Lockdown is a challenge for us all. Although we’re restricted it doesn’t mean we have to suffer. We’ve out together some tips and ideas to keep you going! We also recommend checking out our nutrition section for recipe ideas, that’s one way to keep busy!
Maintaining Our Mental Health
One of the biggest challenges many of us will face during this period of quarantine, will be in maintaining our mental wellbeing. Even the calmest and strongest of minds may find this difficult and we can all benefit from some best practices to keep us well. Although there are many techniques and methods to maintain our health we hope some of our tips below will help you along the way.
The Mind and Body Connection
The ‘mind-body connection’ may sound like a complex psychological theory, however, its very simple in practice. In short, our mind can affect our biological function - thoughts, feelings, beliefs and attitudes will all play a part in our physical wellbeing. As an example, when we feel fed up, we don’t want to exercise. In this case our mind has negatively affected our body.
This also happens in reverse, our body, its condition and factors such as exercise, how we eat and even posture all play a part in the wellness of the mind. This is something we can apply in times like this to help us through these challenging weeks.
Exercise
Let’s start with an obvious one, since our body can positively affect our mind, and our mind is priority number one - exercise is our saviour! Its easy to neglect this since we’re stuck inside but the more we do here the better. We don’t have a lot of choice when indoors, so we recommend working with what you have. If that means absolutely no equipment then not to worry. There are plenty of great equipment free workouts to get your heart rate pumping.
Eat Well
Along with exercise, eating well is of course, another factor we can control (to a degree!). It may be tempting to eat just about anything at this stage but this is unlikely to help in the long term. There’s plenty of satisfaction in that sugar fix but unfortunately the sugar boost comes with a crash - not ideal when trapped indoors!
A great option as a sweet snack during the day is something like our Salted Caramel Diet Whey shakes. They test amazing with small chunks of caramel blended in there but unlike a chocolate bar, this comes guilt free, packed with protein, antioxidants and low calories (141kcal). This will keep you fuller for longer and is something you can reach for throughout the day.
Stay Social
It may be that you really don’t feel like exercising or even eating well for that matter. In these moments, it’s our mind that is hurting our body - this leaves us stuck in a circle of negativity. It’s not easy being on lockdown and this is new for all of us so reach for the phone, chat with a friend or try a fun app like ‘House Party’ - socialising with friends in any way we can will help our mind. This will allow us to get back to looking after our body and our mind in turn.
Start A New Hobby
Another good way to keep the mind occupied in a positive manner is to try a new hobby. Maybe you’ve always wanted to try your hand at painting or playing the guitar - nows the time! Social media has frequently been shown to be detrimental to our health so anything we can do to keep away is recommended, a hobby or new book is certainly one of those ways!
Meditate
Often overlooked but increasingly popular. Meditation is a great way to relax the mind, especially if you can find 15 minutes a day and turn this mind-saving activity into a habit. We have a lot of time to ourselves at this point, why not start practicing some light meditation?
In all, we have to do what works for us. All we would recommend is that you try to consider the mind-body connection as this can help us through this challenging period. Look after our diet and exercise and this will help our mind. We’ll be providing exercise workouts and tips to keep you going through the lockdown so look out for more to come!