Hi, I am Dollie Gary, from Rochelle Park. I am a housewife as well as a nutrition specialist by profession. I love to spend free time reading articles about health and fitness.
For those of us who are still hunkered down at home with family right now, it may be harder to get in a daily workout. Instead of aiming to get in that solo session, now is a great time to include the whole family. Exercise has been shown to not only support mood and cognitive function but also have a positive effect on social connection.
Here are some ways to get in a family-wide sweat session:
Host or join a virtual dance party. Crank up your family’s favorite playlist, and break out your best moves in the comfort of your living room. Don’t forget to invite extended family to join virtually too!
Get them into yoga. Adaptable for all ages, yoga is a great way to get everyone moving and possibly reduce a little stress. Fitbit Premium has a wide range of yoga videos with short to long practices and targeted sessions to suit the household’s needs.
Engage in some healthy competition. For those who can go outside, starting a household mini sports league or a one-on-one match in your yard may be a fun form of friendly competition.
Let the little ones take the lead. When a child plays they often move up and down, run in spurts, and use their whole body. Encourage the littlest family members to pretend like they are their favorite animal and follow along. It may feel a little silly at first but there might actually be a lot of benefits to this kind of playful movement.
Follow along with kids’ exercise programs. Websites like GoNoodle offer videos for kids to move and learn that the whole family can enjoy. Free2Play teaches foundational exercises that benefit both children and caregivers.
End each evening with a walk, when possible. As the world continues adapting our new normal, creating a new routine—that abides by local social distancing mandates—can help with the adjustment. Going for a walk with the whole family can be a great way to get in steps, create memories, and connect us to the natural world. Walking right after meals has also been shown to help control blood glucose levels in those with Type II Diabetes.
Get in the garden. For those with the ability to grow a garden, consider recruiting each family member to have their own role maintaining it. Weeding, raking leaves, and mowing can get heart rates up, plus some time spent in the sunlight has its own benefits, too.
Find community. Every family has its own set of unique challenges during this time and maintaining health on top of this transition may feel overwhelming. Seeking new support systems who share the same values and similar struggles can help ease some of the stress. Fitbit Premium’s community groups are a great resource for connecting with others, receiving and providing support, and getting new inspiration for staying healthy.
Inspire a tidy up challenge. Getting kids to clean up after themselves can be a challenge, so why not make it into one? Set a timer for 10 minutes, turn up the music, and ask everyone to tidy up as many things as they can. Not only can this encourage everyone to get in a short burst of movement but removing the clutter can ease some stress and encourage productivity.
Be a role model. Not everyone in the household may enjoy exercise to the same degree but consistent modeling of an active lifestyle can encourage other family members to get up and move as well.
People across the globe are all working together in the fight against COVID-19. For our part, we have already been working with Scripps Research and Stanford Medicine to see if Fitbit data can help identify infectious diseases. It’s important work and we were inspired to build on it.
Now, we’re announcing the first-ever Fitbit COVID-19 Study, an unprecedented study designed to see if wearing a Fitbit can identify COVID-19 in its earliest stages. It’s a chance to find out if the technology we’ve built to help you get healthy might help prevent you and your family from getting sick.
It’s a big goal. But big goals are in our DNA. Over the past two months, we’ve been preparing the technology, the teams, and the partners to bring this study to life. Now, we need your help to make a potentially game-changing scientific breakthrough.
If you are over the age of 21 and living in the United States or Canada—and especially if you have had or currently have COVID-19 or symptoms consistent with the flu—we ask you to join us in this fight. All you have to do is visit the Fitbit app, sign up, answer a few questions, and continue to wear your Fitbit tracker or smartwatch. Data from your Fitbit can help create an algorithm that could detect COVID-19 before symptoms even start.
Your participation can make an incredible impact. Thank you for your support and for inspiring us to do more.
If you’re a gym-goer, it may feel like you’ve run out of options lately. Most gyms are closed, some with no signs of reopening anytime soon; many sporting goods stores are also, although some may be reopening for curbside pickup. If you’ve tried to find a set of dumbbells or other exercise equipment online, you may have run into a few snags with shipping delays or lack of availability.
The good news is that even amidst all of these obstacles, you can still get in a decent workout. For instance, some exercises don’t require any equipment at all. “You can create some pretty taxing circuits with basically anything that uses your body weight against gravity,” says Jessica O’Connell, a Canadian Olympic track and field athlete who co-founded the online athletic training company Grit Coaching with professional obstacle runner Faye Stenning. Burpees, bear crawls, jumping jacks, and planks are all viable options right in your living room (or bedroom, or basement, or backyard). Even shoes are optional!
To go beyond bodyweight exercises, however, you’ll have to get creative and start repurposing things you already own. The following list of household items can double up as workout equipment: You can mix, match, and definitely add to the list!
Firm chair as a weight bench. You won’t be able to lie down for bench presses or skull crushers (you’re better off laying on the floor to do these), but an uncushioned chair can work well for other “weight bench” exercises. Bent-over single-arm rows and tricep dips are two examples, and you can also prop your feet up for things like decline push-ups or Bulgarian split squats. However, for step-ups, O’Connell recommends using a regular stair, for safety purposes.
Couch cushion as a BOSU. If you’re not familiar with a BOSU, it’s the item in the gym that looks like an exercise ball (or “Swiss ball”) cut in half. You use it to engage all those little muscles you need for stability and balance. Try a couch cushion to replicate this unstable surface for exercises like lunges, squats, and push-ups.
Gallon jugs as kettlebells. Buy a gallon of water—or use an empty gallon of milk—and you suddenly have a do-it-yourself kettlebell. (Clean laundry detergent jugs are another option.) Start by filling the jug with water; according to O’Connell, if you fill it to the top, a gallon of water weighs just over eight pounds or three-and-a-quarter kilograms.
Then, if you want more weight, she suggests filling the jug with gravel. Sand and loose change are two other options, depending on what you have on hand. Just remember that unlike a kettlebell, the contents in your jug can shift or slosh, so be sure that you’re engaging your core when you try this.
A variety of different household items as weights. When it comes to weights, there are a lot of options depending on (a) the exercise you’re trying to do and (b) how much weight you want. For instance, if you’re looking to do a tricep extension where ordinarily you’d lower a dumbbell behind your head, a cast-iron skillet is a great substitute for the dumbbell, because it has a handle that’s easy to grip. A standard 12” skillet typically weighs around eight pounds, so depending on size, yours will probably weigh between four and twelve pounds.
Here are some other weight substitutes:
Very light weights: canned goods (which are sold by weight, so just remember that 16oz = one pound)
Light weights: full water bottles (remember: you can fill them with sand or coins to increase the weight)
Medium weights: hardcover textbooks, wine bottles (which, if they’re screw-tops, you can fill)
Heavy weights: reusable shopping, canvas tote bags, duffle bags, backpacks, or suitcases, all of which you can fill with items (clothing, canned goods, or books, depending upon desired weight)
Dish towels as sliders. Sliders or “gliding discs” look like small, flat frisbees that you use to slide across a smooth surface with your hands and feet. O’Connell recommends dish towels or socks as substitutes on a hardwood or tile floor. “Training might not look like it normally does,” she acknowledges. “But there are probably pieces of your training that you’ve neglected, like mobility or stabilization muscles.” Slider exercises are ideal for working on these types of weaknesses. Popular moves include knee tucks, mountain climbers, curtsey lunges, and plank jacks.
The bottom line is that while you might not be able to train the exact way you want to, you shouldn’t give up. “People take breaks all the time and come back fitter,” says O’Connell. “Doing something versus nothing makes that substantially easier.”
