PERSONAL SAFETY + HEALTH PROTOCOLS
Taking charge of your health is a beautiful process with many stages. Just like a creative canvas, the body is one too: where we sketch, paint, and decorate to bring out the best artwork.
In fitness, sketching the canvas may be the process of planning for the body — the stage where we understand the kind of exercise and diet our bodies need. The painting stage may be likened to doing the proper techniques, which means that we have to warm up, stretch, and wear the right clothing. The last stage of this perpetual cycle is the art and science of maintaining lifelong fitness: where we learn to fall in love with the lifestyle that gifts us with empowering strength.
Here are some steps on how we can
KNOW WHAT YOUR BODY NEEDS
Before designing your diet and exercise routines, know your body type and needs. Ectomorphs, mesomorphs, and endomorphs; as well as people with different health conditions, require different approaches to physical health!
TAKE PROPER NUTRITION
Ensure that your body is equipped with the proper energy and nutrients from a healthy breakfast and from a good amount of water before expending them. Stay healthy and hydrated!
WEAR PROPER CLOTHING
Wear loose, comfortable clothing during physical activities. Remove any loose jewelry and tight belts as they can lead to injury. If necessary, wear the proper sports gear as well.
WARM UP & STRETCH
Mitigate the injury of cold muscles by warming up your muscles through blood circulation. Also perform simple stretching exercises before working out to activate the muscles and joints. After working out, don't forget to stretch again to cool down.
DO THE PROPER TECHNIQUES
Do not suffer from poor technique as it will pain and injure the body. Intentionally and consciously position your body properly to also perform better. If you have scoliosis, do not overwork your back and spine; and only do exercises allowed by your medical doctor.
Stress Management for High Schoolers
Erickson Neil Ruaro II
WHAT IS STRESS?
Stress is something that one could never run away from. As teenagers, however, stress regarding your high school years and your future as a college student tend to be increasing as we ease into adulthood. That’s all part of growing up and taking on new challenges, which is necessary as we transition to the next phase of our lives. Be that as it may, feeling the burnt of stress can be pretty challenging to handle.
As high school students, we are experiencing a lot of things. First, schoolwork and studying take up the majority of our time, especially now that we are in an online setup. And second, our after school hours also tend to be about completing school work and doing household chores. Add in extracurricular activities and spending time with your loved ones, and you’re approaching a demanding schedule.
Most high school students feel stressed. Stress is a normal part of our lives as stress is something that we should not avoid because it helps us in experiencing growth.
A STRESSFUL PROBLEM
Stress becomes a problem when it starts to affect you in negative ways, such as feelings of being overwhelmed, being easily irritated, having some trouble sleeping, and many more. These feelings are not pleasant and can come in the way between you and your goals.
Feeling stress is a natural response in dealing with a busy schedule, but you don’t have to resign yourself to its negative effects. Here are some ways in which you can deal with the stress of being a high school student.
Managing Stress
TAKE A BREAK
You should never feel bad about setting some time off of your schedule. Taking breaks is an essential part of taking care of ones’ self as all of us need to rest and recharge every now and then.
What you do on breaks depends entirely on you. You could watch a TV show, read a book, do some exercising, work on personal projects, take a nap and many more. Only you can determine which activity works best for you.
Breaks can also be a time to socialize with friends and catch up with one another. Whatever you choose, it should be something that is different from what you do in your day to day life as a high school student or whatever it is you do that is causing you stress. Getting distracted from stress, even for a little while, is a good thing.
MEDITATE
Meditate does not necessarily mean “meditate”. Meditation can be any leisure activity that can calm the nervous system such as breathing exercises, making art, playing a musical instrument, spending time with nature, and others. As long as it helps in easing your mind, then it’s considered meditation.
GET MORE SLEEP
Maintaining a proper sleep pattern is hard. To be honest, my own sleeping pattern got to where it is because I have been maintaining it for about 6 years now. Be that as it may, as high school students, it is well worth the effort to prioritize sleep as a good night’s sleep provides your body and your mind with the solid foundation and energy to approach the next day’s challenges.
One can start having a proper sleeping pattern by eliminating things that can disrupt your sleep such as light and sound. Additionally, you should try to keep your room’s temperature at a comfortable rate ~ not too hot, and not too cold.
Limiting your caffeine indulgence can also help as too much caffeine in your system can cause health problems.
Lastly, it’s a good idea to step away from your electronic devices before you sleep as notifications and the device’s blue light emission refrain you from going to sleep.
These are just a number of ways on how you can manage your stress. If you’re feeling seriously worried about your stress levels, talking to a counselor, or a therapist can be a major boost in getting your productivity back. Talking to people you trust could also really help as they are most probably going through the same thing as you are. Point is, one should always look into ways on how they could manage their stress, for their sake, and for those around them as well.