Do you or did you suffer from Lockdown Laziness? Here’s how you know. If you are still wearing your pajamas while grocery shopping, you probably need to snap out of it. Weight gain and stress eating were definite downsides to the pandemic.
Pretty much, everyone would agree that 2020 was a wacky year for health and habits. I know everything changed for me. I went from my normal routines to then adapting and actually loving exercising at home doing the P90x program consistently with my fiancé and then by the time Autumn hit, I had a sort of seasonal depression or maybe we can call it Covid depression and all of my healthy habits that I have been religious about my entire life simply faded away. Exercise ceased. Comfort eating took the lead. We watched a lot of movies and ate a lot of wonderful meals, but that certainly was not the productivity that our bodies were used to, and it took its toll.
My exercise routine fell off, my enjoyment for healthy cooking became an annoyance of chopping vegetables every day and for the first time in my life I became out of shape…for me. Cheezits extra toasty crackers became my drug. I know, I know. GROSS. I am thankfully over that. Now, I know I am a slim person, but not having the fast-paced lifestyle that I normally did pre-pandemic that was exceptionally healthy with hikes three times a week and cardio barre class, my body changed in ways I had never seen occur. Also, my mental state changed. Nothing dire, but the world and all of its stresses got to me easily at times, to say the least. For a moment there, all did seem hopeless.
I decided it was time for an overhaul. Physically, mentally and spiritually. 2020 let us all learn that health is your wealth.
So, here we are now, in 2021. It is Spring. Life is starting to open up and I am eager to get back to my health and fitness lifestyle. Most of my friends are talking about how they gained weight during lockdown. What was the likely cause? Each one has their own individual reasons. But right now, we are championing each other to take steps to reverse the weight gain and improve muscle tone and overall health. I recently bought a scale that has sensors for your feet and links to my phone through an app. It tells you your weight, BMI, Body Fat and many more measurements. It is helpful to see how things changed for me over time but I wanted something with a bit more data.
As I get more specific and get back to my routines, I have been finding ways to keep myself accountable through this app as well as through Calculators.org. If you have read my other blogs, you know how I love sites that have calculators for whatever it is that you are trying to measure. I love goal-based apps/sites like this. You can set the months you want to achieve your goals, while inputting your weight data and other settings and the site tells you what your caloric intake should be to meet the goal weight in the matter of months that you set.
Seeing things written out in this detailed way is helpful to make things become real.
Calculate your actual weight vs your goal weight and ideal weight. Set your intention and the challenge feels like a game instead of anxiety or obsession. if you don’t know what your ideal body weight should be, there is also a calculator for that as well. You just put in your age and height, as well as gender and it sorts it all out. Results vary because everyone has a different constitution, of course. But in general, this gives you a realistic way of achieving your goals, with actual data.
We have all been through a lot this past year, so it is fine to let yourself be unproductive for a time. It is a good time for growth. But when this uncertainty leads you to a place where you feel like you have lost control of the wheel of your life, only you have the power to get yourself back on track. And any tools to help you do so are a high recommend.
Be gentle with yourself as you seek normalcy, the power is in your hands. I read a blog that I loved on this subject that was written in the middle of the pandemic. You can read it here: Let Yourself Be Unproductive, At Least For a Little While
That being said, I champion you to get yourself back on track and empty your closets of snacks and comfort foods that no longer serve you. Get out there, take a walk, take a class, stretch in the morning, anything…just get moving. Your health is your wealth, and your body and mind will thank you for it.
Here’s to you in 2021. You can do this!
"I’ve had the most wonderful mentors and I’m super grateful that I had the right people championing me along the way." - Tamela D'Amico-
