Living a Healthy Quarantine Lifestyle

Being active is important when striving to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but finding a way to be active is difficult while staying at home to prevent the spread of novel coronavirus.

Living through a pandemic, we are forced to be innovative, considering we are highly recommended to keep at least a 6-foot distance from other individuals we do not live with. 

So, how can you stay active?

Some fitness coaches, including local fitness coach, Cole Taylor, are offering at-home workouts for people to remain healthy and active. 

If you are active on social media, Taylor’s Instagram and Facebook pages include workout regimens with household objects that may be used to improvise actual weights. His Instagram, @coledavidtaylor, has free workouts with explanations in the comments section of each post. 

For those struggling to figure out how to create workouts, or if they should be working out at all, take advantage of all your resources and remind yourself of the importance of movement during this time. The University of Central Oklahoma has created blog that helps students add physical activity into their everyday life.

For all of us, young and old, regular activity is important for staying healthy, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. The physical activity guidelines for Americans recommend 150-300 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity and two sessions per week of muscle strength training. 

According to UCO’s Be Broncho Fit blog, there are various ways to incorporate activity in your everyday life. Walking around while you study and parking far away so you can get extra steps when you go to the grocery store are among the suggestions.

Although these few extra steps may seem tedious in the moment, they can pay off and add up in the long run. 

UCO student Rainey Myers offers fitness videos and fit-inspiration pictures on her personal Instagram page, @rjmx0, for individuals who would like to stay healthy and keep moving during social distancing. Myers said she also uses household supplies (i.e. laundry detergent, brooms, water cases) for workouts she feels are imperative to her at-home routine. 

Myers also said while participating in at-home workouts, some activities that are great to incorporate in the fitness routine are: squats, lunges, wall sits, push-ups, burpees, jumping jacks and a variety of ab workouts to keep her body moving and being sure she stays active.

“I offer one-on-one at-home workout advice through my social media, as well, if [anyone] may be interested,” Myers said.

Another UCO student, Courtney Fox, also shared workouts she participates in during the pandemic and elaborates on how she maintains staying active.

“Each workout typically starts with an interval run, a 30-second sprint, a one-minute jog and 10-15 minutes of this being done consistently,” Fox said.

Aside from making sure you are physically healthy, it is vital that we remind ourselves being mentally healthy will help increase our lifespan, as well. Sleep is a great way to help benefit our overall health, and unfortunately, it is greatly overlooked more often times than not, according to Fox. 

The UCO Broncho Blogs also helps remind us of the importance and benefits of sleep. In order to have the energy and motivation to do anything, not just workout, a large requirement is making sure you are getting the right amount of sleep, as the blog states. 

Another important factor in staying healthy during COVID-19 is partaking in good nutrition, particularly in times when the immune system might need to fight back, according to the World Health Organization. Even with few and limited ingredients, one can continue eating a diet that supports good health.

UCO student Marissa Perez said she typically prepares meals every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Although Perez is vegan, all things offered in each meal are healthy and filled with various nutritional components for everyone. 

For breakfast Perez said fiber and protein are key.

“I usually [do] oatmeal with peanut butter, or toast with avocado, or just fruit,” Perez said. “For lunch I try to get more vitamins, so I prepare a hardy salad or sandwich with lots of veggies like spinach, bell pepper, avocado and maybe some fruit.”

Her dinners typically consist of healthy rice and grilled vegetables, while snacks can include chips and salsa or home-baked fries.

Staying active and being healthy are not only important during quarantine, but also important when we are released to go back to our normal routines and everyday lives. While we are in quarantine, let’s not forget to keep ourselves safe and healthy, so we can make it out on the other side — alive and healthy as ever. 

In a world filled with people constantly willing to compromise and become their best selves, do not be afraid to ask questions, get the help you need and seek the advice you may want to ask.

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