April 27, 2020

By Ali Sensintaffar, HRCA Assistant Aquatic Program Coordinator

Find a Routine - And Stick To It! 

Okay. I will say it. Being in quarantine and being in isolation is hard. And it sucks. And I miss my friends. Heck, I even miss going into work. Looking at this and being uncertain about how long this is going to last just makes the whole thing overwhelming and seem impossible. COVID-19 is something we can’t control. But we can control our actions and our response. We can’t control how long this is going to last and looking to the future right now is daunting. But we can control what we do each day.

When I first began self-isolating, I created a daily routine. I woke up, made my bed, put my robe on, made coffee and breakfast and enjoyed them on the porch. Then I worked for a couple hours, then took a break and worked out for 20-30 minutes and ate lunch. Then I worked until 6pm. I then ate dinner and watched a movie or browsed social media or did something to relax. Then I spent about 30 minutes to an hour working again, checking up on things and setting everything up for me the next day. Then I would wind down for bed and do my bedtime routine before listening to a meditation for sleep.

I did that every day. Seven days a week. Then about a week ago, I stopped and I have noticed a huge difference. My sleep is all over the place, sometimes I forget to eat, sometimes I don’t stop eating. I’ll look at work stuff in the middle of the night. I have been sinking into a depression. I’m unmotivated and every time someone asks me to do something, I feel so overwhelmed. Whereas when I had a routine, I was motivated. I looked forward to each day. I was able to be creative and I had energy. Getting back into that routine is key to surviving quarantine.

Routines may seem bland and boring right now, but having one is more important than ever. Having a daily routine can help reduce stress and anxiety, can help you perform better in your career, can help you become a better athlete, and lead to a better work/life balance which tends to lead to an overall happier you.

Parts of a Daily Routine
First and foremost, make sure that you have a regular sleep schedule. And make sure that sleep schedule includes enough quality sleep time. Most adults need 6-8 hours of sleep every night. I personally work best if I’ve had 8-9 hours of sleep. Figure out what you need and then come up with a plan to stick to that. I try to go to bed between 10 and 11 pm and wake up between 7-8am. Doesn’t always happen, but it’s my goal and I’m getting better at it.

Second, spend time in the morning to collect yourself. I know it’s hard not to just jump into everything, but try not to check your work email on your phone in bed. Get up, get dressed, make breakfast, have a cup of coffee or tea or whatever you like to drink in the morning, and spend at least 30 minutes to prepare for the day. I like to use this time for visualization or for going over my positive affirmations. I do not use this as a time to start mentally working. That means, I’m not running through a mental checklist of all the emails I have to send out or what deadlines I have to meet at work today. I am using it to collect me and set myself up in a positive mind frame to handle whatever comes my way.

Get dressed. Do not spend the day in your pajamas. I know there are a lot of memes going around about having “day pajamas” and “night pajamas” but make sure you get dressed. You don’t have to dress as if you’re physically going into the office, feel free to dress down, but get dressed. Shower. Brush your teeth. Continue to get ready as if you were going to go in to the office. Don’t get out of that habit.

Schedule work time and let that be your work time. If you are scheduled to work 9-5 every day, then work 9-5. At 9am, log in to the computer and work. At 5pm, log out. Don’t keep checking your email after that. Now that most of us are working from home, it is more important than ever to have a distinction between your work life and your home life. Do not let your stress and worry over your job affect your personal well-being or that of your family. When it’s time to log out, log out and be with your family or your favorite TV show or just be with yourself. Whatever the situation, leave your work to your designated work times.

