Social Distancing has us all rethinking our daily routines. And, while it might be inconvenient, it does offer a chance to try new things. One of the best questions you can ask yourself when things don’t go as expected is, “what is this an opportunity to do, to try and to test?” For many of us, a social connection, our daily motivation, and purpose will likely come from new and unusual inputs. I’ve found three new apps that might just make that transition easier.
First up, Down Dog Yoga App
You’d be surprised how tired you can be at the end of the day from sitting in front of your computer all day. Knees bet, ankles crossed, elbows cricked, hunched back. It’s hard to have good posture while sitting all day. As Kelly Starrett says, “sitting is the new smoking,” and while you can’t quit sitting, you can counteract the tired stiffness with short and simple exercise and mobility sessions. The folks that make the Down Dog yoga app have made it free until April first. What a perfect time to give yoga a try. The sessions are from beginner to “are you kidding me with that pose,” and they can be as short as 9 minutes. I double down-dog-dare you to try a quick yoga session daily for the next week.
Need Motivation? Yeah, you do.
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id876080126?pt=119655832&ct=App
Who doesn’t need a shot of motivation here and there? As simple as it sounds, you are what you consume, and if you spend your days consuming the news, there’s a good chance you’re going to be a little stressed out. Honestly, you should be. But not all the time. You can be in the know and still have an optimistic outlook on life or at least a good giggle to keep it real. The Motivation app is a configurable delivery of bite-sized motivation prompts delivered as often as you like them. You can even curate the type and category of that motivation. While there is a paid service, and you can add content by agreeing to ads, the core of the app is free and worth trying out for a week or two.
Stick this in your ears: Listle
Working from home doesn’t mean you have to tether yourself to your laptop. While many will struggle with the psychology of results-driven work and feel uncomfortable not being available on a whim to the now remote office, I assure you that it’s okay to stand up, walk around, make lunch and consume media. Listle is like a podcast player but with current events, news, articles, book summaries, and content that can be consumed audibly while doing something else with your hands or body. It’s an entirely new learning channel that allows you to exist in the world while getting educated, informed, and entertained. Even better, you can curate your catalog of content in a queue that will allow you to binge-listen to your curated list while getting that garden under control. Just think of it as elevated upskilling for modern humans.
So, while you’re stuck at home, take advantage of the new situation to try a few new things. Namely, taking care of yourself with exercise, motivation, and new ways of learning.