Consult your doctor before engaging in any of the above exercises, especially if you are prone to injuries, are pregnant or nursing, or have any other unique or special medical conditions. Substitute equipment is not a substitute for using proper form and safety precautions, and if you experience discomfort or a medical emergency, stop and consult with a medical professional.
If you’re one of many who have had to make the adjustment to working remotely, you probably know by now that it can be harder than it looks. Maybe you haven’t gotten the whole “morning routine” thing down just yet, or at this point, you may be feeling like you’re stuck in a rut with your daily routine in general. It’s easy to feel that way, and if you do, you’re certainly not alone—but that doesn’t mean you can’t break out of the rut and set yourself up for success as much as possible.
If you’re reading this, chances are you want to make a change. The first step? Being more intentional about your mornings. Keep reading for tips and tricks on how to create a successful morning routine, especially if you’re still adapting to working remotely.
Create a go-to morning routine with these habits
Plan ahead according to your needs. If you’re not a morning person, chances are you won’t be at your best at 7 AM. If you’re foggy until 10 AM, don’t try to force yourself to join the early risers club right away—make it work for you instead! Or, if it can’t be avoided (say you’ve got an early meeting on Zoom, or have a tight deadline), then prep ahead of time. Jot down some notes for the meeting or set an alarm on your Fitbit watch as a reminder to get you in the zone and ready to make moves, no matter what time it is.
Create a to-do list the day before. This will help you mentally prepare for the day ahead in advance, organizing your brain so that you can get straight to work the next morning. Be sure to list the tasks on your list in order of priority, with the more significant tasks ranked higher up than the rest. In his book, Eat That Frog! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, author Brian Tracy tells us, “‘If you have to eat two frogs, eat the ugliest one first.’ This is another way of saying that if you have two important tasks before you, start with the biggest, hardest, and most important task first.”
The idea is that most of us have lengthy to-do lists on any given workday, and we’re not always likely to finish them. If we eat the frog first and get it out of the way, we’ll be more naturally motivated to check off the rest of our less difficult tasks in a more organic way.
Find out what wake-up time is right for you, then stick to it. Bedtime consistency is key. You already know that a regular bedtime betters your health by improving energy, focus, and even immunity, helping you to power through your day. Keeping your circadian rhythm dialed in will also help your body to adjust and wake you up naturally at the optimal time the next morning. But if you’re still working on that, you can try using Smart Wake on your smartwatch to avoid waking yourself up while in deep sleep.
Want to start waking up earlier? Try doing so in five- or ten-minute increments, so that you can introduce it to your schedule on a gradual basis, and make it less of a shock to the system.
Change out of your pajamas. If you’re working remotely, this is crucial—even if it’s just changing from your sleep pajamas to your work-from-home pajamas. Hey, we’re not judging! And, if we’re looking on the bright side, it certainly is cozier to be able to work in your sweatpants. So, even if you are putting on sweats for the third time this week already, what matters here is the shift that changing from your PJ’s into your “work attire” creates in your brain, signaling that you are now ready to get to work.
Another big one is moving from your bed to a designated work station—even if it is your couch. Need tips on creating a better work-from-home environment/ergonomic workspace? Check them out here.
Eat a healthy breakfast. A meal with 20 grams of protein will help curb cravings and keep sugar crashes at bay. Try any (or all!) of these high-powered breakfast ideas to power your morning and get you through all those Zoom meetings on your calendar with plenty of focus.
Go for a walk. Simulate a commute by going for a walk. Of course, this depends on what your schedule’s like on any given day, but even fitting in a brisk walk around the block can help “trick” your brain into thinking that it’s going somewhere, which will, in turn, get you to gear yourself up for work mode. If you’ve got the time, listen to an inspiring or motivational podcast during your walk—or, make it more mindful by leaving your phone at home and observing little details about your immediate scenery that you might not usually pay attention to.
Take it easy on yourself. If you’re not able to fit in all of the components of a successful and consistent morning routine every day, that’s okay. The shift to working remotely is a new one for many of us and one that is likely to have lasting effects on our society. The same goes for productivity levels—go easy on yourself. You’re doing your best, and every day is an opportunity to start anew.
If you need help adjusting,consider talking to a mental health provider to receive care by phone or virtually. If you’re in the US, you can use the COVID-19 resource tab in your Fitbit app to book a virtual doctor’s visit with PlushCare, a team of board-certified doctors that can address medical needs from ongoing conditions to prescription refills and more. Learn more about ithere.
Anyone who’s ever been diagnosed with a mental health condition knows how vital therapy can be. And even if you don’t currently see a therapist, you may be experiencing anxiety, depression, or other emotions that would be beneficial to work through with a professional. What do you do when you can’t make an in-person appointment? Use telemedicine.
Teletherapy allows you to connect with a licensed mental health professional over a video call and receive the same care you would in person. But since this is new for a lot of people—including providers—consider the following techniques to make the most of your remote therapy sessions.
Be sure you’re safe. Some therapists, but not all, use a HIPAA-compliant platform, rather than a public service like Zoom. This keeps your information private and safe, explains clinical psychologist Merva Gur, PhD. So ask what your provider uses, and be flexible. “If a patient’s internet service drops, we’ll speak on the phone until they’re back online,” she adds.
Give yourself a “commute.” If you see a therapist in person, you have the time to drive or commute there to allow your brain to shift from what you had been focusing on to what you want to work on in therapy. But when you’re working from home, it can be tempting to jump straight from a work call to therapy. Don’t. Take five or 10 minutes to get your laptop or phone set up for the session and also think about what’s happened since your last session. What challenges arose? How has your mood been? Gur tries to ask these kinds of questions at the beginning of a session to help patients transition, but not all providers do this. And even if yours does, it can help to first think these things through alone so you know what you hope to get from your meeting.
Strive for privacy. If you live in a tiny apartment with roommates or family, it may seem impossible to find seclusion for therapy. Do your best. Tell whomever you live with when you will need privacy. Consider asking your roommate to take a walk during that time, or if you have children and a partner, can they keep the kids busy so you don’t have to worry about them? If you don’t have a partner, or they aren’t available, can the baby’s nap time work? You can also see if anyone has noise-canceling headphones they can wear while you’re on the video call in the other room. And talk to your therapist, as most will be accommodating to your schedule.
Expect a change. Remote therapy will not be the same experience as therapy in an office. Your provider may ask more questions since they can’t tell, for instance, if you’ve lost or gained weight, which could be signs of depression or anxiety. If, however, any of their questions or comments discomfort you, bring it up, Gur says. “This is not the time to worry about hurting my feelings, and it’s a really good practice in asserting yourself.” You can gently ask something like, “Hmm, I’ve never heard you ask that before. I’m curious why you’d like to know that?”
Be open. Honesty is already important with therapy, as it leads to the most benefit. Now is the time to be even more open, because meeting over a video can ironically feel a bit disconnecting. “Talk about it,” Gur says. Working through these feelings may help you identify patterns in your life and then, with your therapist, you can develop tools to cope.If you’re new, share all. “It can be difficult to start with a new therapist if you haven’t met them before,” Gur acknowledges. But that doesn’t mean you can’t start therapy for the first time by using teletherapy. Consider a site like Psychology Today or Good Therapy to search for providers, and check out their websites to learn how they work with clients. Many will offer a short, free phone call before your first appointment to be sure you feel they’re right for you. Once you find the one, most will have an intake form. Be as detailed as possible. “Mine is 10 pages, and it really helps you to think about what’s going on in your life,” Gur says. “It’s super helpful right now to give me some sort of background so I can identify what would be most helpful to work on with a patient.”
