Importance of Fitness and Mental Well Being During COVID-19 Pandemic

The world is going through a tough time. It is global havoc. In these uncertain times, it's very easy to lose hope and get distracted from being fit, considering most of us are staying and working from home.

Dr Hanaan Choudhary is a Delhi based full-time medical practitioner and a fitness and lifestyle influencer. At one hand, he is treating COVID-19 patients, and on the other, he is helping people with free medical and fitness guidance, as and when he gets time from his busy schedule. It is his vision to transform this world into a fit and healthy place.

In the words of Dr Hanaan Choudhary, "Medicine and fitness are my two passions, and this is a great way of being productive even in my hours away from the hospital."

According to him, there is so much misconception regarding fitness and diet prevailing among the youth. There are people who are willing to do anything to get into shape, and they blindly trust their so-called fitness gurus and trainers without realizing the amount of damage they're doing to themselves by using unnatural supplements and faulty advice.

Since the start of this lockdown, everyone seemed to enjoy the initial few weeks, but as the time passed, it became challenging for people to stay fit, both mentally and physically as the stagnant lifestyle took over. Here we have some valuable inputs from the Inspiring Hanaan Choudhary explaining how to keep health and fitness on point.

With zero to no access to gyms, it might seem impossible to maintain a fit body. But Dr Choudhary does not agree to this. He says, we have to manage with what we have. The goal should be weight control at this time. For optimal weight loss, the best time to do cardio is 1st thing in the morning empty stomach. Studies have proved that fasted cardio can help shed fat faster than any other way. 30-40 mins of cardio which can be just walking inside the house followed by 10-20 mins of bodyweight exercise like knee down push up's, star jump, chin up's, free weight lunges or jumping lunges, squats and 5 mins of crunches are more than enough to drip you in sweat. If that's not enough, you could just turn to the youtube and try various home workouts. All you need is your yoga mat, and your will to complete the workout.

The most basic principle of being healthy is - "You are what you eat". One good thing which came out from this disastrous situation is that most of us are eating homemade food. However, that doesn't mean eating at home can be all healthy. The key is to consume a balanced diet and avoid eating processed food as much as possible. Being in a CALORIC DEFICIT zone with the inclusion of high protein, low carbohydrate, and fat diet are the systematic ways to lose weight.

Improve the sleep cycle as it is very important to schedule our sleep duration and time. Staying up and waking up late will lead to detrimental effects on your body and mind. A minimum of 8 hours is more than sufficient.

Keep yourself active and busy when you are at home. Doing household chores can help you being fit and will physiologically improve the mental well-being. For example, take the stairs instead of elevators. A simple task of doing the dishes or meditating for 15 minutes will provide you with peace. Try a new recipe, write an article, talk to your friends and relatives or pickup that instrument which you bought but never got time to practice.

Be productive, proactive and accountable for your life. Because one day, when this crisis is over, you will have to be ready to get back to your busy life and do everything with the same energy and fervour.

About The Author - HANAAN CHOUDHARY

Dr Hanaan Choudhary states, “Keep the fire burning. Look for the light in the darkest of places, you will succeed.”