Abstract : Background: December 2019, time when a novel corona virus called SARS-CoV-2 has resulted in the severe outbreak of a broncho-respiratory illness called as COVID-19. This pandemic has become a global threat. In such cases, when Government has taken strict actions to prevent the spread by implementing social distancing and nationwide lockdown, the concern is about how to maintain health during stay at home.
Objective: The objective of this article is to highlight the techniques of maintenance of physical fitness being indoor and their importance.
Methodology: Different ways like yogasanas, indoor exercises, zumba, dancing, cardio workout, doing household works are described to be done to maintain the physical fitness during lockdown situations.
Result: Physical fitness can be defined as a state of well being and health, peculiarly the capability to carry out aspects of sports, occupations and routine activities. Maintaining physical health has become a necessity. Physical work out and activities also makes the immune system work efficiently by flushing the micro organisms like bacterias, viruses, from the respiratory passage and lungs. They enhance the circulation of white blood cells and increases body temperature all of which combinely fights infections. Also these activities teach us about the family values by spending quality time with them.
Conclusion: It is very easy to maintain physical health being indoors. These ways are proved to be beneficial to maintain physical health.
Keywords: corona; lockdown; pandemic; SARS-Cov-2; zumba;
INTRODUCTION
Several Countries are fighting sever lockdowns due this Corona Outbreak. India is also facing lockdown. According to the latest declaration a complete lockdown of 21 days is announced in India4.On 11 March 2020, World Health Organisation declared Novel Corona virus Disease (COVID-19) outbreak as a pandemic and urged all the countries to take instant steps regarding detection, treatment & limiting its spread amongst population. Corona viruses are a family of viruses that shows various symptoms like common to severe cold, respiratory distress syndromes, mild to severe coughing, fever and any more. The disease caused by SARS-Cov-2 is called corona virus disease (COVID-19)5.
Symptoms of Covid 19 can be mild, moderate or severe. Incubation period is about 2 to 14 days 7. Symptoms may include: cough, hoarseness in throat, fever, anorexia. Immunity plays an important role in preventing these diseases; those with a weak immune system may suffer complications like Bronchitis and Pneumonia. There are patients affected with Covid 19 who may not develop any symptoms.
As physical fitness will surely increase the immune system so during such period it becomes a necessity to maintain physical fitness. But as Government has declared a lockdown of 21 days so no gyms, yoga classes or other physical fitness centres will be open so how can we maintain our health indoors is a big question. This can be done by doing certain physical activities as well as home activities so that both the aims are fulfilled that is- work and health.
So we can consider this as ‘Work and Health together’. So the major aims this of article are to motivate people for maintaining physical fitness, to highlight the concept of work and health together, to explore the ideas of maintaining health by doing indoor activities and to convey the importance of maintaining physical fitness during outbreak of such pandemic.
Introduction : Several Countries are fighting sever lockdowns due this Corona Outbreak. India is also facing lockdown. According to the latest declaration a complete lockdown of 21 days is announced in India4.On 11 March 2020, World Health Organisation declared Novel Corona virus Disease (COVID-19) outbreak as a pandemic and urged all the countries to take instant steps regarding detection, treatment & limiting its spread amongst population. Corona viruses are a family of viruses that shows various symptoms like common to severe cold, respiratory distress syndromes, mild to severe coughing, fever and any more. The disease caused by SARS-Cov-2 is called corona virus disease (COVID-19)5.
Symptoms of Covid 19 can be mild, moderate or severe. Incubation period is about 2 to 14 days 7. Symptoms may include: cough, hoarseness in throat, fever, anorexia. Immunity plays an important role in preventing these diseases; those with a weak immune system may suffer complications like Bronchitis and Pneumonia. There are patients affected with Covid 19 who may not develop any symptoms.
As physical fitness will surely increase the immune system so during such period it becomes a necessity to maintain physical fitness. But as Government has declared a lockdown of 21 days so no gyms, yoga classes or other physical fitness centres will be open so how can we maintain our health indoors is a big question. This can be done by doing certain physical activities as well as home activities so that both the aims are fulfilled that is- work and health.
So we can consider this as ‘Work and Health together’. So the major aims this of article are to motivate people for maintaining physical fitness, to highlight the concept of work and health together, to explore the ideas of maintaining health by doing indoor activities and to convey the importance of maintaining physical fitness during outbreak of such pandemic.
Method : Different techniques like Walking and Running, Dancing, Skipping, Squats and Sit ups, Zumba, 10 minute cardio workout as per NHS, Yoga, Pranayama, Regular household works are explained.
