3 things I have learned
As a frequent traveler, it was only a matter of time until I got either exposed/ self quarantined due to the omnipresent coronavirus. After a recent trip to Italy, Val d’ Aosta, Milan, and Florence to be exact, days before the first municipalities were locked down, self quarantining myself for two weeks seemed the most responsible thing to do.
Knowing that I will stay home for two weeks, not being able to leave, represents a variety of challenges. I decided to turn them into opportunities. Here are three areas I focused on.
Diet
A trip to the supermarket would not have been the right thing to do, in my opinion. I, therefore, decided to get my groceries delivered, but not just pasta and canned goods. Do you remember the vast array of beneficial tweaks you can make to your diet, like eating fruits five times a day, slow cooking, drinking reasonable amounts of water ? This is what I went for, I decided to have a smoothie every two days and ordered fruits. Thought about a few recipes that require extended cooking times, and ordered the ingredients. If that seems a bit too broad, decide what matters to you. Do you want to eat more fruits ? More protein ? More vegetables ? Incorporate it in your order/shopping and go for it. This way, you will not only keep yourself busy cooking but have delicious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. Who knows, maybe there is a little Dominique Crenn / Gordon Ramsay hidden inside of you.
Exercise
This represented a tougher element of self-quarantine to me. I am not a gym member to start with, but when you are going to stay in for two weeks, cardio becomes essential. I went for 15-minute workouts, YouTube offers a wide range of different channels that will get you through exercises. No matter if you want to focus on HIIT, core, abs, there is a matching workout for you. To be honest, on some days, I did them only in the morning, on some in the morning, and in the evening, on one day, I spent almost two hours repeating workouts. Getting up from your desk is important since work from home is what most of us will do while self quarantining. A focused and scheduled workout plan will support you in your well being during this time.
Self improvement
In order to not only feed my body but my mind too, I picked up a language course. There are apps and websites such as Memrise, DuoLingo, Babbel, and many more that offer free (14 days usually) and paid versions. Routinely, once to twice a day, logged in and went through the different tasks. If you are not interested in languages, why not try coding ? Work on your skills with courses from Masterclass, Coursera, EdX and many more. No matter if it is a course on Photoshop, pattern making, photography, learning something that is usually too time-consuming was the most rewarding part of my self-quarantine.
I can tell you now that I feel better, fitter, and am just that tad better at the language I worked on. A semi-rigid routine, workout, and a proper diet will make these two weeks pass by in no time. Although I really missed meeting people in person and interacting with friends and family regularly, phone calls and messaging apps were an excellent tool to maintain relations and have a chat with people. Just let people know that you are self-quarantining, so they are aware, and trust me, you will get a call at times of the day you usually would not have the time to respond. As COVID 19 continues around the globe, my experiences may/may not work for you, but keep in mind that every one of us is responsible for containing it, be a responsible citizen.
Now squeeze these lemons and make lemonade.
