Healthy Habits While Staying at Home during the COVID-19 Outbreak

Following the advisory alert from the president of Indonesia mid-March 2020, the provincial administration of Bali has urged people across the island to practice social and physical distancing and to stay at home, except for urgent matters.

With so much going on around us, it is highly important to make sure that we are taking good care of ourselves. Here are some simple yet crucial things that you need to keep in mind and practice while you’re staying at home during this pandemic.

1. Eat a balanced diet

While we keep on coming across information that claims certain types of food and supplements to be the perfect solution for a great immune system and/or even prevent and treat COVID-19, the fact is that nothing beats a healthy diet. Simply make sure that you eat a lot of vegetables, fruits, proteins, healthy fats as well as whole grains, which are needed by our body to stay healthy. If ordering take-out is still an option in the area where you live, make sure to order from healthy restaurants with excellent food safety standards too!

2. Drink plenty of water

Staying hydrated is always an essential part of staying healthy. If it is not already one of your daily habits, this ‘stay at home’ period can be a great opportunity to train yourself to drink at least 6-8 glasses of water every day. Let your goal of ‘boosting’ your immune system lead you to an improved default setting where you are continuously more aware of your daily water (fluid) intake! And don’t forget to make this healthy habit last for life!

3. Practice good sleep hygiene

The pandemic itself has naturally caused many of us to feel anxious, and its byproducts in different aspects of our life have without a doubt left many of us under a lot of stress. When you’re anxious, it is hard to fall asleep, and not being able to sleep leads us to become even more anxious. Experts have pointed out that we need to get enough sleep (7-9 hours) in order to reduce stress, stay healthy and maintain a strong immune system. If you feel that you are dealing with anxiety, you can ‘prepare’ yourself for your bedtime through quiet activities that calm your mind and body. That being said, a few hours before you go to sleep, you should avoid reading COVID-19 updates (especially those from questionable sources) or other types of information that you realize would trigger your anxiety.

4. Get some physical activity

The endorphins your body releases as you get your body moving can improve how you feel, both body and mind. Though we are urged to stay at home, it doesn’t mean that we can’t do some of the exercises, which would actually make us feel good. If you live in a rather small space and don’t have a backyard for outdoor exercises, you can always still do some simple yoga routines by following free online classes, or you can lift some hand weights, or even put on some feel-good music and start dancing to the beat! Yes, that counts as a physical activity too!

At last, stay at home, stay safe, and let’s try to make the best of it. Here’s to a healthy ‘stay at home’ period!