The HFR team and our founder and author of the fitness book ReSYNC Your Life Samir Becic are bringing you exclusive tips on how to brave the hurricane season that’s about to hit the Atlantic coast. Due to record-breaking hot temperatures this spring, the 2019 hurricane season started a little early, officially June 1st and will last until November 30th. It’s essential to take care of yourself and make sure you are staying healthy during tropical storm and hurricane season. We wish you all a safe week and remember, turn around, don’t drown!
Here are the top 10 ways to protect yourself and your health this weekend and the remainder of the hurricane season:
- Drink plenty of water: Drinking lots of water seems like a no brainer to staying healthy, but what do you do when you don’t have any? Make sure you stock up on bottles of water at the store, and if there’s a chance of power going out, make sure to fill all of your containers with water (we’re filling up our bathtubs just in case!).
- Become familiar with food safety guidelines: It can be hard to make a healthy meal with no electricity or running water, so learn what foods are okay or not okay to eat without preparation. Make sure that your refrigerated foods haven’t been sitting out without power for longer than two hours because if your food reaches 40 degrees Fahrenheit or higher it becomes unsafe to eat. Keep a thermometer in your fridge and freezer to make sure your foods are still safe!
- Don’t become friends with your junk drawer: Just because that bag of sour cream and onion chips isn’t going to spoil doesn’t mean you should eat the whole thing! It can be tempting to eat all the cookies and candy in the house since you’re trapped and have nowhere to go but don’t ruin your health by spiking your blood sugar. Have a snack, but balance it out with a non-perishable granola bar and get your nutrients.
- Get the grill fired up: If you have a grill, stock up on some charcoal and get ready to grill every slab of hamburger you have in the freezer. If the power goes out, you need to still be able to eat healthily. Eating protein like chicken or beef can give you the energy you need to get through the storm. That, and all the nutrients meat has in it will make you feel better and give you one less thing to worry about.
- Have a (heart healthy) drink: Take this as a time to relax and not have to worry about getting in the car to run all your errands (because you can’t even if you wanted to!). Sit back with a glass a wine, which actually has health benefits, and the alcohol can help calm your nerves and take the edge off.
- Stock up on the Excedrin: Dealing with a hurricane can bring on a change in barometric pressure, which is the force being exerted by the atmosphere in a given point. Other words, with the pressure a hurricane brings on the earth, it’s also going to add pressure to your head. Drink plenty of water and take headache relief like Excedrin or ibuprofen to help ease the pain.
- Take advantage of that pent-up energy: Get some things done around the house you haven’t had the time to do while getting a workout in! Strap on some ankle weights as you vacuum the living room and do some squats as you wax the kitchen floor. You might as well kill two birds with one stone if you’re stuck at home!
- Keep a first-aid kit handy: Even though we don’t like thinking about it, you need to be prepared if something physically happens to you during a hurricane. Be prepared with a first-aid kit filled with things like band-aids, hydrogen peroxide, cotton swabs, and painkillers on hand, just in case something might happen.
- Get the bug spray out: After the storm is over, you’re probably going to have a lot of mosquitos hanging around. Spraying insect repellent on you and your family, as well as your home, can help alleviate these biters and can reduce the risk of getting a disease like Zika or West Nile. A hospital trip is the last thing you’re going to need during a hurricane!
- Relax!: If you want to get through this, you’re going to have to relax and know that everything is going to be okay! Put on some soothing music, plug in your essential oils, and relax your mind. Your body isn’t going to be happy with you if you’re tense and stressed out. If you’re currently in Texas and battling Hurricane Harvey, call 911 in case of emergency, and be safe!
