Healthy Eating and Personal Care

By Medha Saraiya, RPN and CEO of ConnexHealth

January 26th, 2021

The pandemic has changed our lives on many levels, one of them being our eating habits. Some polls suggest that approximately three quarters of their respondents gained over 16 pounds each during the lockdown. Many of us are mindlessly snacking due to stress, anxiety, and boredom.

Now you may be asking yourself why we should be concerned about weight gain amidst absolute chaos? Well, because this is a slippery slope- a few pounds here and there can quickly add up. Obesity is a contributing factor to many diseases.

What can we do?

🍲 Examine your relationship with food:

Are you feeding your emotional hunger or your physical hunger? If it’s your emotional hunger, look for other sources of support such as chatting with a friend or family member, reading a good book, going for a walk, or doing some arts/crafts activities that you enjoy.

🏋️‍♀️Add more movement:

Get up and get moving! Scheduling exercise sessions are one form of movement that is extremely beneficial for your health. There are other ways to get more steps in as well: dance while you cook, or even going up and down the stairs a few more times a day. In short, keep moving!

😴Look at your sleep habits:

Getting 6 to 8 hours of sleep is crucial. When we don’t get enough sleep, we act impulsive and eat unhealthy foods. Fatigue caused by lack of sleep can also demotivate us from cooking healthier meals. So to summarize, get the 💤!

❣️Above all be kind to yourself:

These are difficult times for many of us. It has changed the way we live and work. The boundaries between our work life and personal life at times seem to be faded, especially for those who are working from home. All of these stressors are factors that affect our wellbeing. Thus it is vital to be kind to ourselves and forgive ourselves for not being perfect!