We all have moments of feeling down or blah and usually, a great exercise sesh can kick those doldrums to the curb. But when you’re feeling a little blue, adding mood-boosting foods to your diet may help, too. You’ve heard that you are what you eat and if the foods you’re eating are making you feel lethargic and in a funk, then it’s time to nosh on some upgraded meals.
Read on to learn more about how certain foods can boost your energy and outlook. Note that if you have been feeling down for a few weeks and can’t shake those sad thoughts, reach out to your doc to make sure it’s not something more serious, like depression.
Here’s how food impacts your mental health. There is a strong link between the mind and body. “Stress and anxiety can deeply affect your GI tract, immune system, and sleep, which in turn affects all aspects of your wellbeing,” says Brittany Modell, MS, RD, CDN, founder of Brittany Modell Nutrition and Wellness. Studies show that what you eat—and don’t eat—can influence your risk of developing mental disorders like anxiety and depression.
That’s why a nutrient-rich diet is a key component for mental wellbeing. A study in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that diets rich in vegetables, fruit, fish, and whole grains have been linked to better mental outcomes than diets that were high in processed foods, fried foods, refined grains, sugary products, and beer.
When you’re feeling low, these foods contain nutrients shown to impact your mood.
Dark chocolate. That feeling of calm you get after nibbling this treat isn’t in your head—it’s real! Chocolate has been linked to the neurotransmitter, serotonin, a mood-altering chemical, which might explain why you feel good after eating it. Savor a small amount of good-quality dark chocolate, which is lower in added sugars and high in antioxidants.
Berries. Take advantage of berry season this summer by adding these fruits to your meals and snacks. “Their mood-boosting nutrients include fiber, healthy carbs, and antioxidants,” says Modell. Carbohydrates fuel the production of the feel-good chemical, serotonin.
Salmon. “The brain is constantly making new brain cells and connections between cells called synapses,” says Modell. “Omega-3 fatty acids found in fatty fish, such as salmon, can help strengthen synapses.” Those fatty acids also play a critical role in reducing inflammation, which can impair brain function. “Although the mechanism is unclear, omega-3 fatty acids may decrease the risk of anxiety symptoms by neutralizing the high concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokines often seen with depression and anxiety,” says Modell. If you’re not a fan of fish, you can get omega-3s in your diet from flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, walnuts, and canola oil.
Pumpkin Seeds. This superfood makes the good-mood food list because it’s rich in magnesium. “When you are stressed, your magnesium levels may become compromised and get depleted more easily,” says Modell. Extended periods of stress—chronic stress—may result in a progressive magnesium deficit, she says. “Magnesium helps counteract stress.” Other magnesium-rich foods include Brazil nuts, edamame, salmon, tofu, quinoa, and green leafy vegetables.
Whole-grains. Healthy carbs like whole-grain pasta, oatmeal, brown rice, and popcorn are also on the list of foods that can improve your mood overall. (Yes, that huge white bagel might make you happy for a little while, but soon afterward you’ll experience a blood sugar crash and your energy levels will feel low again.) “Low-carb diets, such as Atkins or ketogenic diets may influence how the brain distributes and responds to the serotonin it makes,” says Modell. “A low-carb diet can [impact] mood and energy levels [negatively].”
Modell suggests to get a boost by opting for whole food carbohydrates sources, such as fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. “Refined and processed sugars have been linked with poor energy and mood swings as well as inflammation and poor mental health status,” she says.
In general, switching to a whole foods diet that has less processed foods might enhance your overall mood, advises Modell. What do you have to lose?
Wearables, like Fitbit trackers and smartwatches, are currently being used in research studies from partners like the Scripps Research Translational Institute and the Stanford Medicine Healthcare Innovation Lab to see if wearable data can help detect the early onset of infectious diseases, like the flu and COVID-19, even before symptoms start.
Today, we are building on these partnerships with the launch of the Fitbit COVID-19 Study, available right in the Fitbit app. This study will help determine whether Fitbit can help build an algorithm to detect COVID-19 before symptoms start. If you are over the age of 21, living in the United States or Canada and have had or currently have COVID-19, or symptoms consistent with the flu, we invite you to answer a few quick questions to help contribute to this important research as Fitbit tries to develop this algorithm.
The study features a short series of questions that can be found in the Assessments & Reports section of your Discover tab and will just take a few minutes to complete. We will ask you about:
Whether or not you have, have had, or may have had flu or COVID-19
Any symptoms you are experiencing or may have experienced
Additional related details regarding your medical history and demographics
These answers will be used in conjunction with other indicators in your Fitbit data to help researchers try to determine early signs of COVID-19 and flu. Participation is entirely voluntary and you can withdraw at any time.
We appreciate you helping us work to try to better detect and respond to viral illness outbreaks, like COVID-19.
Interested in more ways to get involved in COVID-19 research efforts? Learn more about the Scripps DETECT study and the Stanford Healthcare Innovation Lab COVID-19 PROTECT wearables studyhere.
Last month, we looked at the impact of COVID-19 on sleep patterns. Seven weeks later we decided to see if the trend toward more sleep had continued and to dive deeper into the data. We found that during stay-at-home orders, the majority of Fitbit users around the world slept more and got better sleep.
On average, US Fitbit users posted 20 more minutes of sleep per night in April than they did the same month a year earlier, potentially due to the lack of work and school commutes, Fitbit data shows.
The changing sleep patterns began in March when stay-at-home orders started. By the end of March, 30 states had stay-at-home orders and 13 states had similar orders for parts of the state. By late April, 95% of the US population was instructed to stay home.
People slept longer in April globally, too, including in London, Madrid, Paris, and Singapore, with smaller gains evident in Stockholm and Tokyo.
In addition to sleeping more, the April data shows we went to bed an average of 13 minutes later, which means we got up later, and one minute or more of deep sleep, which can benefit cellular rebuilding and repair, make you feel more refreshed, and strengthen your immune system.
Millennials Improve Bedtime Consistency
Younger women, ages 18 to 29, saw the biggest boost in sleep, getting 28 minutes more per night in April than the same month a year earlier. Young men were up there too, with 22 minutes of extra sleep per night in April from a year earlier.
Younger people also experienced the biggest changes to bedtime consistency in April by going to bed later during the week but keeping weekend bedtimes about the same. Maintaining a consistent bedtime routine can have a large impact on mood, stress, and energy levels, and results in less social jet lag. Social jet lag is associated with poorer health, worse mood and increased sleepiness and fatigue, and occurs when you go to bed and wake up later on weekends than during the week.
Before shelter-in-place, 18 to 29-year-olds in Chicago, for instance, turned in at 11:37 PM on average on the weekdays. That shifted to 12:01 AM in April while weekend bedtimes didn’t change as much. Similar patterns were evident elsewhere, including in Madrid. Midweek bedtimes there pushed past 1 AM for young people in April versus closer to midnight in January.
Women Sleeping the Most
Women experienced the biggest increase in sleep, with those ages 18 to 29 getting an average of 28 more minutes in April versus the same month a year ago, and women ages 30 to 49 getting 24 more minutes. Men in the same age groups got 22 and 19 more minutes, respectively.
Older People Most Consistent
People 65 and older racked up the smallest sleep gains, with 13 minutes more in April for women versus a year ago and 16 minutes for men. They also had smaller changes in bedtimes, with women going to bed 9 minutes later in April versus a year ago and men 6 minutes later.
Small Sleep Changes Have Big Health Benefits
Your body recharges while you sleep, repairing and building tissue and muscle. Levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, fall during the evening. Getting a recommended seven to nine hours of sleep a night also boosts immunity.
