It’s only logical to be more conscientious about your health during a time when a lot of people are experiencing serious health problems. However, the pandemic has presented some obstacles to healthy living. Here are three of the most important ways that you can overcome those obstacles and work towards staying healthy.
1. Take Care of Your Digestive System
When you’re taking steps to stay healthy during a pandemic, one of the most important things that you should do is strengthen your immune system. One of the best ways to support immunity is to improve your digestive health. Most of your immune system is regulated by your gut. Poor digestion and burdening your digestive tract with foods that are difficult to process can seriously impair immune function.
Don’t let staying in more have a negative impact on your diet. Limit your intake of refined seed oils, highly processed foods, and added sugars. Foods with these ingredients can worsen inflammation and make you feel unwell. They also force your body to expend energy on digestion rather than the basic cellular activity that it needs to stay healthy such as immune cell production and function. You can also consider taking a supplement that enhances digestive regularity such as Multi GI 5. This type of supplement has nutrients and digestive enzymes to prevent buildup from accumulating along the lining of your digestive tract while also maintaining a healthy balance of bacteria in your system.
2. Stay Physically Active
People who have customarily fit a fair amount of exercise into their regular routine have found it challenging to stay active since March of 2020. Gyms and fitness clubs in many areas shut down temporarily, which broke people away from their exercise regimen. Unfortunately, there is still a considerable measure of risk involved in going to a gym. Any indoor area where people are not wearing masks 100% of the time such as gyms and restaurants simply aren’t totally safe. It’s understandable that a lot of people aren’t ready to take on that risk.
Another reason that people have been exercising less is that they aren’t feeling great mentally. People are staying in more, spending more time by themselves, and feeling anxious about what’s been happening with the pandemic. As a result, they’re less motivated to get out and get active. However, staying active can actually have some significant benefits for mental health. Exertion is a good outlet for stress, and it stimulates the production of hormones that help feel good.
Even if you’re not ready to hit the gym anytime soon, that’s no reason to forgo physical activity altogether. There are a lot of things that you can do from the comfort of home to stay fit. In fact, there are a lot of great strength building exercises that you can do without any equipment at all. You can build muscle tone with exercises using your bodyweight. Weather permitting, you should also look for opportunities to head outdoors. Choose an area near you where you can go on a hike or a long walk. You’ll burn some calories while also helping your joints stay healthy and mobile.
3. Stay Engaged With Your Healthcare Providers
A lot of people haven’t been keeping up with the same level of medical care that they sought out before the pandemic. Nevertheless, if you have a chronic health condition or a new health concern, it’s important that you get treatment. You don’t necessarily have to go to your doctor’s office every time you want to get help with something. A lot of providers are doing virtual visits, and many insurance providers are waiving copays for them.
If you had an interruption in healthcare benefits, you may now find coverage through the marketplace to be more affordable. The tax credit has increased considerably. If your household income meets the criteria, you can get access to a plan more affordably or get an even better plan than the one that you currently have through the marketplace.
