Things you can do from home during lockdown

As the number of COVID-19 cases soar alarmingly across the globe, including in Pakistan, the Punjab government has decided to impose a smart lockdown in the province. Although it is a necessary precaution to keep people safe many will feel put out of place.

The first thing to remember during a lockdown is to focus on maintaining a healthy balance between physical, mental and emotional needs of a person. This is only possible if we focus on keeping ourselves busy and active. To help you cope with the lockdown, Baaghi TV presents a list of things you can indulge in to keep yourself busy.

Cleaning:

People who can afford to have domestic help around the world, have their help on leave due to the ongoing pandemic, especially in countries which are suffering through a severe rise in cases such as Pakistan and India. So while, one cannot expect to have help come in and do the cleaning, one should do this oneself.

Cleaning allows the body the opportunity to exercise without conscientiously doing so. It helps us to free our mind of external worries and focus on what is important – health and personal cleanliness, in an individual.

You can engage yourself in the following cleaning activities:

Mopping
Dusting
Cleaning the counters
Doing laundry
Washing the Dishes

The positive side of the lockdown is that since men, women and children are all confined within their homes, everyone can take a turn to perform these functions so that a single person is not burdened by it all.

Cooking & Baking:

Although not everyone is up to cooking a gourmet meal, cooking is easy and essential to living because, the art of cooking is significantly a life skill. Families can utilize this opportunity to cook together (and even learn together!) From children to adult men, the lockdown is an opportunity to acquire a new skill.

Similar to cleaning, cooking and even baking allow us the liberty to exercise our mind and our passions. They allow us the opportunity to express our creativity in new ways.

You can engage yourself in the following cooking/baking activities:

Making a salad
Cutting vegetables for cooking
Prepping for the meal
Collecting the required ingredients
Tasting for the flavors

Remember, that while baking is more scientific and specific in its measurements, cooking allows us to exercise a freehand so even if you mess up a few times, never give up.

Gardening:

Spending time in the nature and trying to be one with the beauty in nature can provide us with a sense of total calm. In times like the present when the global community is collectively tackling an array of natural and some not-so-natural disasters including the Covid-19 pandemic, we all need to exercise inner peace in order to cope with our circumstances and gardening is one such labor of love.

You can engage yourself in the following gardening activities:

Watering the plants
Taking out weeds
Mowing the lawn
Trimming overgrown hedges

Again, the positive side of the lockdown is that since families are all confined within their homes, everyone can take a turn to perform these functions so that a single person is not burdened by it all.

Reading:

Another actively that can allow us the adventure of a lifetime to kill boredom, is reading. No matter if you prefer fiction or non-fiction, comedies or tragedies, reading is one activity that provides you with total control. With no timely and/or physical restrictions, reading allows you the opportunity to experience the lives of characters like a best-friend.

Some benefits of reading can include:

Positive exposure
A learning experience
An adventure
Knowledge or Skill building

So pick up those books you have been meaning to read but never find the time to, and make the most of your lockdown moving from one thrill to another.

Painting, Crafting & Writing:

It is a fact that not all people have strong creative skills but, it surely doesn’t hurt to try it out and challenge your inner creative. What’s the worst that could happen? You might fail to come up with your Mona Lisa but you will surely have the time of your life trying.

You could paint anything from still life, to scenic views, fruit bowls to your next masterpiece. Or you could finally try your hand out at those illusive DIY projects that you have seen online yet never tried. Want to find out how to make your very own sandals? Well now is your chance.

You can even take to writing as a form of expression, and may even discover that you posses great finesse in it.

Self Care & Beauty Care:

Image credit: https://asiannarratives.com/top-5-local-makeup-brands-in-pakistan/

Another thing you can do to productively pass your time in lockdown is to finally figure out what best suits you from skin care to self care.

Women can finally try out the beauty tutorials they secretly wanted to, men can learn ways to hydrate their skin, maybe even focus on hair care. Remember that good self care never hurt anyone, not even men, after all the Korean society is full of men with swoon-worthy skin. Take note if you consider yourself an avid K-drama viewer and follow celebrities like Lee Min ho, Song Joon Ki, Park Bo Gum and others.

Lifestyle Overhaul:

One can even use this as the perfect opportunity to re-work ones lifestyle and everyday routine.

Lifestyle overhaul may include:

Finally fixing your sleep schedule
Eating healthier
Focusing on keeping yourself hydrated
Pursuing physical, mental and emotional goals
Coming up with your bucket list

Or anything else that you feel is necessary in your life but has been missing so far.

Community role:

Another thing you an do, especially during ‘Covid season’ as few in Pakistan are calling it, is play a positive role in the community. You don’t have to go out of your way to participate in some-grande-scheme-of-things, but you can start small and slowly make a huge difference.

What are some things you can do for this?

Give charity
Donate to help medical and pharmaceutical staff
Help out the deserving and needy
Make your own face-masks, hazmat suits and whatever else you can to help out the community
Provide food rations to those in need
Be a source of peace for the poor by providing them with job opportunities

Try and come up more innovative ideas which help you in becoming a better you, not for society but for yourself and hopefully for the greater good.

Exercise:

One other thing that can be done is exercise. You don’t need to aim to be the best physical fitness trainer or junkie but you also don’t need to give up on looking and feeling good. Exercise enables us to feel active and healthy throughout the day as it pumps our bodies with positive energy, so even just a 30 minute walk can be a source of pure electric energy to pass the day without feeling tired and/or lazy.

Some quick exercises that you can do without over-exerting yourself may be:

Squats
Pushups
Skipping
Burpees
Jogging
Walking

But whatever you do remember to be consistent and slowly build up to longer exercise breaks.

Acquiring a new hobby:

Although this is nothing different, lockdown can provide you with the perfect opportunity, to learn that one skill, that you always wanted to acquire. So make the most of it and pursue your desires.

Focus on Kindness & Patience:

However, the most important of all, is to exercise kindness and patience towards yourself, your loved ones and even to strangers. Staying indoors, worrying about contracting the novel virus, can definitely take its toll on people. To save yourself and your families from depression, undue stress and/or negativity and ill feelings, the best thing to do is to be kind. If you feel some action can lead to an argument, it is best to either remain silent or to leave the room till both parties involved can cool down and progress without negative thoughts.

To save oneself from the undue boredom and/or depression and to maintain sanity these are some essential things that can be done to make sure you stay engaged at all times. But let’s not overexert yourself.