In the midst of a pandemic, the last thing you might be motivated to do is - eat right. But if you stop to think about it for a moment, this nation-wide lockdown has ensured that we are cooking more than ever before, meaning we have complete control over every meal. Rahul Gopal, Nutritional, Strength and Lifestyle Coach and co-founder of The Formula breaks down how to use this time to get stronger and closer to your ideal weight with a few simple tweaks each day.
Here we go!
1. Move everyday: Get some fresh air. Walk in whatever open space you have available to you, at the moment, while maintaining a safe social distance from other people. You don't have to do one really long walk. You can break it up into multiple smaller walks during the day. Set a timer every hour, to walk for 10 minutes. Try and get in 10,000 steps at a minimum.
2. Make your grocery list: prior to going to the store/ordering online. You will be more inclined to following your plan. Use the below list for some foods with longer expiry dates:
3. Sleep cycle: Try to establish a regular sleep/wake cycle and a daily routine. Since our regular 'normal' has been rudely interrupted, creating a new normal can lower stress and boost productivity.
4. Batch-prep meals: Try to cook bigger portions or batch-prep your healthy meals, so that staying on track is more convenient and less stressful. Keep the meals simple and don't use complicated recipes. Pick one option from each macronutrient category.
5. Make time for your mental health everyday: Meditation, breathing, practicing gratitude, playing with kids and pets, listening to music/a podcast, playing a musical instrument, reading etc. help not just in the short term, but also the long term.
6. Keep in touch with family and friends: via video calls, emails, texts etc. Having meaningful and regular contact with people who matter to you, is important. Check in regularly with people who might be feeling lonely and very alone right now.
7. Limit your exposure to the news: It's okay to keep abreast of all the happenings around you, but an over-consumption can lead to elevations of stress and anxiety levels. Tune in only if you have to. Monitor only official government channels for communications and don't go by Whatsapp forwards etc.
8. Body weight moves: Stress levels are already high and HIIT style of training may be counterproductive right now. Work on maintaining strength/muscle by using bodyweight moves and external loading with bands/backpacks/water cans etc and taking each set close to failure, or just move as much as you can everyday.
Photo credit: Anna Pelzer. Sourced from Unsplash