This is an difficult time for many of us, whether you are working or stuck at home. This post is not about Covid-19 so its not meant to start a discussion about the virus, but I highly recommend following the guidelines issued by the CDC regarding the virus.
I do want to address the challenges we are all facing maintaining a healthy lifestyle during these difficult times. We have all seen those Facebook “memes” making fun of “quarantine weight gain.”
There is still a lot of uncertainty about what is going to happen. When will this end? Will we be forced to stay in our houses? Is it even important for me to worry about eating healthy right now? Truth is, I don’t know if anyone can tell us when it will end, but IT WILL. We have been mandated to “stay at home,” but it’s not a prison sentence. Just remind yourself that this is not permanent. Who knows, staying at home may just simplify your ability to stay healthy.
Think positive and try and use this time to your advantage. Perhaps it may be a good time to plan and prepare meals with the food you have available. Please be sure and check out our “Meal prep” post for ideas. I understand that all the panic buying has made it more difficult to purchase some items (I sometimes wish more people would understand that there isn’t a food shortage) but with the grocery stores putting limits on purchases, it seems like things are slowly inching little closer to normal. Try using this time to spend with your family and have them help cook and prepare. Teach your kids about the steps you are taking to instill a healthy eating lifestyle in them.
It is also easy to stop exercising, but don’t sit around. Use this time to be active and get your steps in or some extra physical activity. I don’t know what this “stay at home” order will entail but most stay at home orders from other cities still allow you to go outside for a walk or jog. You can also use this time to look online as MANY of the gyms and trainers are posting videos with “at-home” exercises.
At-home Canned Goods Workout
Yes those are dumbells in the pictures. The point is, use what you have. It doesn’t need to be heavy just try to stay active. Another way of staying active is to catch up on all those things that never get done at home. Its never too late to get in that spring cleaning.
Lastly, BE KIND TO YOURSELF! The reason I created this Healthy Lifestyle Plan is because I knew there would be times, where I just wasn’t in a place where I could be so strict with my diet. I knew that a situation could present itself where I wouldn’t have easy access to healthy options. I also knew that sometimes I just want to eat what I want. Now I am not saying to go out and eat a whole box of Oreo cookies (Yum). Just realize that with this plan you can have that “cheat” food in moderation. My recommendation is one meal a week. If you have been following the plan the rest of the week allow yourself to indulge but also count it on your fitness app. Iv’e learned through this past year how to adjust my ‘cheat’ meal so I am satisfied but not taking in so many calories that I end up gaining or not losing
Because you aren’t eliminating carbs or only vegetables, your body won’t punish you for that break. You won’t pack on the pounds because you had bread last night. If you find yourself slipping and your cheat meal turns into 2 or 4, logon to this site and start a conversation with us. Leave a comment here with your thoughts, questions or just something motivational.
We are all in this together and we are here to help each other.
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