Take breaks. Oh boy. It is so easy to get caught up in work that you just work and work and work and then you realize that several hours have passed, your bladder is near bursting and your stomach has been growling for the past hour and a half. Now that I am working from home, I realize just how much my coworkers helped to keep me sane by forcing mini breaks on me. Even just to turn around and greet someone as they came in, or ask about some email we all received. The point was, I was often turning away from my computer, giving my eyes a rest, and oftentimes standing up. It may have only been two minutes at a time, but it kept me moving. Without my coworkers, I am glued to my computer. To force myself to take breaks, I have scheduled breaks throughout the day. Every hour, I walk around for about five minutes, maybe I get a snack, maybe I’m getting some water, maybe I’m going outside for fresh air or maybe I’m just walking in circles. But I’m forcing myself to stretch my legs. I have two longer breaks that I schedule for myself. One is where I workout for 20-30 minutes. Another is where I eat a late lunch. For both of these, I physically leave the room where my computer is so that I’m not tempted to work through my break.

Exercise. Oh come on. You knew this one was coming. This is, after all, first and foremost, an exercise blog. You can switch up the exercise you do each day and vary the time, but make sure to exercise every day. My mom for example walks for an hour and a half three days a week and for half an hour the other five days. I do not have her dedication to exercising for long periods of time unless I’m in the pool so I exercise 20-30 minutes during the week and 45 minutes to an hour on the weekends. I alternate between walking, calisthenics, stretching, dancing or whatever new thing I find on the internet to try at home.

When and what to eat. I include when I’m eating and what I’m eating. This helps to take the guess work out of it and forces me to eat healthier, which my body thanks me for. Eating at the same time is particularly crucial for athletes because it ensures that their bodies are properly fueled for their workouts.

Weekly Routines
So the daily routine is great and good. And it’s good to take things day-by-day during quarantine. However, it is still important to continue to think ahead – just a little bit. We can’t make decisions for a month out, because we don’t know what the state of the world will be a month from now. But we can make plans for the week.

Set up weekly goals. They don’t have to be big. They can be small. Paint your nails could be a goal. Or do your taxes. Finish building the deck in the backyard. Trim your dog’s nails. These goals can and should differ from week to week. I have two goals. I want to finish a paper for school and do my taxes. Both which I probably should have done earlier, but I fell off the bus with my routine over the last week and a half.

Every day of the week does not need to be the same. In fact, it shouldn’t. Your work week should look different from your weekends. AKA – you shouldn’t be working (unless you normally work on weekends, then by all means, maintain your schedule – but don’t forget to take breaks and take days off for you). There are things that should stay the same, such as your sleep schedule, eating schedule and you should still exercise. But rather than working, take the weekend to tackle a house project or have a virtual happy hour with your friends. I have been spending weekends working on my vision board, doing laundry and deep cleaning, and relaxing.

Include a social life. Just because we are social distancing does not mean that we can not have a social life. I had a virtual happy hour with some friends of mine over FaceTime the other day and it was phenomenal. Best part was – I didn’t need to worry about finding a sober ride home! People are social creatures, even those of us that identify as introverts. Without social interaction we tend to get anxious and depressed. Schedule time with your family and friends to meet over FaceTime, Zoom, or just a good old fashioned phone call.

Sample Routine

This is a general outline of the routine I follow. I did not include my getting ready routine which happens between 7 and 8 and depends on what time exactly I get up. It is a good idea to have a routine that is written down that you can refer back to. The one I have written down is laminated and color coded. It’s laminated so I can write my meals down and some of the items are left blank so I can change them as I need to. For example, some weekends, my weekend project is going to the grocery store for food. Or maybe I’m feeling worn down and just want to relax and watch TV. I will plan that out and write it on my weekly schedule so that I feel more put-together and more prepared for life in general. Having it all written down it helpful because it’s almost like a contract with myself. I’m less likely to deviate from a routine that I have written down and posted.

But at the same time – life happens. It’s okay if you need to deviate. You got sick? Okay. Take a sick day. You are behind on housecleaning? Alright, spend more time on it throughout the week. There is no right schedule for everyone. You need to work with you and figure out what your best schedule is.

For more information on routines, visit these sites:

10 Olympic Athletes Daily Habits You Should Steal That Don't Involve the Gym

The Importance of Routine for Peak Athletic Performance

The secret benefits of routines. It won't surprise you.

The Importance of a Daily Routine