The coronavirus lockdown started on March 22nd in Australia. Many of us have been confined to our homes without much access to physical activities for nearly two months. Lack of physical movement as well as quarantine-induced mental fatigue probably got many of us to abandon or slow down our fitness routine. It is not easy to get back into it especially after gaining some quarantine weight.
If you are feeling a bit self-conscious and discouraged because of your body, don’t. We’re all in the same boat. It was nearly impossible to maintain one’s fitness unless you had a fully equipped, spacious in-home gym.
Here’s how you can get your confidence and, more importantly, your healthy habits back.
1. Detox or cleanse
The best way to kickstart your healthy habits is by detoxing your body of all toxins. Reset it to its default so you can start from the right foundation. These cleanses last normally between 3 and 10 days and tend to improve digestion as they flush out toxins and strengthen your immune system.
Mind you, it is no easy feat. You will be hungry and initially lethargic. You are basically making room in your body for healthier, cleaner enzymes so the effects of healthy habits can manifest faster.
You don’t have to go through such an intense juice cleanse to detoxify. You could also detox naturally to achieve the same outcome. You can eat foods that are organic detoxicants such as berries, garlic, turmeric, etc. Clean, good-quality oil also helps flush out toxins.
You can introduce a radical diet for a few days to shock your bodily systems. Good sleep, plenty of water, and avoiding consuming things that could cause you inflammation are also critical to successful cleansing.
2. Get a boost
If you’ve gained some stubborn fat, you may want to consider getting a little boost. We’ve all had a rough few weeks (or months) and there is no shame in getting help to speed up the back-to-normal-body process.
You could get coolsculpting or liposuction to give you a head start while you rebuild your fitness routine, which will help you maintain the effects of the procedures. This is why liposuction is the most common cosmetic surgery with over 400K people in the US getting the surgery to take control of their life and self esteem. Consult with the experts at Cosmos Clinic to better understand how you could get your confidence back.
Remember that there are options for you regardless of your gender or body type.
3. Small victories
Remember that the habits take a while to change. It takes on average about 66 days for a new behaviour to really set in. Trying to change everything all at once will be too daunting and you will quickly want to give up. So do not jump straight to the hardest workouts or eat 1/10 of what you were eating before.
Do one thing at a time and slowly do more as you get the hang of it. For instance, you can start by eating better foods each day. Once you start to feel cleaner, you can commit to 3 workouts a week. After some time, you can bump it up to 5 days a week.
If you are trying to build lasting habits as part of your new lifestyle, you should be patient and let yourself get used to the effort required to form them. Your mind will also become more resilient and motivated when it feels like your efforts are being rewarded.
Don’t be scared to treat yourself here and there so that you have the energy to keep going even when you’re tired, frustrated, or sore. There’s nothing wrong with thanking yourself for all the hard work!
4. Gamify
A fun way to get back into shape is by making it into a challenge. Gather up your friends and family who may be just as eager to drop the quarantine weight. You can make it into a fun competition based on weekly weight loss or other benchmarks you can set.
You could take a picture of your food, body, or workout each day so you can create a collage of your progress. You can play even if it’s just you. Tell yourself that you will allow yourself to buy something you’ve always wanted when you reach your goal. That way, there’s always a tangible prize to give you that extra kick.
