
Covid-19 Series. Lockdown: Activities to help create structure to your day
The coronavirus pandemic has caused disruption to everyone’s daily lives. It’s important that you try to maintain some structure to your day. In our latest article, Alex, one of WWTW's Employment Advisors shares her top 10 activities to try during lockdown.
This is particularly important
for your mental health. We appreciate that many of you are juggling a lot, whilst others many have
more time on their hands than expected. Below we have compiled
some ideas to support veterans’ well-being during this period.
Activities to try if you have a few minutes peace:
1.
Learn
how to meditate
It’s a challenging and uncertain
time for us all, with many of us feeling anxious about the current situation.
Practice some self- help if you are struggling, such as meditation. The Headspace website and app is
offering a free ‘Weathering the Storm’ collection of meditations to assist
people during the Covid-19 crisis. You can also sign up for a 2-week free trial
with access to their wider resources.
Alternatively, YouTube has
hundreds of free guided meditations. Check out The Honest Guys for some
guided imagery or relaxation music (Please see our other post for organisations
you can turn to for professional support if you feel you are not coping).
2.
Yoga
Yoga is said to have benefits for
mind, body and soul, including reducing blood pressure, increasing strength and
flexibility, helping with sleep, and improving posture. Why not give Yoga with Adriene or Yoga with Tim
a try. They have hundreds of videos for beginners right through to pros, from
10 minutes to an hour, including 30 day practices.
Activities to try if you have more time:
3.
Complete
a free online course
By self-educating, you can boost
your CV and career prospects. Many platforms are offering free or discounted
courses, with a huge range of subjects and course lengths. Coursera has collaborated with
universities from around the world, and boast 3,800 online free courses throughout
the Covid-19 crisis (and over 1000 free courses normally). Futurelearn similarly offers short
online free courses, though they do charge for the certificate, starting from
£30. LinkedInlearning are offering a free first month to undertake a range of short
courses. These perhaps provide clearer professional goals for more specific
career aspirations.
4.
Get fit
We may not be able to get to the
gym but that doesn’t have to stop us from improving our fitness. If you are a
beginner, how about challenging yourself to do the Couch to 5K? Check out the
NHS running plan for beginners here
or get the entire programme on the app instead, which is easy to follow on the
go.
Can’t leave the house? No problem. There are literally thousands of fitness videos on YouTube. Alternatively, how about downloading the Nike Training Club app to your android or IoS for over 185 free workouts and personalised training plans.
5.
Learn a new language
Always fancied picking up a new
language? What better time than now. Duolingo and Babbel are two free apps,
available on both android and iOS that offer basic language and vocabulary in a
wide range of languages. Babbel is said to have more of a focus on conversational
phrases.
Check out this link for tips on how to learn a
new language in just a week.
Once you have mastered the
basics, practice your conversation with a native speaker at Hellotalk, available at iOS and Android.
6.
Improve
your cooking skills
Many bakers/ chefs and small
companies are turning their hand to online tutorials. Italian chef Massimo
Bottura is hosting daily live lessons on Instagram at 3pm entitled ‘Kitchen
Quarantine’. Also on Instagram WagamamaUK are sharing recipes and follow along
videos #Wokfromhome.
Missing your fast-food fix? McDonald’s have shared their recipe so you can
re-create their famous Sausage and Egg McMuffinat home. Jamie Oliver is also showing us how to use limited ingredients to
create tasty food on his ‘Keep cooking and carry on’ programme. All episodes
can be found on the Channel 4 player.
7.
Take up gardening
Gardening is therapeutic and good
for our physical health too. Apparently, soldiers grew vegetables and flowers in the
trenches during WW1 as a way to relax, using seeds sent from loved ones at
home. Why not take advantage of this lovely weather and take the opportunity to
learn. Even if you don’t have outside space, you don’t need much to grow your
own herb garden – just a window ledge, soil, and an old food carton, and your
favourite varieties from the supermarket. Check out this article by the metro
with tips on how to grow your own produce. Whilst most garden centres are
closed, flower and vegetable seeds can be ordered online, and bigger
supermarkets often stock compost. Or, as the article says, use your existing
veggie scraps!
8.
Take up a new hobby
Always wanted to learn an
instrument? Knit? Restore furniture? Take up fine art? Use some of this free
time to watch demonstrations and learn techniques to master something you’ve
always wanted to do. Amazon and Ebay are still delivering, and you’re likely to
find all the supplies you need at reasonable prices, either new or second hand.
And, purely for entertainment…
9.
Take
part in a virtual quiz
Link up with family and friends
to complete a pub style quiz online. Join up with a group and each design a
quiz or a round and spend Friday/ Saturday evening on Zoom or Skype in distant
competitive rivalry! Alternatively, take part in one that has alreay been put
together. Jimmy Carr is hosting ‘The
tiny little quiz of the lockdown’ daily on his YouTube
channel. Questions at 6pm, answers at 8pm. Event organiser Laura Jones who runs
‘Eventures’
is hosting themed quizzes on a Friday night. To date, she’s hosted ‘Friends’, ‘Harry
Potter’, and ‘Disney’ themed quizzes.
10. Watch a free show or concert or go to the Zoo
…from the comfort of your own
sofa. A number of companies are streaming shows for free, including the
National theatre via their YouTube Channel.
Each production is streamed live on a Thursday evening and will then be
available for 7 days. Treasure Island is the most recent offering. The Royal
Opera House are offering numerous ballet and operas on their Facebook and YouTube
channels too.
Chris Martin, John Legend, and
Keith Urban have all held live concerts from home and shared over Instagram. A
plethora of stars have also recently come together for the ‘Together at Home’
concert, which is available on BBC iPlayer.
Dublin & Edinburgh zoos
are livestreaming their animals for free home viewing, as well as others
further afield around the world. The Elephants enclosure at Dublin Zoo and the
Panda at Edinburgh are some of the favourites. Chester Zoo, in addition, has
over 50 activities to keep the little ones entertained and have recently held a
‘Virtual Zoo day’ which can be viewed again on YouTube and Facebook.
This is a strange time for everyone, but you can use the coming weeks
as an opportunity to explore your own personal development.
Walking With The Wounded continues to support those who have served. If
you need crisis support, please click here.