5 Fitness Tips: Quarantine Edition

Anyone out there into fitness? Perhaps you’re not into fitness but you’ve been trying to exercise. Maybe you’re not trying to exercise, but the thought of living a healthier lifestyle does intrigue you? If you fall under this umbrella, read on! I’m sure you’ll receive a tip you can apply in your life.

Here’s a bit about me: I’m a former athlete! I’ve been physically active since the first grade, when I started basketball. Since then, I’ve tried a spectrum of activities from pageants and cheerleading to track and softball.

Back in 2015, I started college. It was great! I gained many friends and many enemies; one in particular was the reason I began my fitness journey. She was sizing me up. My physical appearance didn’t read I could “handle my own,” although I could. From that moment on the gym has been my best friend. I exercised inconsistently over the years. I wanted to be thick. Did that! I wanted a nice ass. Got that! One day I looked in the mirror and no longer liked what was in front of me. Everyone else loved it but that didn’t matter because I wanted change. This brings me to the first tip.

Tip 1: Be your own body goals

Your fitness journey is completely up to you. What someone else is doing or what diet they’re choosing—may not work for you. Be selfish in your journey. You’re the one that has to look at the naked you every day.

After deciding I wanted change, I found another woman who wanted the same thing. We became workout partners. Things were great until things weren’t great. We both noticed when one didn’t come, the other didn’t want to come.

Tip 2: You won’t always be motivated so you must learn to be disciplined

Once you decide that you want better, you do better. Having a workout partner whether it be at home or during quarantine is great! But if you’re following the social distancing guidelines, you know that sometimes having that partner isn’t always feasible. Learn to do things you desire alone.

During our time in the gym there were two things we never really discussed: our diet and cardio. We wanted to lose our belly and gain abs but we never took the necessary measures to do so.

Tip 3: Crunches don’t get your abs… what you eat does

Ever heard of that saying, “you are what you eat?” That’s entirely true! Dieting doesn’t have to mean eating less or eating more. It can mean eating what you eat now, just in a well thought out way. Ever heard of MACROS? Macros are the proteins, carbs, and fats one should consume everyday they exercise. They’re calculated based solely upon your individual goals, weight, heights, age, and gender. Hints why I said, “your fitness journey is about YOU.” You don’t have to put the pizza down after all. Just make sure it aligns with your calorie intake.

Anyone hate running besides me or am I the only one? Since I have a strong dislike for running, I learned to get my cardio in, in another way. “ISSA HIIT” High Intensity Interval Training is the form of exercise that got me the best results. It’s an effective way to get that cardio in without physically running.

Once we went our separate ways, I learned about dieting and HIIT. I did these things consistently and got significant results. Everything was bliss. I then realized dieting was cool but those cravings never go away!

Tip 4: Cheat days are essential workers

In the midst of this pandemic, many either chose fitness or chose that freshman fifteen life. There’s nothing wrong with a snack here or there. When you accomplish something, you deserve a reward. Have that donut, just DO-NUT have a cheat day too often. It’s okay to treat yourself once every two weeks or once a month. I don’t recommend pigging it out but, I do say fulfill that craving. You don’t want to fall back into bad habits.

Once you get all these tips down and you’re living your best life, don’t forget about them. To some this pandemic was a curse and to some this pandemic was a blessing in disguise. It’s easy to adhere to something or develop a new habit because everything is closed. It’s easy to support because you have no real distractions. This is why I challenge you to the greatest tip of all.

Tip 5: Don’t switch up

As I mentioned before, it’s easy to adhere to something or develop a new habit because everything is closed. Don’t let the work you’ve done while the world was shut down be in vain because the world is opening back up. The love and support you’re giving to others during a tough time, give it to them when you’re up as well. The self-care you’re giving to yourself because you’re out of work, give it to yourself when you get that job again. That skill you learned while sitting in the house, use that skill in the real world. Who’s to say the things you’ve learned, people you’ve met, and time you’ve spent weren’t a part of your purpose.

In the words of Gen Z, “keep that same energy!”