Covid 19 a pandemic has created a big threat to mankind. In such situations self care by prevention is the only major way to prevent yourself from this disease. In Ayurveda it is mentioned that body has a special mechanism for preventing any disease and that is – Vyadhishamatva, in modern terms comparable with Immunity which helps body fight against the microorganisms. Building immunity is maximum in our hands, as we can be the creators of our own health. A wide range of health benefits has been confirmed by scientific evidences after regularly performing physical activities. Preventing sedentary lifestyle and doing physical activities is the key to increase immunity.
People get concerned about how they can maintain physical activities in situation like lockdown, but there are lot many ways how people can maintain health. It is not necessary to have gyms, yoga classes or fitness centres for building health.
Even if you are stuck at home, there are different means to continue your workout routine. If you own a treadmill or exercise cycle then it becomes easy to continue this inside way of being fit.
Walking: you should try to walk fast around the house if possible or just go upstairs and downstairs. While using phones try to stand or walk, rather than sitting down, just by sitting all the time generates heaviness in body.
Dancing: It is one of the considerable methods to keep you active, especially the children, just play some music for around 15-20 minutes, once or twice a day. This contributes a lot in daily workout quota. There are lots of Apps nowadays used by many people all doing some sorts of dance moves. This will not only act as a physical exercise but also will increase the bonding of family members with each other. Due to daily schedule even a child is busy but taking this lockdown as a chance to increase closeness with family members it can be found beneficial.
Skipping: You can alternatively just find out a skipping rope and utilise it as an instrument for exercising. Doing skipping for at least for 15 minutes daily can be helpful.
Internet surfing: In this growing era of computer, internet and technology everything is just present on one finger tap so even health is. Rather than downloading those waste applications we can download the useful heath apps which can guide us and we can follow them. Engage yourself with the different ways of fitness & yoga practices. YouTube videos can be used as a guide for indoor health activities. Together by doing so we can make a great use of technology and internet.
Resistance exercises: Constitute those exercises that strengthen the muscles and their mobility. They are performed using dumbbells as weights or resistance bands. If you do not have it is not a problem. For those who are doing this for the first time should try squats or push ups. Push ups can be done against the wall or up and down the stairs is a good option.
Zumba: It is a widely growing way of exercising nowadays and this too does not require any live trainer to be present to perform. There are lots of videos that can help you learn that.
Weight Lifting: If you do not have weights or dumbbells, you can put your waste tins jars of beans, rice bags, heavy water bottles to good use. They make great substitutes for dumbbells. If you have the habit to workout with heavy weights then you may use your children as a heavier prop but safely. So as said where there is a will there is always a way and you can just make best out of waste to utilize them in this hard times.
NHS (National Health Services) has also given the guidelines for 10 minute home cardio workout. Before starting always perform some warm up for 5-10 minutes. Some exercises told are:
1. Rocket jumps: Stand keeping your feet and shoulders aside and keep your arms by your side. Squat down half the way and jump as higher as you can. Softly and use the momentum to power into your next repetitions.
2. Start jumps: Always start in a quarter squatting posture keep your backside flat, feet should be together, and palms should be touching the sides of legs. Then jump upside raising the arms and legs placed outside. Land softly with feet together and straight away lower yourself back to the initial posture.
3. Squats: Place your legs wide apart and hands should be straight away to maintain balance, then bend a little as if sitting on a chair, remember the knees should be behind the toes. This will strengthen the muscles of knee and hips. Initially perform only 10 times then it can be increased day by day.
4. Tap back: To tap it back, engage your lower abs, and without momentum, slowly curl the hips back as your chest moves toward the floor. The movement should not appear big or jerky, and your arms shouldn't extend themselves more than they already are (just a slight bend in the elbows).
5. Burpees: performing a burpee consists of four different exercises. They are – Jump, squat, plank, push ups. Standing straight where head is in alignment with heels bend little down with knees wide and take a hopping jump while landing softy. While doing jumping land into a squat posture as described earlier. While ending a squat keep the palms on the floor with straight back and jump back with legs pushing backwards posture becomes like a straight line head to heels. From there do a plank and come right back up completing a push up and the repeat the same steps to stand up. After doing this, just take a rest for 6 minutes. This is also a good indoor physical activity.
6. Yoga is exceptional for body as well as mind. There is no requirement of a huge space to perform it. The new learners can watch the YouTube videos or they can even purchase the books related to Yoga. There are number of online yoga learning applications in mobile where virtually it can be learnt.
