The Covid19 Virus permeates everything we do, everywhere we go and even every decision we make. But that doesn’t mean it has to turn us into hordes of zombies, hunkered down and cowering from the future. 

As a matter of fact the experts are suggesting the opposite. We should be prepared, for sure, but we should also create routine, remember fitness is important, stay connected and, might we suggest, get motivated. 

Most of us have a long list of things we have been putting off. Something of the things on the list we have just been procrastinating on for a couple of days and others have been on the list for years and years. Well, now is the time to start checking them off. I mean, what else do you have to do? Buy toilet paper? 

Mowing the lawn - Let's face it this isn’t the most entertaining thing to do. We’ve driven down your street and ogled your neighbors' meticulous lawns and this should create enough shame in you to have you fire up the mower. Mowing on a Monday doesn’t really sound all that bad and now with your “new schedule” you should be good to go. Just don’t stand over the mower and chat it up with the neighbors, remember your social distancing. Sadly, even though the letter, allegedly from St. Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City, circulating around the internets stated consuming alcohol could reduce the risk of infection from Covid19. It turned out to be a hoax, so keep those mower cold ones to a reasonable level.  

Clean your whip. Some people are just total clean freaks when it comes to their cars or bicycles, you may even know a couple. If this isn’t you, we bet it's time for a wash and lube. If you wanna get serious about washing your car or bike Chemical Guys has a kit that looks like it will go above and beyond. 

Keep moving - The gyms are all closed, the parks are closing and your motivation partners are all hunkered down just like you. But you don’t need any more excuses. You need action. We can recommend you download the app “Home Workout No Equipment.” The app allows you to choose your level of intensity and the bits you want to target, everything from a full body workout to an abdominal blast. If that's too much commitment for you then do some easy stretching and get out for a walk. 

           If you’re going to stay at home for the duration you might consider getting a pair of these adjustable dumbbells, which go from 10-90 pounds. And at a mere 115 clams a set, that is pretty good “pump it up” for the money.

Learn a Language- You might already have “dos cervezas por favor” or “donde esta el baño” under your belt, but it might be time to move beyond your limited “gringo” vocabulary and really get an understanding of another language and culture. Maybe you already have a firm grip on the español or it is your native tongue, then it seems like it might be the perfect time to learn a little Italiano. “Si. Per Favore.” 

 A great and cost effective tool to help you is the app Duilingo, which offers a myriad of languages, including Spanish and Italian, and takes you through a multitude of different exercises as you learn words, similar words and phrases as it tracks your progress. You can set your daily practice time and if you haven’t practiced for the day it will send you a notification to get on it. It is fantastico. Nunca es tarde para aprender. 

Rest Up - According to studies so many of us are guilty of not getting enough sleep. We shouldn’t have to tell you to sleep in If you’re quarantined, you should already be catching up on your R.E.M. We use an air purifier to drown out any extranious noises. A humidifier or fan would work just fine, too. We also recommend dark curtains because the darkness of the room improves the possibility of quality sleep. If we wanna insure we fall asleep quick we take Vicks “Zzz Quil Pure” gummies which are chamomile and melatonin and the only melatonin gummies that don’t make us feel overly tired the next day. There are lots of great sleep apps to help you track your Zzzzs, but you can just do it the old fashion way by keeping a “analog” journal of your hours and quality of sleep. 

   6.)Become a Picker and a Grinner. We’ve always wanted to learn to play the guitar. To jam out and to be a rockstar at the Kali Burn Barrel parties. And it turns out the best advice is the same for almost all of the things on this list: just start. Learn a couple chords and then mix them together with one more. So much of popular music uses just three chords. Three. So learn three chords and listen to how they are supposed to sound by themselves and together. And we live in the age of YouTube and for people wanting to learn how to play guitar, or rebuild their carburetor, this is an amazing time. If you want to know to play the intro to Enter Sandman or how Tom Morello gets his funky solo sounds on that Rage Against the Machine song it is just a YouTube search away. 

If you need more indepth and hands-on teaching now is the perfect time for this. Due to the virus so many musicians are unable to earn their living playing gigs they have turned to teaching lessons online, through Skype and other portals. Just do a little google research or hit up your favorite players on Instagram. During these difficult times it seems even the most famous of players are taking the time to interact with  their fans. 

Of course, all of this also applies to the piano, the banjo, the harmonica, the harpsichord and the human voice. Regardless of which instrument you love there has never been a better time to make a little music. 

Bike Skills - 

If you’re not following the #rideathome thread on Instagram, we can’t recommend it enough. It brings a much needed level of levity to the current situation. 

While our friends in Tuscany are not even allowed to go outside for a walk, the powers that be in California are still allowing us to get out into the fresh air as long as we keep in mind the need for distancing and best practices. And during these uncertain times, there is something reaffirming about getting out on your bike and feeling the trail and/or road underneath your tires. We certainly don’t recommend your do anything overly strenuous or indulge your desire to “huck the gnar,” as the last thing you or anybody needs is a trip to the ER. But you could use this time to practice your track stands, manuals and even wheelies. It will take your mind away and give you a small semblance of accomplishment. Ride on. Stay safe.  

 

Commit to Today. We know this one sounds like something off an inspirational poster or out of fortune cookie, but it has even more importance than it did just a hot minute ago. We have decided we need to commit to the “today” starting right now.  We can no longer be caught focusing on the “tomorrow” or “yesterday”. We need to be consumed and focused on the “today”. We, too often, think things will line up tomorrow in order to make it the perfect today. And now we now know how wrong this thinking really is. But it is a hard habit to break with so many commitments and things pulling us through the day. So today we will attemp to live like this is the day and we know it. We hope you will, too.