How to stay healthy and fit during quarantine

Forced isolation, lack of contact and long stay at home are not welcomed by anyone, but they are a necessary measure to reduce the spread of COVID-19. You don't need a specialist to confirm it. And we can guess for ourselves that the more contacts we make, the more virus spreaders will appear, and some of them will become seriously ill.

However, many people found it difficult to stay at home. But even closed between the four walls, health care does not stop. Here's what we can do to keep ourselves healthy and fit during quarantine.

 Enhancement of immunity

When it comes to viruses, everything comes down to our immunity. It is known that there is no fictitious drug in the world that can directly cure viruses. Only the affected organs are treated, and the recovery of the organism depends entirely on human immunity. If it is strong, the body will deal with the virus on its own and it will not lead to complications. COVID-19 is no different than the others, it just spreads faster and is more durable. So the most important thing is to take care of our immune system, it will do the rest on its own.

The best immunostimulants are those that nature gives us. If you have not had the time, or did not consider it necessary, now is the time to include in your menu products such as ginger, garlic, turmeric, lemons and any citrus, black elderberry, honey, bee pollen, glue (propolis) ) tincture, spirulina. They are powerful immunostimulants and help us deal with all kinds of viruses, bacteria and infections without difficulty.

As we move less during this period, our body does not need so much energy. Therefore, it is good to reduce the size of our portions so that we do not overload our body with excess energy that we cannot use and risk accumulating in our body in the form of fat. In addition, our body has the ability to retrieve only as many useful substances as it needs, and discards the rest. By eating too much food, it is not completely absorbed by the body, it only overloads the stomach and liver. If we do this often, our organs will not successfully manage the secretion of harmful substances and they will accumulate in our body in the form of toxins, which in turn are a prerequisite for the development of diseases, since they maintain an acidic environment in the stomach and poison our blood.

In order not to overburden our body with excess energy, in addition to reducing the portion size, it is better to focus more on fresh salads, at the expense of carbohydrates and "heavy" meats. It is good to include as many vegetables as possible such as broccoli, celery, beets, spinach, zucchini, beans, asparagus. They supply us with the necessary vitamins and minerals, increase the body's defenses and boost the metabolism, which will necessarily suffer from lack of movement. Take nuts, black bread with more seeds, fish, vegetable oils - olive oil, flax, sesame, fish oil! They are rich in Omega-3, -6 and -9 fatty acids, which stimulate our immune system.

Physical activity

Many people fear that lack of movement will affect their physical form and their weight will increase. And so it is, but even though we can't go out, walk or run in the park, go to gyms and dance classes, we can always make a compromise at home. The Internet is full of lessons (including beginners) on yoga, Pilates, sports dancing, swing, ballet, etc. Many fitness instructors upload pre-workouts to their YouTube channels, and many also engage online on social networks to provide live and free workouts for all those who cannot exercise.

Moreover, it is during this period that we need to focus more on exercise, since our daily walking is absent. And those of you who work full-time or two-time and have never had time for such courses, can take advantage of forced time off and get started. I share the following classes in yoga, Pilates and cardio with instructors. Of course, you can find thousands of similar ones by selecting the ones that are best suited to your body's level and needs.

30-minute beginner detox yoga

45 minute Pilates workout

10 minute cardio workout (for people with durable hearts)

Calming the nervous system

Often we do not pay attention to the peace of mind and work of the nervous system, but this is a key point in maintaining good health and fitness. We are currently under extreme stress, which in turn immediately attacks our immune system (in some people, the cardiovascular, digestive, etc.), and so we become much more vulnerable to any disease. When our psyche is upset, all the organs in our body suffer. Many people start getting panic attacks, anxiety, and depression for fear of contracting the virus, others for fear of a possible economic crisis. The truth is that these are things that do not depend on us, so we must try to look more rationally and not accept them so catastrophically. We need to remain calm because only in this way will we maintain our physical and mental health and be able to deal with the difficulties if they arise in the near future.

It is unnecessary to worry from now on what happens if we get infected. Thinking about it, and even imagining that we are showing symptoms, allows our body to become ill more easily. It is not accidentally said that thoughts hurt the person! In order to reduce mental tension, we can do the following, in addition to the physical activities listed above, which are of great help as they separate our minds from our problems and fears.

The weather is cold now, but it will warm up again soon. One easy way to connect with nature from home and relax the nervous system is to greet the sun. In the morning, if possible early, even at sunrise, we can go out to the terrace, close our eyes and breathe deeply by taking in the sun's rays and asking Helios to clear our aura or just look at the sun rising and try not to we think about nothing. In this way our psyche will calm down and we will be filled with positive energy and a sense of peace.

Another very effective way of dealing with stress is guided meditation. I have prepared one for you in Bulgarian, and you can find many in English. This meditation soothes the mind and allows us to connect to a deeper level with ourselves, to realize our own emotions, and to abstract ourselves from what is happening outside of us.

Respiratory work has a similar impact. Proper breathing makes a person vital and saves him from runny nose, cold, bronchitis, cough and more. Incomplete breathing causes the inactivity of the majority of the lungs to become inactive and thus enables the pathogenic germs to attack weakened tissues. In addition, it has been found that with age, we begin to use less and less of our respiratory volume and a large proportion of so-called. natural death is due to decreased respiratory volume and atrophy of the lungs. So if we are not athletes, we certainly need to learn how to breathe properly in order to be healthy and mentally balanced.

In addition to this, it is important to always be busy with something useful that deflects our bad thoughts. We can always clean cabinets and rooms for which we do not have time in our busy day. We can always start a language course or other skills that we always wanted to have. What works best for me is the alternation of intellectual with physical activity. Thus, I load equally small portions of both the brain and my body without feeling overworked and exhausted in either area.

I advise you, even when quarantine is over, to try to keep this pattern of eating and movement, or to put it in your schedule, instead of going back to junk food and a busy day. The planet really wants to tell us that it is time to slow down the pace and prioritize the important things in our lives. Be healthy, follow hygiene measures and get everything going as fast as possible!