How to Stay Sane & Fit While Working From Home

For the latest information & resources regarding COVID-19 see the CDC Resource Page & World Health Organization Resource Page ♥

Well guys, I wish I wasn’t writing this kind of post right now. The coronavirus / COVID-19 situation is scary and heartbreaking. It’s been shocking to see how quickly our realities have changed. Here in San Francisco, we’ve been in a ‘shelter-in-place’ situation for the past couple weeks, and it seems more and more cities are going into lockdown to prevent the spread of the virus.

Which means spending nearly all-day indoors working. I’m still sneaking in a little fresh air when I can, but still practicing social distancing.

As we’re all experiencing a rapidly changing new normal, I wanted to share some tips & practices you can implement at home to help you keep feeling your best, even in these tough times. 

I’d love to hear how you guys are coping – let me know in the comments!

TIPS FOR FEELING YOUR BEST WHILE WORKING FROM HOME

1. PRIORITIZE YOUR NUTRITION

Since our gut health contributes significantly to our immune system, taking care of your gut is more important than ever. I’m focusing on eating lots of cooked and easy-to-digest veggies, high-quality protein, and healthy fats. Bone broth is another immunity powerhouse that also has major gut benefits.

Soups can be especially great because they are easy to digest, and the broth retains all the nutrients of the veggies. I‘ve been making my favorite immune-boosting soup – Carrot Ginger Coconut (made with bone broth) – and loading it up with extra garlic and ginger for their antibacterial and antiviral properties. 

While working from home, it can also be incredibly tempting to spend the whole day snacking and grazing. My biggest tip for avoiding this: eat FULL COMPLETE meals. Getting enough protein, healthy fats, and fiber at every meal helps to ensure you’ll actually stay full for several hours, and helps suppress that ‘snacky’ feeling. 

My working lunches are looking like big salads with protein, roasted veggies, seeds, olive oil and/or avocado, and tons of greens to up the volume of my lunches, to ensure I’m staying full, and not getting an afternoon blood sugar crash.

2. MOVE YOUR BODY 

For many of us, not being able to to the gym or a workout studio can feel like a big change. Exercise has been shown to have a wide range of health benefits, and even supports a healthy immune system, making it as important as ever to prioritize.

My personal goal while working from home has to been to get in one outdoor walk, and one at-home workout everyday.

I definitely haven’t hit this everyday, but I’ve gotten pretty close thanks to my favorite low-impact at-home workout – P.volve. If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ve seen me talk about how much I love P.volve on my IG Stories and in various blog posts, and my love for P.volve has only grown stronger these days.

If you’re new to P.volve, it incorporates physical therapy and “prehab” techniques that focus on functional movements that build strength and stability, all with low-impact exercises. The workouts are also designed to build long lean muscles, without adding bulk. The P.volve founder even trains Victoria’s Secret Angels (if it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me that’s for sure).

P.volve has been my saving grace these days because it’s the perfect at-home workout. I live in a prettyyy tiny studio apartment so having a workout that doesn’t take over my whole living room or require tons of jumping (thinking of my neighbors downstairs) is key. And from a mental health perspective, prioritizing movement and exercise has helped me stay calm and positive during this uncertain time.

Plus I love all the variety of workouts included on the P.volve site – whether I have an hour to do a full-body P.volve class (lately while also binging Little Fires Everywhere on Hulu), or 20 minutes to spare before a work call, there’s always an option that fits my schedule. 

My favorite online P.volve workouts:

• The 6 Day Total Body Burn Series: This series has been my tried and true – I always end up coming back to this one. The workouts contain many of the classic P.volve moves, and always leave me feeling longer, stronger, and sore the next day.
• The 7 Day No Equipment Series: This is perfect for beginners to learn the P.volve basics and proper form (so important!), and is also a great series to try if you’re doing a P.volve trial, and want to test the waters before buying equipment.
• P Sweat Series: I’ve been loving the new P Sweat workouts because they’re still low-impact, but you’re getting your heart rate up and breaking a sweat.

In the past year and half of incorporating P.volve workouts, I‘ve noticed such a difference, not in just in how my body looks, but how it FEELS. My body feels more open, strong, and I have less low back pain when I’m doing P.volve consistently!

And P.volve is offering some KILLER deals right now to let you try P.volve at home for FREE for 7 days! And the annual membership comes out to only $7.99/month!

3. BREAK UP YOUR DAY

Working from home and spending weekends indoors, it can be so easy to let the workday blend into your evenings, and the workweek blend into the weekend.

I’ve been combatting this by making clear delineations between the end of my workday, and the start of my personal evening. My favorite way to this is with a workout or a walk, followed by a shower.

Getting my blood pumping after sitting all day, getting a little sweat, and then rinsing off the day has done wonders for my mood and made my evenings so much more enjoyable.

Maintaining a morning routine has also been something I’m working on. It’s been veryyy easy to sleep in and hop right into work, but waking up a little earlier to do the little things – my skincare routine, have my bulletproof coffee away from my desk – has been so worth it.

4. FIND A CREATIVE OUTLET

Many of us are finding we have A LOT more time on hands now that we’re not commuting or spending any social time out of the house. Spending some time doing something creative is a great way not only to lift your mood and help you feel refreshed, but can also serve as a great creative break during the workday if you feel your productivity slipping. For me, it’s been more cooking, writing and photo-editing for the blog, and also embracing some of my favorite childhood activities – puzzles and coloring books.

Other ideas for new creative outlets: cooking or baking, drawing or painting, photography, learning a new language, journaling or writing.

5. STAY CONNECTED

Social distancing doesn’t have to mean a lack of social connection. In fact, it shouldn’t. Strong social ties and loving relationships have been associated with so many positive health outcomes – one study even found strong social ties were associated with a 50% increase in longevity(!). It’s a pretty striking reminder that our health is not just what we eat or how often we exercise – our connections to others play a huge role in our emotional health, which also affects our physical health.

While social distancing can be really hard, we’re lucky in that we live in the age of technology. Facetime and video chatting allows you to feel close and connected to friends and family. Virtual happy hours with groups of friends gives you the ability to chat and laugh in a social setting.

How have you guys been adjusting to spending so much time at home?

This post was created in partnership with P.volve 

Thank you for supporting the brands that support Elyse Wellness ♥

Disclaimer – always talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise routine, especially if you’re pregnant, new to exercise, or have any existing injuries or medical conditions ♥