The quarantine has been in place now for a couple of weeks and my bet is that you all probably consumed a fair amount of Netflix (and Alcohol). But unfortunately, the Quarantine fun only lasts for a couple of days and being confined to your house can result in a pretty tough and boring time. So here are some tips and tricks to help you through your quarantine that will help you have a productive day (apart from writing articles).
Develop a routine and plan your Day
Your day at home will probably consist of sleeping long hours irregularly, consuming mass (social) media and ending up getting to bed late being pretty unproductive. Somehow the goals you set for that day did not end up happening. You are not the only one that this is happening to. You are missing your subconscious routine of going to the university, planning for public transport (if applicable), Studying, meeting your friends for a coffee and afterwards spending whatever time you budgeted the way you like too. Now that this important routine has fallen away, partially by cancelled classes and due to the postponed exams, you are left with a time vacuum you likely don’t know how to fill. By developing a routine and planning your day you will budget your abundance of time and not letting it go to waste. In order to develop a healthy routine you need to set realistic goals for the day, for example writing a chapter for your thesis, applying for at least 2 internships, study productively for at least two hours or maybe try out that new recipe you never had time for. By planning each of these activities carefully you have now structured your day and no time has gone to waste, while your day remains productive.
A good guideline to help develop a healthy routine can be found here:
How to Fill up your day:
All the talk about developing a routine and planning your day would be useless if there is nothing to do or anything you can think of! Therefore I have compiled my personal favourites of how I get through the quarantine days.
Learn a new language
Ever wanted to learn a new language, but you found you had a shortage of time? No worries, the quarantine has just solved that for you! All jokes aside, learning a new language is an incredibly useful skill to master when you have seas of free time. Personally, I have chosen to improve my Spanish by spending one hour a day on studying Spanish. While many still associate studying a language with old thick books and glossaries, nowadays there are plenty of modern means to study a new language. My personal favourite is by using Babbel (I will leave the link down below), because it offers a good balance between learning grammar and vocabulary in a very useful way. While it is a paid service, I found it to be much more useful than duolingo due to the structured explanation of the grammar and the targeted learning by topic. But there are some free ways to improve your language learning skills as well. For learning spanish, Spanishdict has some awesome free classes online, or tu escuela de Español on YouTube. You can also try to watch your favourite movies in another language with subtitles, or put the game you are playing in your designated learning language.
Tu Escuela de Español:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTyCyyV0eKfEoMWI_V11z6A
Babbel:
Spanishdict:
Improve your cooking skills
“The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” is a famous english proverb that is most certainly true for all genders. While you have plenty of time, there are no more excuses for a lazy cheap lasagna or pizza. Learning how to cook is an incredibly useful skill and can bring a lot of variation in your daily meals. Experimenting with new food can be challenging at first, but once it starts to yield results it can quickly turn into a healthy addiction. While I certainly don’t expect the most of us to start experimenting without a goal in mind, some guidance on some original proven recipes might be very welcomed. Personally I tried many dishes from Gordon Ramseys quick & simple recipes series that helped me to vary my meals throughout the week a a great lot. I also strongly recommend Jamie Oliver’s YouTube channel since he has a lot of excellent guest chefs (besides himself) that teach you how to cook great authentic food. But if all these things are not enough, I’ll leave you with one more great recipe from peru that I really enjoy making, Lomo Saltado, a peruvian Stir Fry that everyone can make at home.
Gordon Ramsey’s Quick & Simple recipes:
Jamie Olver’s Youtube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpSgg_ECBj25s9moCDfSTsA
Lomo Saltado:
Work out at home
Are you experiencing the trouble of sleeping because you are feeling too energetic? Or do you simply miss the Gym for those sportholics among us? Well this is likely because you didn’t
‘Exercise’ enough on a daily basis. Doctors prescribe at least 30 minutes a day according to this Harvard article (linked down below). This exercising includes biking to university, having a walk outside to the grocery store or even moving from building to building. However, all these common activities are now hindered due to the quarantine. Therefore, it is essential that you move at least 30 minutes a day, preferably in one go. This can include Yoga, home exercise, going out (with care) to walk for 30 minutes in a park (again with caution). Moreover, the summer is inevitably still coming, and therefore for some you might want to get back into shape for that summer body. Perhaps now is the time to download an app and set some ambitious goals for working your body. Again for working out though, discipline and routine are key, and so is cooking.
The Harvard article regarding exerciseja:
https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/how-much-exercise-do-you-need
Read some more Channels Online articles!
If you like ready a broad variation of different topics, www.Channelsonline.nl is the place to be! We write new articles weekly, some of them being excellent Netflix Watch list recommandations, but also articles about how to acquire a variety of new skill sets in case your day is not full. Or perhaps you want to use this time to plan your holiday once COVID-19 is all over. There are plenty of articles to choose from!
That is it for now! If you have any questions please let us now. We wish you much strength in these extraordinary times. Stay Safe!
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