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Unless you’re a key worker, chances are you have a lot of spare time on your hands now. It can feel completely overwhelming, but taking it one day at a time and finding things to keep yourself busy with will definitely help. There’s a lot more that you can do from the comfort and safety of your own home than you might initially think. And, since the lockdown has come into place here in the UK, people have been getting increasingly creative, and online spaces have become even more vibrant and abundant with useful resources than ever before.
Take Time To Destress
This is a stressful time for everybody. Everybody has been affected in one way or another by this virus and the subsequent lockdown. You might feel lazy for taking time to relax and destress, but it’s actually really important. Prolonged stress can have many negative impacts on our bodies and brains, including increased blood pressure and increased feelings of anxiety and depression. Take some time to watch a few of your favourite films, take a hot bubble bath, play some great video games or pass an hour or so on slot sites. Allowing yourself a moment or two to pause should help you to feel less overwhelmed by everything that’s going on right now, and more in control of your personal situation and circumstances.
DIY Projects & Redecoration
If there are a couple of DIY projects that you’ve been meaning to get around to for months, then now is definitely the time to finally get them blitzed. Redecorating a room, building a new bookcase, or finally getting round to fixing that table are all great ways to make the most of this time at home. You can find plenty of awesome inspiration for DIY projects on places like Pinterest and YouTube.
Online Courses And Museum Tours
Whilst it’s maybe tempting to sit and binge watch Netflix when you have nothing else to do, a more productive use of your spare time would be to enroll on an online course, or check out some of the awesome museum tours and exhibitions that are now available online.
Both Future Learn and The Open University offer short courses on a range of different topics and subjects. From human genetics, to galaxies and stars, to creative writing and Shakespeare, there are loads of different online courses to choose from. The vast majority of them are free to enroll onto, and involve different articles to read, videos to watch and tasks to get stuck into.
As museums are now closed for the foreseeable future, many have chosen to move their exhibitions online. The Natural History Museum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Guggenheim Museum and the British Museum are just a small handful of places now offering virtual tours to the general public during this lockdown period. There’s loads of interesting things to see and learn about, and as a bonus, a lot of these virtual tours and exhibitions won’t cost you a single penny.
Check out these fun activities families can do whilst self isolating.
Learn Some New Recipes
If you’re not usually one to cook meals from scratch, then now is the perfect time to pick up and learn some new recipes. BBC Good Food, Deliciously Ella, and All Recipes UK are great places to head to for some cooking inspiration. For some recipes, you could even batch cook and then store the extras in your freezer, so you can still enjoy homemade meals once the lockdown is over and you’re back in the office.
Up Your Fitness Levels
With gyms now closed and workout classes cancelled, keeping fit can feel like a real challenge. However, there are loads of work out videos to follow along with for free on online platforms like YouTube. Joe Wicks, The Body Coach, has loads of great fitness videos, for adults and kids alike.
If you are lucky enough to have a garden during this period, definitely make the most of it. Exercising outside is especially fun and revitalizing, and can give you extra space to move about for your workouts. Government rules keep changing, but at the moment we’re all allowed out into our neighbourhoods for a short period to exercise. You could jog, walk or get your bike out and go for a cycle. Just make sure you practice social distancing, and wash your hands thoroughly as soon as you get back into your home.
It can be really difficult to keep productive throughout this period. There’s a lot going on, and it can be hard to stay focussed on even the little tasks and challenges. But, keeping yourself busy will help and often the trickiest part is getting started in the first place.
