’ve already worked so hard for as far as your health is concerned.
STOCKING UP
Some folks are hitting the grocery stores hard and loading up on the “essentials”. Obviously, whatever you load up on is most likely what you’ll be eating for the weeks to come. If “essentials” include chips, beer, bread, and bacon, then this virus is imposing more than one kind of danger. Common sense tells us that a well-nourished body is better prepared to fight any kind of intrusion.
Frozen fruit is a great option to keep your body loaded with vitamins and can be used to make delicious smoothies (protein powder optional, greek yogurt works too). Any kind of lean protein source, chicken breast, ground beef, ground bison, fish, ground turkey, would be perfect to freeze and use as needed. There is plenty of fresh produce out there to get your dark green veggies in, and for something that will stay longer, there are a lot of frozen veggie options. Grains are harder to come by, but anything besides white pasta, white bread, and potato chips are viable options.
Nuts, light popcorn, greek yogurt, and eggs are great snacks to load up on and you’d be surprised at what is available out there. A lot of these things have longer expiration dates than you might expect. Wake up early and hit the stores right around when they open and you could have a larger selection available. Basically, don’t use this time as an excuse to eat frozen dinners and ice cream!
EXERCISE
Just like proper nutrition, exercise can help boost the immune system as long as it’s in a safe environment. Whether it’s going to a small gym, virtual training, going to a park, or getting it in yourself at home, keeping yourself active and your muscles firing will keep you strong...and keep you sane.
When it comes to at-home workouts, a little more creativity is required to provide your muscles sufficient stimulus. Don’t just start taxing your central nervous system by doing rounds and rounds of burpees, but you can get creative with movements and make them more difficult by incorporating bands, changing tempos, and changing the condition of the movement (unilateral vs. bilateral).
Working out at home doesn’t exactly scream motivation, but hey, what else are you going to do all day besides work? No games, no bars, no meetings..to be honest, we should be getting in even better shape during this time! As for specific workouts, anything that you’ve done in the past, feel comfortable with, and can be done with little to no equipment works perfectly here.
You won’t be packing on slabs of muscle due to the lack of significant load, but you can keep your heart rate up, get your muscles firing, and get a decent sweat in. Pick 3 exercises that hit different body parts, perform with no rest in between, rest about 60-90 seconds, and repeat 2 more times. This is a fairly general approach, but should work for most. Use your best judgment with specific injuries/goals, and just remember that something is better than nothing.
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There’s no doubt you’ve been flooded with information on what to do during this time period, and of course your health and safety should be the top priority. This is merely a reminder to keep yourself moving and fueled with nutrient-dense foods. Just because you may be working from home, not seeing friends, and basically feel like Netflix is all you have, doesn’t mean you should stop taking care of yourself!
Please feel free to reach out with specific questions.