When a pandemic such as Covid-19 strikes, it forces people to isolate themselves in their homes. It’s during such times that people tend to ignore their health, which eventually puts them at risk of contracting lifestyle related illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure and arthritis. Staying at home causes all the milestones that were earned during normal days to be thrown out the window. A pandemic means that everyone is at risk of contracting the disease and there is no guarantee of recovery.
However, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can improve your chances of survival in case you get the deadly disease. Continue reading below to find out what you should be doing as you maintain social distance without compromising on your health.
1. Go for Regular Checkup
Most people will tell you to not go to a health facility unless you are not feeling well. However, such ignorance can put you on the losing end in case you get infected. The situation will actually be made worse by an underlying disease. Research actually shows that there are many people that have terminal illnesses but they are not aware. For instance, diabetic patients have lesser chances of surviving from Covid-19 infection than their counterparts that are free from any disease. The advantage of going for a regular checkup is that it helps in unmasking a health issue while it’s still early. And even if the disease is at an advantage you can still get solid advice on how to manage the condition. And if you have a busy schedule, you can opt to go to a facility that operates round the clock such as thememorialhospital.org. Besides that, treating a minor illness or injury costs much less money and stress than when it’s full-blown.
2. Exercise Regularly
Staying at home can really discourage you from engaging in physical workouts. The importance of exercising is that it helps in keeping your body in good shape. In case you didn’t know, your body is like the engine of a car: it needs to be moved for it to continue functioning normally. When you spend many hours doing nothing, you become vulnerable to diseases that are triggered by being overweight. The good thing is that you can still workout without having to go to your local gym. In fact, 30 minutes every day is all you need. Even if you don’t have light eight equipment such as a treadmill or gym bike in your house, you can still utilize your body weight and gravity. You can actually burn a lot of calories by doing simple exercises such as jumping with a rope, riding a bicycle and jumping hacks. Once your body has become accustomed to the exercises, you can build your tolerance by increasing the intensity of workouts for increased burnout.
3. Eating Well
This one is a no brainer. In the midst of a pandemic, you need to boost your immunity by indulging in healthy foods. Research has actually proved that people who eat healthy foods have higher chances of defeating a pandemic than their counterparts who eat whatever is put on the table. Once you have decided you want to start eating well, your choice of food should be guided by quality but not quantity. The problem with most people is that they do it the other way round just because they want to fill their stomach. It’s true that junk food takes less time to prepare. But on the other hand, they leave you nursing far reaching consequences.
By the rule of thumb, you should eat a balanced diet that has more veggies and proteins. Your meals should also contain essential nutrients such as fiber, iron, calcium, potassium and vitamins. Managing your portions is also part and parcel of maintaining good health. Remember, staying at home means that you are burning less calories than you would do if you reported to your workstation. You should therefore trim your portions so that you don’t overwhelm your body system with calories. If you are having difficulty in eating less food, you can tame your appetite by taking a large glass of water before meals. That way, you will feel fuller by just eating a small portion.
4. Get Enough Sleep
I bet you didn’t know this. Your performance is dependent on the quality of sleep you get when you go to bed. But even in the midst of a pandemic, some people are still overworking themselves. Too much of anything is actually dangerous. When you work or watch TV for many hours, you deny your body an opportunity to repair itself. The brain actually suffers the most because it’s not able to store memories from the previous day’s experience. Eventually, your performance dwindles and you are not able to concentrate on anything. The key to getting quality sleep is going to bed at the same time every night. Working out during the day will also make you feel sleepy. If you are stressed, you should seek help from a counsellor so that you are able to sleep well at night without thinking about your problems. It’s also important you don’t drink coffee or alcohol at night.
