Your Question:
How do I exercise during self-isolation?
Now that I’m working from home, I’m not cycling to work and my gym is closed, so I don’t know what to do, especially for cardio!
Great question! And probably something that is affecting a lot of people right now.
Exercise as you’d know, is essential for overall health in general. But now, considering the extra stress and social isolation people are at risk of, not to mention the actual effects of the virus, exercise is now more important than ever.
Workout at home – low to no equipment
- Get a skipping rope!! Great cardio and calf workout. It’s fairly high intensity, so you don’t need to exercise for as long.
- There’s a lot of body-weight exercises you can do, and if you challenge yourself with difficulty, speed or “jumping versions,” it definitely gets your heart rate up!
Rather than reading through an explanation of exercises we’ve created a Bodyweight Exercise Encyclopedia for you here, and make sure you’re following us on social media, we’ll post-exercise ideas daily.
Some more ideas to consider:
💡 Set some video call workout dates with your friends
💡 If you have a backyard or a deserted park nearby, try to get some sunshine! Vitamin D plays an important role in modulating the immune system.
💡 Some of our EPs offer private (online) sessions, just let us know if you’re interested and we’ll get you in touch!
Some Other Channels to checkout
Tips for Keeping Active during the day
Keep a Normal Routine
For work, health and sanity it’s best to try to keep a routine as close to normal as possible. If you aren’t actually sick and still allowed to go outside while maintaining social-distancing and hygiene practices, it might be worth figuring out a new cycling (or walking) route in the morning and afternoon to replace your commute.
Keep up to date with lockdown laws here:
Exercise Snacks
As per usual ergonomic recommendations, try to have movements break during the day. These should be:
- 3-4 minutes at least every hour
You can try some specific exercises that address the muscles that may need special attention after prolonged sitting. This video demonstrates quite a lot of appropriate exercises for the task! You could try the whole thing, or even half may suffice.
But the important thing is movement. Quarantined at home might actually give you more options than usual, or at least different ones. An easy and productive option is to take a few minutes every so often to clean and tidy different parts of your home!
This article has some more tips you can try, and goes through The Why.
While we’re on the topic of ergo, to avoid aches and pains, here’s some articles that have checklists you can follow to support setting up you new work environment: Seated Set Up, Standing Set Up.
The Importance of Exercise during viral pandemic self-isolation
And for now, for those, who aren’t quite in the habit of exercise but have found some extra time on their hands…
- Maintain mental health through benefits of chemicals like endorphins, serotonin and dopamine among many others
- Moderate exercise strengthens your immune system
- Keeps your brain healthy and focused by boosting neuroplasticity
Biara Webster
Exercise Physiologist and Writer/Content Manager, Specialised Health
Each month we will pick a question to Q&A.
Send your questions to brad@specialisedhealth.com.au or biara@specialisedhealth.com.au
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