As self-isolation becomes key in slowing the spreading of COVID-19, many musicians are now using their platforms to inspire and entertain their followers who may be stuck at home—by.
Acclaimed Australian roots music singer, songwriter, guitarist and performer Ash Grunwald joins the ever-growing list by sharing his five tips for maintaining sanity during a lockdown.
1. BREATHE
I normally consider myself to be a great breather. From my time doing yoga, using breath control in singing and my deep love of the Wim Hoff method which has numerous scientifically proven physical and mental health benefits. But lately, I have noticed when watching the news that my breath was for the first time in twenty years becoming shallow as my anxiety started to build. The link between mind and body is a two-way street, meaning to help alleviate the anxiety I start to take some really conscious belly breaths to bring my system back to some sense of normality. So, as Wim would say… “Breathe mother fu#%er, breathe!”
2. MOVE
Nothing is better for your mental health than moving your body. If you are in Iso there is plenty of stuff on youtube. Tabata is really great, 3-5 minute workouts that will completely smash you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz9d7By2ytQ or some online yoga. Again, lots of free stuff on youtube but we use yogaglo or our good friends at The Yoga Shack in Ocean Shores are also doing online classes. These guys are the bomb!
3. SUNSHINE
We all know that vitamin D through sunshine is essential to our physical and mental health. There is growing evidence that getting into nature is also beneficial. We are still allowed to get outside and exercise or if you are in Iso find a sunny spot and soak it up. Here is a pic my amazing wife Danni took of me this morning
4. DON’T WORRY
Easier said than done but the benefits are obvious. Sometimes on a subconscious level, we tend to believe that worrying or constantly running scenarios in our head will in some way positively affect our outcomes when in reality all worry does is suppress our immune system by keeping us in flight or fight mode. There is going to be a lot of planning required in this era but your mind is more effective when you limit this planning to short bursts and then make a conscious effort to think about other things in between. If you haven’t read Eckhart Tolle, Power of Now, I can’t recommend it enough. Also I love this quote from Terrence McKenna: “Worry is praying to the devil, it’s betting against yourself! You don’t know enough to justify worrying”.
5. LEARN
Learning keeps us vital and awake. You can learn something new or use this downtime to improve at something you have always wanted to get better at.