An extra 20 minutes may not seem like a lot, but for many people it may make the difference between insufficient sleep, and enough sleep needed for better functioning. This is especially true for the millions of people out there getting just a little bit less sleep than they need. Also, 20 minutes per night, averaged over a month of recording, equates to about 10 more hours of sleep in 30 days. “Even small amounts of sleep can add up,” says Michael Grandner, MD, director of the Sleep and Health Research Program at the University of Arizona in Tucson and a Fitbit sleep consultant.
Deep Sleep Gains
Deep sleep is the sleep stage that is all about the body. The thinking parts of the brain go quiet. Muscles relax. You’re not dreaming and your body is doing a lot of rebuilding and repairing. Deep sleep typically makes up 10 percent to 25 percent (depending on your age) of your sleep.
Once your body gets the deep sleep it needs, you start going into REM (rapid eye movement) and light sleep. REM is very important for emotion regulation and memory. It’s also the peak of protein synthesis at the cellular level, which keeps many processes in the body working properly.
Now that states are opening up more activities, we’ll continue to watch for trends to sleep stages and times. However, if the daily commute only slowly resumes for a majority of people, there might still be some extra sleep for many of us.
Working remotely? You’ll want to do everything you can to make the situation as comfortable as possible—and that all starts with your workstation. An ergonomic work setup is recommended as a way to help stay productive and pain-free throughout the day. But how, exactly, do you set up an ergonomic workstation in your home—whether you’re working from a home office, squeezing a desk into your bedroom, or setting up shop at your kitchen table?
Why is an ergonomic workstation important?
Before we jump into how to set up an ergonomic workstation, let’s talk about why ergonomics are so important in the first place. “When situated in front of a computer most of the day, the body pays a price, including posture,” says Dr. Derrell Blackburn, D.C., Senior Manager of Chiropractic Relations and Training at The Joint Chiropractic. “When sitting, the hips flex, shoulders hunch, the chest caves, and the head drops forward, shortening and tightening the body’s muscles. As a result, the body begins to compensate and create postures that may be more comfortable, but do come with risks.”
Your body will eventually adapt to these postures—and can cause serious issues in your body, including chronic pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, and postural changes. “Over time, muscle tightness can lock into place, creating pain and reducing mobility,” says Blackburn.
An ergonomic workstation can help to alleviate those issues by supporting “natural, healthy posture and maximizing efficiency,” says Blackburn. By customizing your workspace (for example, adjusting the height of your computer screen or the angle of your arms while using your mouse), you can minimize your risk for injury and pain—and make your experience working from home less uncomfortable and more productive.
How can you make sure your work-from-home setup isn’t a pain in the neck (or back…or anywhere else), when shopping for new office furniture isn’t always an option?
Use your library to elevate your computer screen
Having your computer screen at the right height while you work is one of the cornerstones of an ergonomic workstation; your screen should be at or just below eye level so you can avoid straining your neck by looking up or down.
But if the surface you’re working on doesn’t give you quite the height you need (for example, if you’re working from your kitchen table), there’s a simple solution—and you can easily find that solution on your bookshelf.
Blackburn recommends “stacking some books already on hand to ensure the computer screen is at or just below eye level to avoid looking down.” Not only will the books elevate your computer screen to the proper level, but it’s also an easy and portable solution—so if you need to move your workstation throughout the day, it’s simple to recreate your ergonomic setup.
Keep things at the right distance
Height is an important part of building an ergonomic workstation—but so is distance. If you’re having to reach to the far corner of your desk every time you need to move your mouse, it’s probably too far away. Ideally, you want to keep your arms at a comfortable 90-degree angle while you work.
“Keep your mouse and keyboard relatively close—shoot for a 90-degree bend in the elbow with the forearms right at desk height,” says Blake Dircksen, Doctor of Physical Therapy at Bespoke Treatments. “Wherever your hands end up on the desk is where your keyboard should be, and right next to that should be your mouse.”
Sit properly
Even if you set up your workstation perfectly, you can still put yourself at risk if your sitting posture is not-so-perfect. So, how should you be sitting while working from home? “Keep the back straight to avoid leaning forward or straining the neck,” says Blackburn. “Use a footrest if the chair is too tall. This could be anything easily found around the house, like a stack of books, a pillow, or even an empty box that may be laying around.”
Not only will sitting properly at your WFH workstation help keep pain and other body issues at bay, but it can also help to improve your overall posture. “Maintaining certain body angles will help predispose someone to better posture,” says Blackburn.
Make a DIY standing desk
Sitting properly is great—but if you really want to support your body, switch things up and try standing for a while. “Standing while working…supports the strengthening of the spinal curves and its natural weight carrying function,” says Blackburn. “While standing you are also incorporating your pelvis, which balances the spine and adds another component of ergonomic support to the ‘S’ shaped curve of the spine that acts as a spring and dampens the force of any gravitational impact and repetitive force.”
If you have a standing desk at home, great! But if not, no worries—all you have to do is grab your laptop and your ergonomic workstation supplies and scope out some higher real estate in your home. “See if you can move your workstation to a stand-up spot, perhaps at a kitchen counter while it’s not in use for cooking chores,” says wellness design consultant Jamie Gold, author of the upcoming Wellness by Design: A Room-by-Room Guide to Optimizing Your Home for Health, Fitness, and Happiness.
Get up and move
Setting up an ergonomic workstation is important—but so is stepping away from that workstation throughout the day. “Sitting at a desk for hours, even in the most supportive chair [or setup], isn’t healthy,” says Gold. “Get up at regular intervals and move around.”
“Every 30 minutes or so you should be out of the chair—walking, bending, twisting, getting blood flow and nutrition back to the spine, upper, and lower body,” says Dircksen. In addition to getting up and moving regularly, make sure you’re also taking time to stretch while you’re working. Taking five minutes to give your shoulders, back, and neck a good stretch can make sitting (or standing) at your workstation a lot more comfortable throughout the day!
Whether you work with a personal trainer, pay for an app, or use free YouTube workouts, virtual training is an excellent option. You can pick a class according to what equipment (if any) you have and often do it anytime, anywhere. Whether you’re a bodyweight HIIT die-hard, have been curious about boxing, or love to try dance cardio today, Pilates tomorrow, and strength training the next, you can satisfy your thirst for some serious sweat or incredible stretching.
At the same time, virtual training is certainly not the same as in-person one-on-one sessions or group fitness classes. So keep the following things in mind in order to get the most from your video workouts.
Stay injury-free. Without a trainer to point out when your chest is falling forward in a squat, how are you supposed to know if you’re using proper form? Look for instructors and videos that cue you through each exercise, saying where you should be feeling every movement and how to breathe, recommends exercise physiologist John Ford, ACSM, founder of JKF Fitness & Health. And, of course, listen to those cues. If what they describe isn’t what you’re experiencing in your body, stop and adjust your form. Also be sure to pick a workout that’s appropriate for your fitness level and if any exercise is too hard, modify it.
Build in accountability. Paying for a workout often creates more incentive to show up to the fitness studio. So does having a rapport with the instructor and workout buddies who sweat with you. On the other hand, when you’re doing free workouts online by yourself, you need to keep yourself accountable. For some, that means scheduling your workouts every week and blocking out those times so nothing can get in the way. For others, that means “meeting” friends virtually to do the same workout together, while adhering to social distancing.
Still others may prefer to have someone they check in with at a set time every day to tell them, “Yep, I went for a run today.” Or perhaps you choose a reward like a new outfit or a massage gun and only purchase it if you work out three times a week every week for a month. Find what works for you!
