Mums we have a huge job on our hands, despite already wearing a hundred different hats on a regular basis which comes with being a parent, now in isolation, we are expected to wear even more!
It’s ok, you can admit it, it’s overwhelming. It’s scary. Some of you may feel anxious of the unknown and that adds to your already bursting head full of things to do. What I have found is staying active helps me take on those extra added pressures thrown my way.
How do you stay active when you’re in lockdown?
There are so many ways you can keep exercising and keep that mental state healthy as much as your physical state. Especially if you have been eating and drinking more than normal share like the rest of us. That’s normal too. Don’t worry. But let’s balance it with plenty of active exercise.
1. Use your once a day exercise allowance to get outside to walk, run, jog, scoot, or bike. If you mix it up, it’s probably more exercise than you normally do and you will see the difference it makes to your moods. No one likes cabin fever.
2. If you need something more calming after a day chasing the baby, homeschooling your older children, and ripping your hair out, do yoga from YouTube. There are thousands of yoga videos you can type in and do in your living room right from your phone.
3. Make being active fun by joining in with Joe Wicks P.E. sessions made for kids but just as hard for adults. Trust me, I have been doing them all week with the kids and I feel it in the morning!
4. Do you have stairs in your house? Take them a few times each time you need to go upstairs rather than just the once. It adds up, and your thighs will thank you. Or not!
5. Get out in the garden, if the weather permits and set up a little obstacle course. You can use random things like a box, broom, basket or even just cushions to mark various places around the garden. Jump over some, run around others, and this will get that heart rate up, and the kids giggling.
6. Feel like you don’t have time to set for exercising because your juggling too much already, I know I hear you, but you don’t have to. Weekdays, I am extremely busy with work and homeschooling three children so I do random movements throughout the day. For example, I do leg lifts while I feed the baby breakfast. I do squats while I read the kids spellings out, and I do stomach crunches while we are watching a family moving. Just keep doing movements every few hours, it add up, remember.
7. Get creative, use canned food for weights if you don’t own any. Or laundry basket full of folded laundry. Who needs dumbbells that are out of stock everywhere?
8. Give your kids piggyback rides as you circle the garden.
9. Order a treadmill or cross trainer, if you can splurge, put it in front of the tv. With our many job roles, we will be too tired to go out in the garage to do it. Why not catch up on your Netflix box series while you run a few miles.
10. Dust off those workout DVDs that have been sitting in the back of the entertainment center for years. You need them now. Who cares if it’s only Mr. Motivator, it will get you moving.
It’s just about keeping active! You will feel so much better for it, mentally and physically, I promise you. At a time when we all are feeling the added pressure of isolation and being our families’ sole provider, entertainer and educator, don’t forget to BE KIND TO YOURSELF and STAY ACTIVE at home.
