Strategies to stay strong, remain active and keep well during the COVID-19 pandemic

Not only are you working from home, but you might be hosting a full suite bed & breakfast (...and lunch, dinner, and all the snacks!) Here are some ideas to keep you inspired and help you use what you have on hand.

• 20 Easy Pantry Meal Ideas
• Five Weeks’ Worth of Meals You Can Make with Pantry Staples
• “I don’t know what to make!” Plug in the ingredients you have on hand, and this tool will suggest recipes.
• Cook along with Celebrity Chefs
• Three tips for eating healthy and boosting your immune system.
• Your guide to ordering delivery and takeout.
• Get the family involved in preparing a new healthy recipe.
• Eating healthy during stressful times.
• Eating on a Budget
• Use your Zipongo account, through Virgin Pulse, to find immunity-boosting and healthy recipes. This resource is for benefits-eligible faculty and staff at Ohio State.

Taking time each day to practice self-care, through mindfulness and other strategies, is vital during these times. If you are not sure where to start, and need tools, tips and accountability, check out these resources and strategies below:

• Staying Well and Calm in the Midst of the COVID-19 Storm: Evidence-based Tactics that Work! eight-week webinar series.
• Do you dwell on the negative and let moments of joy just pass you by? Discover how Pixar's Pete Doctor got out of his head and savored the good in his life. Learn how to Clear Your Head.
• How do we stay strong during a time of crisis? Learn how to stay S.A.N.E during the crisis.

Mobile Apps:

• Calm App
• Headspace App
• Intellicare
• Sanvello
• Insight Timer
• Aura
• Glo
• 10% Happier
• Jour

We need each other to get through this time! Remember, it’s about “Physical” Distancing, so let’s be creative with ways to stay social and connected. Sign up for a free personal Zoom account. Use it to host up to 100 people for 40-minute meetings, social gatherings or happy hours. Use video conferencing to bring your network together!

Additional ideas:

• Set up a virtual playdate for your child and their school friend so that they can color or read stories together.
• Host a book club or study with your friends, club or faith community.
• Share your expertise: host a live virtual-workout, cooking class, read a book or show how to make a craft.
• Use additional apps to play games together e.g. Host a euchre night with three other friends, play scrabble-like games or others.
• Set up an 8 p.m. hangout every night with your mom and dad or friends to decompress and make sure everyone is ok!
• Connect with your neighborhood through Nextdoor.
• Strategies for coping with loneliness

Whether you have bored kids at home, or you’ve read every book you have on hand – here are some ideas to keep you and your family distracted, entertained in between work, school and everything else you are balancing. As a reminder, don’t feel bad about sticking to a schedule. Feel free to use these ideas that are also educational!

Go on a virtual field trip:

• Cincinnati Zoo Safari – live on Facebook at 1 p.m. EST
• Visit museums virtually.
• Take a tour of over 20 zoos, aquariums and more.
• Visit the US National Parks virtually.
• Virtually ride popular Disney attractions.
• COSI – Digital Doorways

Art Lessons:

• Daily Art (1 p.m. EST) with kids’ author, Mo Willems
• Star Wars craft activities
• #DrawWithRob: New draw along videos on Tuesdays and Thursdays

Podcasts:

• Story Time
• Brains On!
• Eleanor Amplified Podcast
• Saturday Morning Cereal Bowl
• The Thrilling Adventure Hour
• The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd
• Short & Curly

Other:

• Scholastics – free resources for kids to keep learning at home
• Action for Healthy Kids: Free online resources for exploratory learning and transitioning to online learning.
• Check out an eBook, eAudiobook, movies and more through the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s digital library.
• Use the Caribu app to connect children with their grandparents, friends or other family members and color, read books and play games together while video chatting.
• Teach your children to type

Now more than ever, we need to stay active to keep our bodies healthy, manage stress and provide an outlet for our nervous energy. You don’t need to order expensive equipment and set up a home gym – use these free resources and ideas:

• Buckeye Wellness Live Workouts
• Fitnessblender: Workout videos, routines & healthy recipes.
• Top 25 At-Home Exercises:  Step by step guide to exercises that you can do at home without any equipment.
• 50 Best Free Workout Resources online: Online workout videos include barre, yoga, seated cardio, bootcamps and much more.
• The Scientific 7 Minute Workout: Are you short on time? Work most muscle groups using your body weight, a chair, and the wall. 
• WHIL Yoga: Only available for benefits-eligible Ohio State faculty and staff employees, located in the Virgin Pulse portal, under View All in the Benefits menu.

Whether you are a supervisor at Ohio State, senior leader or have leadership position in your volunteer organizations – these are tips and resources for you:

• Leading Through Crisis: Ohio State Fisher College of Business
  • Lead Read Today explores the role and value of leadership in today’s world, even now as we lead in the face of crises during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Learn how to lead a new normal, how to lead by example and other insights. Gain leadership, management insights from the Fisher College of Business Leadership Initiative, visit or subscribe to receive weekly updates.
• Work-from-home Playbook: Virgin Pulse
• Eight Well-being Leadership Strategies: Global Wellness Institute

Nothing helps coping with stress better than the feeling of helping others. You may be isolated – but you can still live generously and help others in need. Here are a few ideas:

• Support the Wexner Medical Center faculty and staff on the frontlines: Email BRAVO@osumc.edu with your encouraging words, pictures and videos to support our frontline healthcare workers.
• Donate Supplies: the Wexner Medical Center is humbled and honored by the generosity of our community and the desire to donate new, unopened medical supplies. The donation center is now closed, and if shortages arise, we may reopen the center. However, there are other groups that would benefit from your generosity. 
• LifeCare Alliance is in need of healthy adult volunteers to deliver meals to our vulnerable Central Ohio community
• Donate items or your time to Ohio Food Banks or the Buckeye Food Alliance (student pantry) as they see a surge in a demand.
• It’s a great time to go through clothes and other items to find items to donate! Donate your business attire to Dress for Success.
• Visit www.columbus.gov/covid19resources/help/ to find additional ways to help Central Ohio.
• Visit the American Red Cross and donate blood if you can.
• Visit the United Way of Central Ohio to learn more ways to give.

• Ohio State students can visit iGrad for answers, tips and advice for staying financially well during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Ohio State faculty and staff can use the Your Plan For Health Financial Fitness resources.
• Huntington has free financial education resources for all stages of financial wellness.
• 7 Things to Do in Hard Times - download
• The importance of getting on a budget right now - download 
• Protecting your Four Walls - download
• Coronavirus & Investing - What you need to know - download