Push it. It can be harder to give it your all during a workout when nobody is right beside you encouraging you. “We often settle into the habit of getting things done,” Ford says, and just go through the motions. “But workouts are unique, in that you can do them really well to the degree you’re capable in that moment.”
He works with his clients so that they do workouts with intention: You focus on using good form over quantity of reps, even if that means doing a solid 15 seconds of an exercise and resting the remaining 15 seconds of that 30-second interval. This gives you a baseline so that the next workout, you can try to do more reps with proper form. “It’s a good gauge of how you are improving over the weeks,” Ford explains.
Does anxiety have you tossing and turning every night? Are you having trouble falling and staying asleep? If the answer is yes, you’re not alone. Anxiety is high across the board right now—and for many people, that anxiety is translating into some serious sleep issues. But getting enough high-quality sleep is a must to protect your mental and physical health—which is especially important as we navigate through these times and resulting stressors.
“Short-term sleep deprivation itself can cause stress, irritability, trouble focusing, and reduce alertness,” says Dr. Kent Smith, the founding director of dental sleep medicine practice Sleep Dallas. “Long-term sleep deprivation increases a person’s risk for more serious chronic illnesses including obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Getting at least seven hours of sleep per night not only improves one’s physical health, but it can also help improve a person’s mental health and overall wellbeing.”
But how, exactly, can you get your sleep back on track? Let’s take a look at expert-backed tips to help get a handle on your anxiety, improve your sleep hygiene, and have an easier time falling (and staying!) asleep:
Why Some People are Struggling with Sleep Right Now
Feeling stressed, anxious, and worried can inhibit your body’s ability to fall and stay asleep. “Fear, anxiety, worry, and overall stress affect sleep because it causes our bodies to produce high levels of the hormone cortisol,” says Smith. “Excessive cortisol levels disrupt healthy sleep patterns and may result in short-term or long-term sleep deprivation.”
Sleep issues are a normal side effect of the stress and anxiety you may be experiencing right now. But the good news? There are ways to get your sleep cycles back on track—and get the high-quality sleep you need to feel your best.
“Anxiety and insomnia can create a vicious no-sleep cycle,” says Smith. “However, practicing good sleep hygiene and relaxation techniques on a consistent basis may help break this cycle by making it easier for a person to fall asleep at night, and/or reducing the number of times [they] wake up in the middle of the night.”
Let’s take a look at some practices you can work into your daily routine to help better manage your anxiety and improve your sleep:
Get Your Sweat On
One of the best things you can do for your sleep happens long before your head hits the pillow—and that’s getting in a good workout.
“Exercise can help reduce anxiety and improve sleep,” says Dr. Alex Dimitriu, double board-certified in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “Exercise helps the body set its natural rhythm and tells the brain that this is a time to be awake. It [also] boosts endorphins and provides an outlet to release tension and pent up energy.”
If you want to help manage your anxious feelings and improve your sleep quality, get your heart rate up every day. Head outside for a brisk walk or jog, search YouTube for a sweat-inducing cardio workout, or do a circuit of pushups, situps, and other bodyweight exercises. Whatever exercise feels fun and doable for you, make it part of your daily routine. Exercising each day can help improve your mood and reduce stress hormones (like cortisol)—both of which can make it easier to fall and stay asleep.
Just make sure to “stop exercise 4 hours before bed,” says sleep expert Dr. Michael Breus. Working out delivers a potent dose of energy, which is great during the daylight hours—but if you get the boost of energy too close to bedtime, it can actually make it harder to drift to sleep.
Say No to Screens Before Bed
The evening hours might seem like the perfect time to binge-watch Netflix, catch up on the day’s news, or scroll through your social media feeds. But if you want to get better sleep, it’s important to disconnect from screens well before bedtime.
“Our brains are not good at going from full throttle to sleep,” says Dimitriu. “There has to be time in between to slow down.” For example, “computers are interactive, and reward us for interaction with interesting bits of news and information. This keeps the brain going, and makes it hard to slow down for sleep time.”
The stimulation you get from engaging in screens can make it extremely difficult to fall asleep—but the light from those screens can be just as damaging to your sleep cycles. “Screens [on] smartphones or computers are bright and often have blue light, which also suppresses melatonin,” says Dimitriu.
If you want to make it easier to fall asleep at night, disengage from all screens and electronics at least an hour before bedtime. Instead, try reading a book until you’re feeling drowsy enough to turn off the light and catch some Zzz’s.
Your environment can make it easier or harder to fall and stay asleep. So, if you want to improve the quality and duration of your sleep, changing your environment is a great place to start.
According to Smith, a few easy changes to your sleep environment can make a big difference in your ability to fall and stay asleep. “Sleep in total blackness. If that is not possible, wear an eye mask,” says Smith. “Sleep in total silence. If that is not possible, use earplugs.”
If there are noises in your environment you can’t control (like loud neighbors or street noise), “a white noise machine can help drown out disruptive noises,” says Smith.
A quick adjustment to the thermostat can also make it easier to fall and stay asleep. “Sleep at the right temperature,” says Smith. “The optimal bedroom temperature for quality sleep is between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Use Journaling to Manage Anxious Thoughts
If anxious thoughts are keeping you up at night, sometimes getting those thoughts out of your head and onto paper can make a huge difference in helping you get to sleep. “If you have trouble sleeping because your mind is racing, writing your feelings down can help relieve your mind of unwanted or troubling thoughts,” says Smith.
Keep a journal or a notebook by your bed. If your mind is racing and you’re dealing with anxious thoughts—whether that’s before you go to bed or if you wake up in the middle of the night—grab a pen and take a few minutes to jot those thoughts down.
Writing down your thoughts and feelings can help get them out of your head, making it easier to relax—and easier to fall and stay asleep.
Unwind With Yoga and Deep Breathing
Your mind needs to be relaxed in order to fall asleep—but so does your body. “In most cases, people need a heart rate of 60 or below to enter into a state of unconsciousness,” says Breus.
So, what are some good ways to unwind and relax the body before bed? “Practicing yoga or deep breathing are good ways to relax and improve the duration and quality of your sleep,” says Smith.
Try using deep breathing techniques (like the 4-7-8 breath) or doing a restorative yoga practice before bed; both will help to relax your body and mind—and make it easier to get a good night’s sleep.
For as long as I can remember, I told my clients to set a daily step goal. I told them: I don’t care how you do it—walk, run, dance, clean, take the stairs, or even crawl if you have to. The goal is to do a certain amount of movement each day. However, there is another way to look at movement, like how hard we work when we move. Sometimes we move with more intensity than other times. For example, when I chose to get rid of my coffee machine at home and now walk to the local coffee shop in the morning to get my espresso instead. All I cared about was just adding comfortable, easy steps to my day.
Other times I want to move with more intensity, purpose, and direction. I want to get my heart rate up a bit more, sweat, and burn, which is why I suggest familiarizing yourself with Fitbit’s Active Zone Minutes, or AZM.* The new Fitbit Charge 4 is the first Fitbit device that can actually measure and keep track of your Active Zone Minutes.
Think about jogging versus walking, a resistance circuit with very short or no breaks in between each set, or throwing in a cardio burst between every other set—or even each set. Moving with Active Zone Minutes gives you a whole new set of benefits, including an increase in workout performance, which in turn improves heart health and decreases stress.
This new metric is based on time spent in your fat burn, cardio, and peak heart rate zones that are calculated based on your age and resting heart rate, providing you with a more personalized measurement of how hard you worked during any intense physical activity. More than just counting your steps, counting the intensity of your activity, from steps and beyond.
