Ways to stay active during social distancing

It gets really boring being stuck at home, sitting at your desk doing work. One thing to work on during “coronacation” that’s very beneficial is becoming more active. This will help with stress levels and counteract all the snacking. However, as you’re probably aware, gyms are all closed and any exercise class or group that you might have done is canceled. But, the stay at home order does allow for exercise. Here’s some ways to stay active while still social distancing:

1. Go on a run – this is probably the most obvious option but after being stuck in the house all day, or to wake yourself up in the morning, a good run feels great. It’ll get your blood pumping and allow you to see some new surroundings for a little bit. You can just run around your neighborhood.
2. Go on a hike – one activity that a lot more people have been doing since we’ve all been at home is hiking. Hiking allows you to get away from your immediate area and breathe some fresh air. After being cooped up at home for so long, a little nature goes a long way. Just make sure you find a trail that’s not too crowded, maybe by getting away from the city a little bit. There probably won’t be any facilities open but most hiking areas have kept the grounds open. I enjoy going out to the Eastern Shore for a hike (going to the beach makes it feel a little bit more like Spring Break).
3. Bike – biking allows you to go farther than you might be able to run and can be pretty relaxing if done at a leisurely pace. You can just go for a chill ride around town or rugged trail biking, if that’s more your style.
4. Yoga – here are tons of yoga videos that you can find on YouTube or other places. CorePower is offering a free collection of videos. There are lots of options depending on your style. If you think that you think that yoga isn’t real exercise, try looking up “yoga for runners” on YouTube and you will be surprised. Yoga can really get you sweating! But, if you just want to relax and stretch out before starting work, try looking up “yoga for beginners” and you’ll find lots of great options depending on how much time you want to take. Sessions range from five minutes to an hour.
5. At-home workouts – you might not be able to go to the gym but there’s still tons of workouts you can do at home. There’s lots of videos you can find for any workout that you might be interested in (core, arms, legs, etc.). You can also just make up your own circuit and try doing it a couple times a day. PE with Joe is a live-streamed workout on YouTube every weekday morning that’s fun and is becoming super popular during quarantine.
6. Learn some Tik Tok dances – let’s be honest, this is probably the main workout you’ve been doing, but it works! Dancing is a good workout and if that’s all you can do, go for it. Try submitting to the St. John’s Tik Tok Tuesday challenges to be a part of the Cadet community while at home!
7. Walks – if you just need to get a little energy out for a couple minutes in between classes, go on a walk. Just seeing some other people (with a six foot distance, of course) and getting some fresh air can be a great way to decompress between all those Zoom meetings.