Music therapy is also one of the ways for having mental peace. It provides lots of benefits like: creates a good mood, develops a life better, improving the surviving skills, improving emotional expressions, stress removal and decreasing symptoms of anxiety.
Shavasana: At the end of all activities, a five minute shavasana is very essential in which an individual has to relax his all the body parts one by one. It will reduce all the tiredness, stress, strain and increase physical and mental relaxation.
Asanas give a great benefit of preventing infections but the benefits of yoga are not limited till here. Common cold and flu usually attacks the respiratory and bronchial passages. Practising Pranayama regularly enhances the breathing capacity of lungs and simultaneously it builds resistance to the preying organisms. Meditation also gives lots of benefits; it calms the mind and relieves stress which together reduces the possibilities of catching infections. Many researches had proved that performing meditation for 15-20 minutes in a day maintains and increases the levels of endorphin, reduce cortisol and promotes a better health.
Not just this there are ways to do household works which can be beneficial to maintain health. Cleaning the Gardens is very good way to pass time along with health benefits. Cutting of trees, cleaning the garden, watering the plants, all this creates body movements that are ultimately required. It will be good as while gardening or while weeding squatting postures are used many times. Your arms and shoulders can be toned up by carrying the buckets containing water and tools required.
During this outbreak, it is of utmost importance that we keep everything clean at home, it has a lots of fitness benefits. Cleaning of home is also a great workout, and it burns up lots of calories when you do a tough work. Folding your bed sheets, doing laundry over clothes, and preparing the bed constitute a good exercise of upper body. Cleaning of stairs, dusting of furniture, they all constitute exercise.
Cooking is one more way to engage yourself and it is also an indoor activity which creates lots of body movements, it is a good combination of doing exercises along with learning cooking.
All these are not just the ways that help to maintain physical fitness but they also enhance our mental health. It is an opportunity to learn various new things.
Result : Physical fitness can be defined as a state of well being and health, peculiarly the capability to carry out aspects of sports, occupations and routine activities. Maintaining physical health has become a necessity. Physical work out and activities also makes the immune system work efficiently by flushing the micro organisms like bacterias, viruses, from the respiratory passage and lungs. They enhance the circulation of white blood cells and increases body temperature all of which combinely fights infections. Also these activities teach us about the family values by spending quality time with them.
Discussion : proving that stress is related with viral and bacterial awakening, infections of respiratory tract, defective wound healing. This shows that a lots of immune system dysfunctional responses are caused by stress 2, 3.
It was concluded from a study that yoga plays a notable effect as it improves autonomic, psychological and endocrine changes caused by exam stress.
Yoga plays a major role in achieving tranquillity of mind; it creates a sense of well being and relaxes mind and enhances self morale. It improves the concentration, decreases the irritability and gives a good approach towards life. Those who practice yoga regularly a balanced energy is generated in them which is a vital component of our immune system. Yoga does an inhibiting action over hypothalamus which in turn develops sympathetic responses to the stress stimuli and regulates stress mechanisms1. As we are cooped up at home, helping to flatten the curve by practicing social distancing, we need physical activity to maintain physical and mental well-being. Fortunately, there are plenty of simple and practical ways to do this while staying out of the gym to avoid the virus and slow the rate of COVID-19’s spread.
When we just sit at home whole day during such lockdowns we start to over think about things and we might not be able to control our thoughts, but when we exercise we get out of our mind and into our body. This gives our brain some rest and time to reset. Our body will look out at situations in a different way post workout and there will be no feeling of anxiety or depression.
Conclusion : Lockdown is no big deal if we are determined to do exercise and activities. Whatever exercise is done, physical fitness levels should not fall during this pandemic. Amid a virus outbreak, we need healthy bodies more than ever. Promoting work and health together is the main thing which is required in this situation. No virus, bacteria, or any of the microorganisms should come in between us and physical health. So maintaining physical health is very important and we should prefer it as our prime duty, Stay Healthy, Stay Happy!! Hence the most important thing is immunity boosting. Immune system of our body functions by protecting us from diseases causing agents like bacteria, viruses and other toxins. It acts by removing the cancerous cells and kicking out the microorganisms out of our systems. There are lots of trigger factors like food, allergens which can cause harm to the body and immune system regulates all those responses.
During such conditions of pandemic something which we do is to control our health and wellbeing. Whatever the condition is always keep yourself active, eat healthy food and drink lots of water to prevent dehydration. This maintains the health as well as family bonding together.
References :
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