In order to get into our AZM zone, we’re going to have to do some more anaerobic movements. The below workout starts off with five cardio warm-up moves to get us into our AZM zone, then includes some nonstop resistance moves with high reps that utilize large muscle groups. Using large muscle groups is another great way to increase the intensity of the exercise, elevate your heart rate, and earn more Active Zone Minutes.
We will time each movement rather than counting repetitions. Try this circuit at home!
Workout title:
Time: about 30 minutes
Equipment: dumbbells, timer
Warm-up
March – one minute
Jog in place – one minute
Jumping jacks – one minute
Jump phantom rope – one minute
Shadowbox – one minute
Workout (repeat this circuit four times)
Walk lunge – two minutes
Dumbbell curl press – two minutes
Dumbbell deadlift with row – two minutes
Cooldown
Shadowbox – one minute
Jump phantom rope – one minute
Jumping jacks – one minute
Jog in place – one minute
March – one minute
*Currently available on Fitbit Charge 4 only; coming soon to all smartwatches.
Working from home during the pandemic creates a completely different set of challenges than what you’d encounter in the office, which may leave you feeling frustrated that you’re not as creative or productive as usual. Instead of berating yourself, you can take steps to be more mindful. Becoming more aware of your thoughts and being more consciously present in the moment may help you shift to a healthier mindset, which may help you accomplish tasks and feel more at ease with your work-from-home situation.
“The enemy here isn’t the distraction or the being distracted,” says Ryan Androsiglio, PhD, a licensed psychologist in New York City whose practice focuses on mindfulness. “It’s the degree to which anyone responds judgmentally or harshly toward themselves when they get distracted or lose focus.”
It’s normal for your mind to wander, but you may feel your focus drifting more often than usual because of the uncertainty of current events, your health status, or your job security. Practicing mindfulness allows you to recognize that your mind has wandered, then direct yourself back to the task at hand.
“Mindfulness is focusing awareness on the present moment without judging ourselves, rehashing the past or worrying about the future,” says Cathleen Swody, PhD, an organizational psychologist based in Connecticut and founding partner of Thrive Leadership. “This learnable skill enables us to pause and deliberately choose how to respond in a situation, rather than getting caught up in an emotionally charged, knee-jerk reaction.”
Some people meditate to help themselves become more mindful. Others incorporate strategies into their days which make it easier for them to focus more effectively, such as setting a daily intention to be more present in the moment or taking regular breaks. Try these ideas:
Begin your morning intentionally. When you start each day with a plan to be present in the moment to the best of your ability, you may be less inclined to get upset with yourself when your mind wanders. A strategy like this may help you focus on your work more effectively.
“Practicing mindfulness does not need to be a long or difficult process,” says Swody. “Carve out a few minutes before starting your workday. As you breathe, focus on inhaling and exhaling. When your mind wanders, let the thoughts go and take another breath.”
Be ready for distractions. It’s inevitable—something will distract you while you’re working, whether it’s a fleeting thought, your partner talking on the phone in the next room, or a bird that flew past your window. When your mind wanders, you have the strength to react without getting upset with yourself.
“A distraction only has the power we give it,” Androsiglio says. “The better able we are to approach the distractions around us as okay, the better we can mitigate those distractions with greater freedom of movement.”
If you encounter the same distractions regularly while working from home, an “if, then” plan may help minimize the impact that the distraction has on you. Figure out three or more practical ways to address the problem, so that you have options to take action in the moment.
For example: “If my roommate talks loudly tomorrow, then I will… purchase a white noise machine from Amazon, switch to a task that doesn’t require as much attention, take a break from working and take a walk, ask her to try to lower her voice between 1 and 2 PM because I have an important call, etc.,” says Swody. “Knowing that you’re prepared for the situation will leave you feeling less frustrated and position you to take positive action to help yourself. You will be more likely to refocus.”
Acknowledge thoughts, then move on. When your mind wanders, don’t follow it down a rabbit hole when you should be doing work, but don’t try to ignore your thoughts, either. “We’re practicing our capacity to notice, observe, and bring curiosity to our experience, no matter what that experience is,” says Androsiglio. “This, generally speaking, over long-term practice, helps us to be more welcoming of moments when we’re distracted, just the same as moments when we’re focused or working productively.”
If you have trouble letting go of ideas as you acknowledge them, create a system that makes it easier to save those thoughts for later. “As worries or distractions pop in your head, jot them in a notebook to review later, not now,” says Swody. “Physically, put them to the side.”
Connect with your feelings. A busy workday can be a nonstop blur of actions and responsibilities, which may make it harder to be mindful. Scheduling short breaks periodically may give you the time that you need to acknowledge your thoughts and emotions.
“Before jumping onto the next Zoom call or starting a new project, pause and spend a few minutes to check in with yourself,” says Swody. “Allow yourself a moment to take several deep breaths before jumping into the next activity. Observe where you feel tension or stress in your body. Take a few more breaths and imagine the tension loosening with each breath. Repeat as necessary.”
Remember to practice self-care. One effective way to take a break is to go for a walk or practice yoga. If you can’t seem to fit exercise into your work-from-home schedule, devote your former commuting time to getting in some physical activity. Being active can help you be a better worker.
“Stress reduction and attention restoration go hand-in-hand,” says Swody. “Exercise distracts our minds from work, improves how we view ourselves, and generates neurotransmitters with antidepressant qualities. [And] exercise activities help employees mentally distance from work, gain perspective, and re-engage with renewed attention.”
When it comes to reducing your risk of getting sick, you can’t beat washing your hands and not touching your face. But something you already do is also helping to keep your immune system in top condition so it can better fight off all viruses: working out.
“One of the best things people can do for their immune health is to exercise most days of the week,” says David Nieman, DrPH, PACSM, professor of biology at Appalachian State University, and director of the Human Performance Labs at the North Carolina Research Campus. In fact, in one of his studies, of all the lifestyle factors they examined (including stress, sleep, and diet), exercise was number one at reducing illness.
Now, don’t be mistaken—working out in and of itself will not magically prevent or treat illness. However, regular, moderate-intensity physical activity of up to 45 minutes, five days a week, has been shown to be beneficial for immunity and is likely to help reduce the risk of respiratory infections, according to an analysis published in the journal Exercise Immunology Review in March.
What seems to happen is that when you work out, the muscle contractions and increased blood flow stimulate the function and circulation of natural killer cells, T cells, and other immune cells. “This improves their ability to detect and kill pathogens and viruses,” Nieman explains.
Two to three hours post-workout, your immune function returns to normal. However, as you continue to work out on a regular basis, the benefit adds up, making you more resilient to viruses and helping you should you fall sick.
In a study published in 2011, Nieman followed one thousand men and women for 12 weeks during the fall and winter to see if they came down with a common cold. Of those who did, the ones who worked out five or more days a week experienced a 43 percent reduction in the number of sick days compared to those who worked out no more than once a week. They also experienced less severe symptoms. Additionally, regular exercise reduces systemic inflammation and may improve immune responses to vaccination.
However, the benefit seems to max out after 45 to 60 minutes of moderate-intensity work. Longer exercise sessions and more intense activity haven’t been shown to lead to the same advantages. “When you deplete your glycogen stores with high-intensity effort that goes on for a couple of hours, and you do that every day or every other day, it reduces the supply of glycogen to immune cells, and they don’t function as well,” Nieman explains.
Also, the advice that you should never jump straight from being mostly inactive into following a demanding, highly-intense fitness program benefits your immune system too isn’t always accurate. “Everybody has to find their sweet spot,” says Nieman. If you are new or returning to exercise, “gradually get into it and find out what your body can handle without feeling tired and run down.”
