The Pramfit Guide to staying sane while we are at home
I am hearing the phrase ‘Lockdown’ every minute of every day and I am finding it hard to come to terms with. The work is so negative, I invite all of you to remove it from your vocabulary staring today. The reality is that we are all staying at home. Home is our safe space, our comfort, our retreat at the end of our usually full and extremely busy days. I would not want you to start to confuse your safe space with a prison sentence because of the media terms that are flying around all over the place.
We have been given this time for good reason, virus aside. This is a time to slow down the super-fast ace of our lives. This is a time to reconnect with our families at home. Read the books that we have been putting off, play with the children, get out in the garden if you have one (thankfully we have been blessed with beautiful weather so far) etc.
In all of this, I know you are going to find some trying moments. Moments when the tiniest of things will get on your nerves. This is totally normal and to be expected. However there are things you can do to maximise the time your have been given and not let the little things ruin your day or cause a bad atmosphere.
1. Make time for you.
…and don’t be offended when your partner and children want to make time for themselves too. We all need our own space. To stay sane I need a LOT of my own space. That is not to say that I don’t enjoy the company of others, more that over time I just need to retreat into my own head and recharge. This is necessary. Being around the same people day in day out, sharing their space, eating sleeping and breathing with them will eventually bring you to a place where you are picking on the tiniest little thing from leaving a lunch plate out, to toys being all over the place, even to the way they breathe. Remember, you guys are a team – you, your partner, your children, your pets – all of you. If you start to get irritated in this way, take a moment before you say anything.
· Leave the room.
· Think of 3 things you like about the person currently irritating you.
· Think about whether the thing that is bothering you would still bother you if you never saw them again.
2. Smile
Even if you don’t feel like smiling. It is scientifically proven that our brain gets signals from our bodies and acts accordingly. If your face is frowning and tight, your body will feel threatened and tighten up too. Your shoulders will rise, and you will feel tense. Make a daily practice of smiling when you least feel like you want to. This will relax your body into making you think you are happy; in turn you will feel happy.
3. Laughter is the best medicine
In the same way smiling makes you feel better, laughter will help you exponentially. While you are at home, try and stay away from scary or tense programmes. There are tons of great comedies and interesting light documentaries on Netflix and Amazon Prime etc. This is also a great time to go back to your childhood favourites – I am a Disney junkie, and always feel better with a little Hakkuna Mutta going on in my life. Even if you are still working from home (like me) you can have it on in the background. Otherwise, settle in with the kids and make it a bonus bit of family time, with no phones or distractions.
4. Move your body
You all have fantastic access to the Pramfit workouts both live and on the app thanks to Fred’s amazing work. These will keep you strong and healthy. The Yoga practices will give you space to get out of your head and stretch out. In addition to this I would encourage you to try and get your 10,000 steps in. You can do this by dancing, running around the garden, if you have childcare going for a walk or run (this is still allowed as long as you go on your own). Keeping to body moving is essential. It will help your mind, give you some structure to your day, and tire you out physically so that you sleep better.
5. Choose your news sources wisely
I avoid the news as much as possible. Don’t get me wrong I am not ignorant to the world, I just choose very carefully where my sources come from. Much of the media is designed to frighten us. Fear sells. Think about how quickly a bad or unpleasant news story is shared verses how quickly a good news story is shared. You have probably even done this yourself without realising. Make sure your sources are balanced. The BBC news is great. Huffington Post is good and there is a page called the Good News Network which is full of lovely stories that will make you feel better. Share them. It will make everyone around you feel better too.
6. Social media
You will probably have heard this a thousand times but as with news your social media sources can bring you down. On social media, the algorithms are designed to show you more of what you engage with. Make sure the people you are following make you feel better, not worse. Make sure they add value to your day. If they don’t, get rid of them. Now is a great time for a social media cleanse.
7. Know that this is temporary
This situation is temporary, it will end and when it does you will likely look back and long for some of the happy moments you are currently sharing with your family to be available to you again. Make the most of this time that you have to build new habits with your family. Remember that you are all keeping each other safe so that you can enjoy new adventures together in the future.
8. Make a point of noticing the good things you have
Take time to think of at least 3 things you are grateful for every day. You may need to star small, like ‘I am grateful for my home’, or ‘I am grateful for my sofa’ or ‘I am grateful that I left the room before shouting at someone’. Over time, this will become easier and the more you find to be grateful for, the more good things you will see. Encourage your children to do this too, it is a great practice to start young and something you can do together.
We hope this guide helps you to get through this time with more positivity. We want everyone to stay safe and we are all here if you need us for anything at all. Keep in touch with us and each other. We have a strong community of fantastic ladies. We are so proud of you all. We will be bringing you more guides on health and nutrition so keep an eye out for them.