Exercise and Staying Well in the Pandemic
Hi Team - These are interesting times!
Australia is indeed “The Lucky Country” where despite the minutia of a few little stuff ups, *cough Ruby Princess *cough, we have managed to keep the cases low, and are doing really well in the reduction of SARS CoV2 in the community. We are still not out of the woods, and if we turn on the news or reach out to our international friends, we know that the world will be battling with Covid-19 for some time yet.
We need to keep being vigilant and focused but also relaxed and positive. Lean on your fellow community here if you need support. We love reading and hearing stories about the goals and little wins we are having in our own iso-worlds.
The current situation has left us with much uncertainty. We don’t know how long we will be away from freedom to train wherever, or the first event. The Australian Government has the country currently in “Stage 3 restrictions” which means if you can stay home, you must stay home. There are FOUR reasons you are permitted to leave your home;
To shop for food
To work or study (if you cannot from home)
For medical care
4) For essential exercise.
How good is that?! Exercise has been protected and so has been largely embraced by the community. Walk outside your home and you will almost certainly see a family going for a bike ride, couples walking, people back into running / shuffling, doing jump squats in a park… exercising!
Exercise is one of the more positive and constructive mechanisms of coping we have, and we in SCA all know this. We have all gravitated to climbing stairs because it make us feel good. Exercise has so many benefits that are so helpful right now:
Cardiovascular fitness and heart health
Muscle loading / hypertrophy / strengthening
Bone loading / strength
Joint loading and cartilage protection
Immune system boosting
Increased blood flow to brain
Improved mood
Goals to focus on / purpose / structure
Connection to community
… and so many more things.
We want to congratulate you for recognising this as a very good thing to do, right now. We all need ways “to cope”. Life throws curved balls our way, all the time. But right now, they are being absolutely hurled our way.
So keep it up – In this pandemic, what tips can we give you to keep using this exercise for Good, not Evil?
Set some small goals and implement a home routine to stay focussed. When you tick off these goals, you feel really good about yourself.
Stay connected. Collaborate with training buddies on Zoom, Facetime, or online platforms like Zwift etc.
Take your people with you - Involved your kids, partner, work colleagues. As our training becomes more local and more simple, you can get the kids to join you, or use sessions as a way the connect socially online with someone who you may have used to go for a drink or a meal with!
Stay Local. SCA supports the government guidelines about training locally. This is different State to State, but for instance in Victoria, you cannot drive to get your training done. Do it at home, or from your door, get creative. Remember where there is a will there is usually a way”.
Keep it in perspective. We are in a pandemic and these are challenging times. You cannot control the world, so you do not need to overly control your eating and exercise in exchange for that. Try not to put more pressure on yourself to “get fitter”, “lose weight” etc… those things can come after the main purpose which is to stay healthy and happy or at least sane! Use your training for good, not evil. Now is the time for self-compassion and kindness. You can have some off days – that’s normal. If we get through this with closer connections to each other and teaching our kids what matters in life, we have done ok.
Keep positive and always climbing.
Dr Alice McNamara on behalf of SCA
