The COVID pandemic has been tough for everyone. However, through the chaos, grief, and loss we’ve experienced over the last three years, I’ve noticed a positive shift: The narrative around health and wellness has changed for the better as we have pressed pause, have re-evaluated our lifestyles, and have given ourselves some much-needed grace to rest and heal.
Here are some of the key ways three years of a global pandemic shifted my whole perspective on what it means to be healthy and how to live a healthy life:
Mental health matters.
The pandemic helped me realize the importance of mental health to living a healthy life. Whether you do yoga online or practice at home, you may turn to yoga to find peace of mind to handle whatever life throws your way. For me, yoga helps reduce my stress and anxiety. Every time I step off my mat post-yoga class, I often feel better than when I stepped on my mat at the beginning of class.
Yoga alone won’t resolve your issues around stress, burnout, and anxiety. I started going to therapy in December 2020, and I cannot recommend therapy more highly. Think of therapy + yoga as a few of the tools in your toolkit to boost your mood on your toughest days or weeks.
Real self-care is more than just a spa night.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good face mask just as much as the next person. But real self care can’t be bought. Approach self-care as the radical act of reclaiming your time, your joy, and your humanity. Real self-care, real healthy living, begins only when you:
- know your worth
- protect your time
- prioritize rest
Yoga can deepen your self-care practice because it connects you with your body and breath and quiets your busy mind. Whether you practice yoga to improve your flexibility or just to give yourself a little break, you deserve to invest in your health and wellbeing.
Time dedicated to health and wellness is non-negotiable.
How often do you say “I’ll do that later” and put off your healthy habits? I’ll run later, after work. I’ll take that early morning yoga class tomorrow, just not this morning. I’ll find 5 minutes to meditate later. (More on how I learned to meditate every day for 365+ days here.) I’ll apply for that new job that I’m excited for, later.
The pandemic asked us all to upend and reconfigure our daily schedule. We felt so out of control of everything else that we clung to the aspects of our daily routines we could control: a pre-work walk, a mid-day virtual yoga class, the act of making lunch at home. As a semblance of normalcy has returned, I’ve seen more and more regular students consistently attend my yoga classes as they set aside time each week for yoga. Coming to class is no longer a question of ‘if’ they come to my class but ‘when’ they come to my class every week. Showing up for class has become non-negotiable.
Yoga can happen anywhere.
Sometimes your health, your schedule, or even the weather prevents you from attending in-person yoga classes. Or maybe you just lost your job and you cannot afford a studio drop-in class or membership right now.
Luckily, online yoga classes are convenient, affordable, and more popular than ever. You can find no-cost options like my yoga videos or low-cost subscriptions to online yoga communities. I love that virtual yoga classes bring folks from all over the world into community with each other through breath, movement, and the practice of yoga.
I fully believe the more accessible yoga becomes and the more people can practice yoga and feel its positive physical and emotional benefits, the kinder and healthier we’ll all be!
What mattered the most pre-COVID, didn’t really matter.
The COVID pandemic made me pause and reevaluate what was truly important. I don’t know about you, COVID asked me to cut back on my incredibly busy social schedule and instead prioritize my bubble of immediate family and a small group of friends.
As events and socialization have returned and my social circle has re-expanded, I have continued to protect my free time. If I need to rest or take care of myself in some way, I am comfortable asking for what I need and rescheduling plans. I no longer feel pressured cram my social calendar with events, but I can intentionally spend time with the people that mean the most to me. Because of COVID I can prioritize my own health and replenish my social battery in new ways.
You tell me!
How have your healthy habits changed in the last three years? Are you able to prioritize real self-care now more than ever? If not, what’s getting in your way?
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I’m Sarah, a certified yoga instructor who speaks multiple languages and has traveled to more than 33 countries. I approach teaching yoga in a holistic, accessible way that can support your personal health and wellness goals.
Do you want to take your yoga and wellness journey to the next level? Press pause on your busy life and delve into your yoga practice on one of my two yoga retreats this year to Greece (June) and Morocco (October).