Lastly, don’t follow the idea that you should “sweat it out” if you get COVID-19. “Exercise is lousy as a treatment strategy, and it’s a dangerous strategy” with COVID-19, says Nieman, since the virus makes breathing difficult.
Whatever your current fitness level, keep in mind that everybody is different. There are some elite athletes who thrive at endurance sports or can handle a higher workload than others. So if you love your long runs and feel you typically stay healthy year-round, there’s no reason to hang up your running shoes.
“The immune system needs exercise to do its job better,” says Nieman. “The result is reduced likelihood of getting sick, reduced infection days, or reduced symptom severity—so you can get out there for 30 to 60 minutes most days of the week and know you are improving the ability of your immune system to help fend off illness.”
If you’ve been keeping up with us then you know we’ve been getting active across our social channels with our new #FitAtHome exercise series. And now, not only are we excited to bring you even more live workout content, we want to help you get your zen on too!
That’s why we’ve partnered with Ten Percent Happier to bring you our new Fitbit Mindfulness series. Because while we continue to shelter in place, it’s important to keep our minds and bodies in sync.
What will the new #FitAtHome workout series entail?
Starting Tuesday, May 12, head to the official Fitbit Instagram page to sweat it out with celebrity trainer Harley Pasternak and fitness influencer Amy Kiser Schemper as they bring you everything from full-body workouts to kid-friendly exercises you can do right in your living room. Here’s the breakdown:
Tuesdays at 8:30 AM, you can find Amy leading a kid’s “PE” workout right from her home. Yes, this means exercise moves your kids can do with you! Thursdays at noon will be dedicated to a quick, full-body workout anyone can do.
On Wednesdays, join Harley for a simple at-home workout, and on Fridays, grab your family for a workout you can all do together.
Access it all by hopping on Fitbit’s IGTV. Each session will last 20-30 minutes and the series will continue for eight weeks. Can’t make it live? Don’t worry, workouts will be saved on Fitbit’s IGTV so that you can always go back and check them out later. And don’t forget to share your home workouts with us by using the hashtag #FitAtHome!
What is the Ten Percent Happier for Fitbit Mindfulness Series?
Though the world has slowed down in many ways due to COVID-19, that doesn’t necessarily mean our minds have. We all need a gentle reminder to find calm, breathe, and clear our minds during these times.
So, whether you’re looking to hone your practice, new to meditation, or just interested in learning more, we’re here to help with Ten Percent Happier. Here’s how you can get zen with us:
Starting on Tuesday, May 12, head to our Youtube channel at 8:30 AM for bi-weekly live meditations led by Ten Percent Happier meditation teachers Alexis Santos and Sebene Selassie. Each will lead their own mini-series on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with each episode lasting 12-13 minutes, with their meditations building off the week previous.
And don’t be discouraged if you miss a week—you can still jump in without doing earlier ones. But if you want to catch up, the videos will be saved to our channel for access at any time after each one goes live.
If you love these live workouts and guided meditations, you can easily find more in Fitbit Premium. If you’re not yet on Premium, redeem your free 90-day trial by opening the Fitbit app and tapping on the “Premium” tab in the lower-right corner. This trial offer is only valid through the Fitbit app and is only available for new Premium users.
If you’re not eligible for a 90-day Premium trial, you may still be able to redeem a 90-day trial of Fitbit Coach—available in English, Spanish, French, German and Portuguese. To access Fitbit Coach, download and open the Fitbit Coach app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. From there, you can access 30 free workouts, or can tap any locked workout content to start your free trial.
Let’s continue to navigate through this time with positivity and movement, encouraging each other to stay active, practice mindfulness, and keep healthy. And remember to give yourself kudos for making it all happen, too!
Amy Kiser Schemper
Amy is a Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor with 15 years working in the industry, and a busy mom of two. She has a Master’s of Exercise Science from Concordia University in Chicago, and two undergraduate degrees from Virginia Tech. Amy is the founder of BodyFit by Amy, an online fitness community and YouTube Channel with a community of over half a million subscribers, spanning 180 countries! In addition to specializing in circuit training and interval training for maximum results, Amy is trained in Boxing, Mat Pilates, Kettlebell, TRX, Sports Specific Training, Yoga, Prenatal and Postnatal Training, and Nutrition. She has trained clients of all ages and all fitness levels, and taught all different types of group classes. Check out Amy’s website here and Instagram here.
Harley Pasternak
Celebrity trainer and nutritionist Harley Pasternak holds a master of science degree in Exercise Physiology and Nutritional Sciences from the University of Toronto, and an honors degree in Kinesiology from University of Western Ontario. As a fitness and nutrition specialist, Harley has trained many celebrities, including Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani, Jessica Simpson, Ariana Grande, John Mayer, Lady Gaga, Megan Fox, and Jennifer Hudson. Harley has also lectured around the globe and does speaking engagements regularly. Check out his website here and Instagram here.
Sebene Selassie
Seb is one of the most beloved teachers in the Ten Percent world, and she also teaches broadly in the Insight Meditation community. Her teaching style is grounded, trustworthy, and warm. She was born in Ethiopia and raised in Washington DC, and has many incredible and challenging life experiences that, coupled with her practice, lend her an air of authority on matters of wisdom and sanity. Check out her Instagram here.
Alexis Santos
Alexis is one of the most deeply-practiced teachers at Ten Percent Happier. He lived as a monk in Burma for three years after leaving Harvard Medical School to pursue the spiritual path. Now he travels all around the world teaching meditation in the Insight community. His teaching style is relaxed, accessible, and warm. Check out his website here.
Vitamin D is a valuable micronutrient. It plays a vital role in supporting immunity, maintaining bone and teeth integrity, and regulating insulin. Researchers also believe having low levels may be linked to diseases like heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis. It’s often referred to as the “sunshine” vitamin because it can be made in the skin from exposure to sunlight—but if you’re sheltering in place and not getting much time outside, it’s important to ensure you’re getting your daily dose from food.
Keep reading to learn ways to optimize your vitamin D levels and discover which food sources deliver the most.
Who’s at Risk of a Vitamin D Deficiency?
In general, not exposing your skin to sunlight can result in low levels of vitamin D production. So if you’re housebound right now, you may be at risk. You’re at the highest risk of having a vitamin D deficiency if you have darker skin pigmentation, as this lowers your ability to manufacture vitamin D from the sun. You may also be at risk if you have diabetes, are obese, or don’t consume fortified milk products every day (check the label). But, in general, if you’re spending most of your days indoors and aren’t able to take sufficient advantage of the sun’s rays—hello, COVID-19!—there’s a good chance you aren’t getting your daily dose of the “sunshine” vitamin.
If you fall into any of these categories, or if you’ve had a recent blood test that suggests your vitamin D levels may be below the desirable range, it’s important that you look for ways to optimize your vitamin D intake from food.
How Much Vitamin D Do You Need?
For children and adults alike, the recommended amount is 15 micrograms (μg) per day. If you’re older than 70 years, it goes up to 20 micrograms (μg) per day.
