26 June
THE sudden outbreak of the novel coronavirus towards the end of 2019 had caught most of us by surprise. The whole world was affected -- sparing almost no country, both rich and poor or developed and developing. At one time when the spread of the disease became serious the world was almost at a standstill. Most were concerned and some were alarmed about the never before known epidemic disease that had reached the pandemic level within a few days of its onset.
During the first month of the arrival of the disease in our country, most people were scared to a certain degree that they daren't leave the houses in the beginning. Also the instructions and restriction orders to stay home and the night curfews, followed by lockdown in certain townships, turned even a large and populous city like Yangon to resemble a deserted town. Almost all traffics stopped, except for the occasional ambulances and rescue cars were seen on the road and all the people, apart from a very neglectable few ventured out in the day light hours, but during the curfew hours people abided by the orders without much enforcement needed.
It's true that the COVID-19 have many adverse effects on the life of the people. Firstly the health sector is hard pressed. Then the economy is greatly affected. Many became jobless as some businesses and factories had to shut down, even petty businesses including the street vendor and street food sellers are affected. It effects every walks of life sparing no one, so to say.
Though it is causing havocs all across the world, there are many bright sides to it. It undoubtedly contributed to the environment in many ways, which was being discussed in a previous article "Let's create a new environment beyond COVID-19 (20 June 20 GNLM)". Another bright side of the pandemic is, it has taught us many good lessons. Of all those lessons, the importance of staying fit and strong both physically and mentally to get through these difficult times is the most valuable one.
The isolations due to restrictions of travel, lockdown, stay home orders and quarantines are taking toll on the mental and physical healths of many people. The anxiety, monotony, stress and the fear of contracting the disease may have much impact on the mental health. Also, the confinements have much effects on the physical health too, as lack of exercise or physical activities have many adverse consequences.
To overcome the impact on the mental health there are a variety of ways. However, one should choose the one that suits them. Pursuance of a hobby that you can do easily and without any expense involved, such as reading or writing would work for most. Other alternatives are sewing, knitting, painting, playing musical instruments, laying computer games and watching TV, etc.. For some meditating would keep them calm and focused. As every religion has their own way of meditating, it will not be discussed in detail here.
To stay fit and healthy so as to be able to resist or fight the virus is most important. For a person to be fit and healthy, they must be both mentally and physically fit and strong. To build up your resistance and to enhance your immune system, physical exercise is the best, the cheapest and the most accessable way.
What would be the best way to exercise, when we cannot go out? Doing the aerobic exercise is the answer. Aerobic is a term that includes a variety of physical exercises - walking, running or jogging, stationary running, skipping, dancing and any other form of exercise that involves vigorous movements of legs, arms and body. During the lockdown, when going out is not permissible nor advisable, one can do stationary running or in other words running on the spot and aerobic dancing. If you own a tread mill you can do the running or walking on it.
While doing the stationary running you must count the steps the moment the left foot touches the ground or the floor. To be effective you should run at a rate of at least 80 counts per minute. This aerobic exercise was designed for the air force personnels in the US back in the old days to keep them fit. I first came to know about that method back in the 1970s and started training that way on the rainy days when I couldn't go outside to do the jogging, for 20 minutes daily. It's not time consuming, but that 20 minutes proved to be as equally beneficial as jogging for a longer period.
In jogging or stationary running, the whole body is up in the air without contact to the ground between one step and the next. The impact of the body weight exerted on the knees when one foot lands on the ground could be quite great and unbearable for some. Thus, walking would be the best choice, if the situations permit, as one or the other foot is always touching the ground to support the body weight. Here, some prefer brisk walking to ordinary walking, thinking that the former is more effective. However, some health experts are of the opinion that both are equally effective depending on the distance and time taken to cover a set goal. Whatever type of aerobic exercise you choose, it would be most effective if you are able to raise your heart rate to 120 beats per minute after exercising.
To motivate people to walk, the benefits of walking should be made known to them. They are as follows : -
* Walking will improve your mood.
* It will help you burn more calories and lose weight.
* Walking can reduce your risk of chronic diseases.
* It can even delay the onset of varicose veins.
* Your digestion will improve by walking more.
* Walking can help you feel more creative.
* It can help alleviate joint pain.
* Walking more can boost your immunity.
* It can even help you live longer.
* Can help lower your blood sugar and control diabetes.
* Also your other goals will start to seem more reachable.
* Increased cardiovascular and pulmonary (heart and lung) fitness.
* Reduced risk of heart disease and stroke.
* Improves management of hypertension (high blood pressure), high cholesterol.
* Stronger bones and improved balance. * And last but not least, you'll sleep better at night.
From my experience, setting a goal in terms of distance or number of steps will make walking more exciting. Some say 6,000 steps will be enough and some say 10,000 steps should be your goal. However, you can choose either one or in-between depending on your age, condition and capability. It will be very convenient to count your steps if you should download a pedometer or step counter application to your phone. It will automatically count the steps, measure the distance covered, the duration of the walk and the number of calories burned. As it records your activity on a daily, weekly and monthly basis, it will also act as a motivator to make you want to compete with yourself.
As for me the goals set are 6,000 steps and distance 4 kilometres, however, those goals were exceeded quite often. The set goals are not necessarily to be accomplished in one stretch, but can be spaced throughout the day. If the distance to a place where you want to go is not far, don't take your car or ride a public transport, but just walk there. These short walks will supplement to your daily number of steps and kilometres.
Some suggest that a goal of 150 minutes and a distance of 8 kilometres would be an optimum goal. In my opinion that will not be applicable to everyone. Only the younger and healthier persons would be able to do that. For the elders that would be too ambitious and totally unachievable. Thus just walking for 30 minutes a day or more on most days of the week is a great way to improve or maintain your overall health. If you can’t manage 30 minutes a day, remember "even a little is good, but more is better". Walking with others can turn exercise into an enjoyable social occasion. See your doctor for a medical check-up before embarking on any new fitness programme, particularly if you are aged over 40 years, are overweight or haven’t exercised in a long time. Remember: the more you walk, the healthier you get and the longer you live. Most centenarians are walkers. Don't forget to wear a mask when going out for a walk.
By Khin Maung Myint
