Being confined to a small room, with no ability to go out and get fresh air, is more a mental test than a physical one.
I’m relocating to Australia. As part of the travel conditions imposed by the government, all arrivals have to submit to quarantine. That’s a minimum of 14 days in a hotel room. No fresh air breaks, no option to leave to exercise.
But millions of people have or will face the same constraints on freedom and activity as governments around the world insist people self-isolate following a positive c-19 test.
Survival kit: Exercise kit will help time fly in isolation
Even a sloth would find that a little tedious. But for any active person, without a plan and specific equipment, it would drive them up the wall.
So I wanted to share a few top tips on how to pass the time, stay positive and healthy. With these steps – and a few bits of equipment – the goal is come out stronger than you went in.
Prepare before arriving:
Make sure you’ve prepared well ahead of time. That means buying your exercise equipment, developing a plan, researching what you can and can’t do. Some of the hotels don’t allow treadmill rental. Some do, but the doors are too narrow to fit them through.
It’s not ideal, but worth thinking about alternative cardio options – for example, a static bike. I brought my cycling shoes just in case I could get hold of a bike and turbo trainer. It pays to do research in advance.
It also means getting mentally prepared. Go in with a positive mindset. You’re going to use the time to work on weaknesses, build resilience and look for what you can do rather than focus on what you can’t. Don’t underestimate how important this aspect is.
Develop a routine:
Break the day up. Get the tasks you don’t like out of the way first. Or make sure you start the day you mean to continue. For me, that meant two minutes of push ups as soon as I got out of bed. Before lunch, I aimed to get my admin out of the way – emails, work etc. Tick as many off as possible. Every hour, I did a quick blast of activity; push ups, band routine, a few slide outs.
The afternoon as a little more relaxed. If you’ve worked hard in the morning, take a nap. Recharge your batteries – make the most of this down time. Rarely do you get this much peace and quiet in normal life.
Set challenges – and stick to them:
Make sure they’re SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. This is a simple but really effective way of keeping you motivate. I set myself the goal of 1,000 push ups a day.
Track and record your progress. When hours and days begin to merge into one disorienting blur, you’ll appreciate being able to anchor your workouts/achievements – and most importantly – your progress. It’s super motivating seeing gains, especially when you’re under difficult circumstances.
Don’t get carried away!
With all this free time on your hands, it’s easy to overdo things. You might feel that if you’re not constantly active, you’re being lazy. That’s a recipe for injury or burn out. Pace yourself. The last thing you want to do is get injured. If you’ve set yourself a heavy workout schedule, build in some rest and relaxation periods.
It’s also the perfect time to get serious about a stretching routine. You’ve got time to kill, use it. Let’s see if you can touch your toes by the end of the two weeks. Now that would be an achievement.
Bring treats:
We’re human after all, so make sure you’ve got some rewards and treats. But don’t over do them. If you hit you’re targets, you’ve earned a reward! If positive reinforcement is good enough for dogs, it’s good enough for me!
Turn the news off and put the phone down:
I’m not a fan of having the TV on anyway. It’s not good for you, the adverts are banal beyond belief, and the news is completely toxic. A few minutes of headlines is sure to evaporate any positivity you managed to muster.
Same for the phone. Hours of scrolling instagram will sap your will to live after long. That applies whether you’re stuck in a hotel room or not. Make sure you’re productive. Do something. Anything.
Remember, life is full of tests. Don’t let life defeat you, rise to the challenge. Quarantine is one of those challenges. While enemies and rivals will throw everything at you, you will overcome, in fact, you’ll come out stronger.
– Anon
Quarantine Survival Kit:
Exercise bands – mini and full size: Both sizes achieve different tasks. But if you have to choose one, get some medium strength full size bands. These can be doubled up to drastically increase resistance. The bands allow you to develop specific strength at a full range movement. You can also use the bands to do some assisted stretches to build flexibility.
Sliders: These have to be one of the most travel friendly and indispensable pieces of fitness kit. With these little discs, you can get a full body workout; body saws, hamstring curls, rollouts, press up with slide outs. Guaranteed to build functional strength and range of motion.
Chin up bar: With a chin up bar, you can get a brutal resistance workout in the tightest of spots. Buy one which wedges between door frames and doesn’t require screws. It takes a few seconds to fit and dismantle in your hotel. They certainly won’t appreciate you screwing anything more permanent in.
Pallets: These are a bit of a luxury. If you’re pressed for space, maybe leave these behind. I’ve got a bad wrist so these help alleviate pain and stress on the joint while doing press ups. And when you’re stuck in the hotel room, you’ll find yourself doing A LOT of press up! They’re also great for doing L-sits on – a brilliant body weight core stability exercise.
Recovery / massage aids: A foam roller, hard massage ball of even a massage gun would all be great tools for getting some proper TLC and recovery while you have down time. While we’re trying to be positive about our “detention” look on the pros; this enforced rest could be the perfect opportunity to get some much needed recuperation, a chance to heal those niggling injuries.
Health and well-being:
Noise cancelling headphones: If you’re in the room with a partner, next to a building site or your room’s next door to a crying child, you can listen to music and create a little tranquility.
Laptop: Get all those annoying life admin jobs done, write all those blogs you’ve been putting off for ages, email all those friends you’ve lost touch with etc. Get productive. You’ll soon find you fill the hours!
Food and drink prep: One of the most shocking aspects of quarantine (beyond the idea of locking up perfectly healthy and well people) is the standard of food on offer. This is a major issue you’ll probably have to overcome. You’ll want to find a way of getting some real, nutritious food. Every hotel will be different, but you’ll probably not have access to a kitchen. Chefs may be able to prepare you some outside bought food, but don’t count on it. Otherwise, you’ll have to find a way of buying in good quality pre-prepared ingredients.
A few things are within your control. I’m a coffee snob, I can’t drink rubbish instant brew. So I came stocked with a hand grinder, one kilo of beans, an aero press coffee maker. Worth their weight in gold!
Supplements: Consult your doctor before taking any medication. But bear in mind that you may not be able to get much sun during your stay. We know vitamin D is an important hormone in a healthy and well-functioning immune system. So it might be wise to pack some good quality vit-d.
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