Top Vitamin D-Rich Food Sources
Animal Sources
3 oz salmon, sockeye, canned: 18 μg
3 oz (85 g) cooked cold-water fish like salmon, tuna, sardines, sole, or flounder: 3 to 18 μg
3 oz (85 g) cooked white fish like barramundi, hoki, king dory, basa: 2 to 3 μg
1 tsp cod liver oil (Note: large doses can cause vitamin A toxicity): 11 μg
1 cup fortified milk: 3 μg
1 cup fortified yogurt: 2 to 3 μg
½ cup fortified ricotta cheese: 0.2 μg
2 large free-range or cage eggs (Note: vitamin D is found in the yolk): 3 to 9 μg
3 oz (85 g) beef liver: 1 μg
Plant-Based Sources
1 cup fortified breakfast cereals: 2 μg
Fortified soy, rice, or almond milk: 2 to 3 μg
Fortified fruit juices (orange and apple juices are commonly fortified): check the label
Soy products (tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, tempeh are almost routinely fortified and can offer a rich source of vitamin D, especially tofu!): check the label
½ cup mushrooms that have been exposed to UV light or sunlight (mushrooms are the only vegetable considered to be a ‘natural’ source of vitamin D. Place your punnet in the sun for at least15 minutesbefore cooking them to boost the vitamin D levels.): 9 μg
Although you can get some vitamin D from food sources, if your levels are already low it may be difficult to get enough from food alone. So if you can get out and get some sunshine, try to go for a walk every day. Generally, getting about 10 to 15 minutes of sun on your arms and legs a few times a week is enough to give you nearly all the vitamin D you need. If that’s just not possible, you might consider speaking to your doctor about prescribing a vitamin D supplement to help give your levels a boost.
Without looking at a calendar, could you confidently say what day it is? If the answer is no, you’re not alone. When we’re staying at home as much as possible and there’s not a lot of variation in our routines, it’s easy to feel like we’re living out Groundhog Day. In fact, sometimes the weekends begin to feel like weekdays. Eek.
If that’s the case, it’s time to reclaim your days off! We all need a break to disconnect and recharge. Here are 13 ways to make Saturday and Sunday feel different from the rest of the week:
Hide your laptop. If you have another computer you use for leisurely web browsing and following online workouts, then when Friday evening comes, put your work laptop in a drawer or other space where there’s no way you’ll see it until you need it again come Monday morning. ‘Out of sight, out of mind’ can truly work!
Turn off notifications. If you get work emails to your phone, turn those settings off too—unless, of course, there’s the possibility of a true emergency that you would need to handle immediately.
Bring back Fridays. “How did you formerly act on a Friday afternoon?” asks leadership and empowerment coach Benjamin Ritter. “Did you close work? Ask your friends what they were up to? Pick out clothes for a fun night out?” Whatever you used to do, do it now so you give your mind that same, ‘Hey, it’s Friday’ cue.
Commute. Do something on Friday afternoon that takes the same amount of time as your commute home, suggests digital wellness coach Liana Pavane, founder of TTYL, a tech-free community dedicated to human connection. “It’s important that we physically and mentally trigger the feeling of ‘leaving’ for a weekend, even if we’re staying home,” she explains. Maybe you take a bike ride with your kids, meditate, or prepare a nice breakfast you can heat up the next morning.
Sleep in. A regular wake-up time is good, however, sleeping in a little bit—up to an hour so, according to the National Sleep Foundation—is totally okay if you feel you need it. Turn off your alarm and see when your body (or kids or dog) decides to wake up.
Cook brunch. If you typically go out to eat on Saturday mornings, make your usual order at home. Maybe that’s healthy pancakes or eggs with chicken sausage.
Get outside. “Find a place to walk that you don’t visit during the week,” suggests family therapist Katie Rom Hisel, LMFT. “If parks and trails are open in your area, find a new one.” If not, venture outdoors to play a game in the yard or do some gardening. The fresh air and activity will reinvigorate your body.
Make time for your hobbies. During the week, we often don’t have time for some of the things we love—so much so that many of us have hobbies we’ve long neglected. Now’s the time to get back to playing guitar, painting, reading, or knitting, or learn something new.
Get creative with socialization. Virtually meet up with friends and family as often as you typically would on weekends. Have happy hours, coffees, or dinners over video calls using Zoom, FaceTime, or other platforms. If you typically sweat together on the weekends, try finding an online workout to do at your usual time. You could even do karaoke, trivia, or other games together. “Try a scavenger hunt. Everybody grabs items in their house based on prompts such as, ‘something you got on your last vacation,’” Pavane suggests.
Put on your Saturday best. Order takeout from a nice restaurant (or cook a meal you never would during the week due to the time it takes), set the table with candles and other decorations, and get dressed up. It’ll make dinner feel special compared to the quicker, easier suppers that dominate weeknights.
Bring outdoor activities indoors. If you don’t have a yard or the weather is dreary, bring Mother Nature inside. Consider pitching a tent to sleep in, having a picnic lunch on a blanket, or sleeping in front of the fireplace. And if you can do these things outdoors, all the better.
Plan a virtual visit to a museum. Search online, and you can find virtual tours of amazing museums such as the Smithsonian, Musee d’Orsay, and Vatican Museum. If animals are more your thing, there are lots of zoos and aquariums doing the same.
Shelter-in-place orders have changed much of Fitbit users’ everyday lives. We’ve been staying home, getting more quality rest (a happy surprise), cooking more, and finding new ways to stay active, given that our step counts are down. But, our resting heart rates have improved across the board, which is great news for heart health.
When it comes to staying active, we’ve had to get creative—and Fitbit users have risen to the challenge. In fact, data from mid-April shows that more users exercised one to two times a week in April 2020 than in April 2019. (Exercises were either auto-detected or manually logged on users’ Fitbit devices, and lasted for a duration of at least 15 minutes.) This rings true across major American cities including San Francisco, Denver, and New York, as well as global cities including Paris, Seoul, and Tokyo—with Madrid being one notable exception.
Note that week 15 is the week ending April 14 and April 12 in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Additionally, we’re seeing more users exercising more than five times a week, with some cities posting as much as an impressive 10 percent increase.
We love that so many of you are getting creative with your workouts outside of the gym, and wanted to dig into specific exercises logged to see exactly what’s changed. One big takeaway from our findings? While not having access to a treadmill, weights, or elliptical machine means that exercises that would be typically performed in a gym are down, the frequency of most exercises went up. For example, among those who still have access to a treadmill, we’ve seen the frequency of use increase by more than 30 percent.
That said, other exercises that can be performed at home or outside are on the rise! Walk exercises, or brisk walks that last for at least 15 minutes, are up, and walks still constitute a large portion of user exercises. We’ve also seen substantial increases in the popularity of biking, yoga, and aerobic workouts. Among users who exercised at least once per week, yoga and biking have seen an increase of over 40 percent, while aerobic workouts have increased by more than 20 percent—meaning that users are taking this time to switch up their fitness routines.
The one category of exercise that saw a decrease in frequency is sport, which typically engages a group of people. As this isn’t possible at the moment, we’ve observed a nearly 18 percent decrease in frequency.
Another fun fact: the timing of exercise has also shifted. Now that users are less bound to a typical workday schedule, we’ve seen fewer lunchtime walks or early morning runs that used to be squeezed in before a commute. And now that the weekend is less packed with social activities, we’ve seen an increase in Friday evening runs.
While the timing of exercise has shifted around the world, changes have not been consistent from region to region. In San Francisco, California, we’re seeing a concentration of runs in the late afternoon on weekdays and late morning on weekends. In Tokyo, Japan, the reverse is true, as runs are being logged in late mornings during the week and late afternoons during the weekend.
No matter the timing, staying active while we’re sheltering-in-place is hugely important for our physical and mental health. Exercise improves energy levels, promotes restful sleep, and can boost your overall mood. We’re excited to see that so many of our users are making exercise a priority during this time of upended schedules, and hope this sets the foundation for lasting workout habits as we continue moving forward together.
