Have You Implemented These Strategies To Safeguard Your Physical And Mental Health While In Lockdown?
There is no denying that this would have to be one of the most challenging times most of us have ever faced. The struggle is real and finding that balance between effectively working, spending quality time with family and having time for yourself has never been more challenging.
Working from home has created and exposed a rise in sedentary behaviours, poor posture, body tension, aches and pains, stress, anxiety and decreased energy levels. Without even realising, your daily habits during lockdown can either enhance your experience or add to the daily struggle.
Here are some ideas on how you can shake off the negative feelings, begin to take back control and rise above this challenging time. Try implementing these 5 strategies on a daily basis to safeguard your health and wellbeing.
1. Combat Sedentary Habits
For most 9 to 5 workers – working from home during lockdown is proving to be a challenge on many levels. If we look at it from a physical perspective, we are all generally moving less. Walking to the station to catch public transport or walking to and from the car to work is not happening. Going from meeting to meeting or picking something up off the printer is non-existent and so is NEAT activity (Refer to my Previous blog). We need to consciously make an effort to include these movement activities into our day.
Tip: Read my previous blog on NEAT activities to discover the importance of movement throughout the day – https://bit.ly/3joXFwl
Get your FREE Home Wellness Toolkit and get 5 ideas on how to increase movement throughout the day.
2. Your Posture Matters
1 in 6 Australians (16%) had back problems in 2017-18 – that’s 4 million people, which is the 2nd leading cause of disease burden overall in Australia, accounting for 4.1% of Australia’s total disease burden.
Slumping in front of your laptop, desktop or on the couch watching TV for hours on end, promotes posterior chain muscle weakness. This is when the muscles in your back, glutes and hamstrings aren’t being used for extended periods of time due to prolonged sitting and the muscles in the front of your body – hip flexors are overactive. This how muscle imbalances occur.
Keeping yourself strong, moving and exercising regularly will help combat poor postural attributes.
Tip: Avoid sitting for too long, take regular breaks by setting reminders on your phone to get up and get a glass of water or complete some desk stretches and back strengthening exercises.
Get your FREE Home Wellness Toolkit and get your 5 posture hack exercises.
3. Natural Pain Away
Research shows that exercise intervention for back, neck and shoulder pain is beneficial. In a study by Gordan, Rebecca et. al (2016), it was concluded that exercise intervention programs involving either muscular endurance, flexibility or aerobic fitness is beneficial for Non Specific Chronic Low Back Pain.
In another study by Dreisinger, Thomas. E., (2014) suggests exercise is an important strategy in the management of back pain regardless of whether the pain is acute or chronic. Among various exercise strategies used, resistance (strength) training is the most efficient.
Reducing your aches and pains has a flow on affect by improving your mood, concentration levels, work productivity and performance. You don’t realise how much you are affected by your aches and pains until you treat it.
Tip: Get up and down out of your chair periodically through out the day. Get the blood circulating in your lower body.
Get your FREE Home Wellness Toolkit and get 5 exercises to manage your aches and pains.
4. Effective Stress Relievers
According to an Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) study, 45% of Australians between the ages of 16-85 will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime, for which I am sure that with the current situation of lockdown here in Victoria, this number is increasing at a significant level.
Taking good care of your mental health and managing your stress should be your number one priority. Simply breathing consciously will improve your oxygen intake to all areas of your body which will immediately improve how you feel. All too often you will catch yourself holding your breath due to stress or overwhelm and the best way is to breathe through it. Listening to a meditation or reading a book can reduce the feelings of overwhelm, anxiety and tension.
Tip: The next time you catch yourself holding your breath or shallow breathing, acknowledge that you are doing it and change it by consciously breathing deeply and rhythmically.
Get your FREE Home Wellness Toolkit to decrease your daily stress and body tension to improve your productivity while working.
5. Let’s Get Energetic
Exercise is a natural and effective anti-anxiety treatment. It relieves tension and stress, boosts physical and mental energy, and enhances wellbeing through the release of endorphins. Exercise strengthens your heart and improves your circulation.
The increased blood flow raises the oxygen levels in your body. This helps lower your risk of heart diseases such as high cholesterol, coronary artery disease, and heart attack. Regular exercise can also lower your blood pressure and triglyceride levels and decrease your risk or manage chronic disease and illness.
The amount of physical energy you have depends on how you treat your body. If you are fuelling it with nutritious foods and exercising regularly your energy production will significantly improve which has a direct effect to your mental, emotional and spiritual health.
Tip: Incorporate at least 20-30 mins of dedicated exercise into your day
Get your FREE Home Wellness Toolkit to find out 5 body weight exercises you can do to stimulate your happy hormones and get your blood flowing.
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Prioritise your health. Your health and wellbeing matters right now more than ever. By including these small shifts throughout the day, it can make a big difference in your life right now. Try it and see for yourself.
If you need a little help with accountability you can join my 5 day challenge. Get a copy of the Wellness Toolkit and Join the 5 Day Awaken Your Body Challenge to implement the above exercise interventions!
