The quarantine 15 … that’s a silly way some people are describing the weight gain they’ve experienced at home during the Covid-19 lockdown.

As we continue our series looking at the Cost of COVID Amyre Makupson, from the Center for Collaborative Journalism, shows you how two different groups of friends are putting fitness first during this time of social isolation.

“People have gotten really stressed out and nervous and we’ve kind of isolated ourselves, which is really bad for our health,” said Brittany Deal, a person trainer.

Deal says for some of us, those covid calories really added up.

“The pantry is right there, you can grab food whenever you want it.”

And as it turns out, there’s been a lot of snack grabbing going around. Yale Medicine reports that since the height of shelter in place mandates, comfort food recipes have been trending on google. And some patients have gained up to 30 pounds in just 3 months. But Deal says there’s no excuse, even after gyms were shuttered and fitness classes cancelled.

“I think working out in the park is an excellent way; you have plenty of space. We’re all six feet apart, plus some. And we still get that community, we get that fresh air.”

“We’ve had a lot of actually new people through Sparks, join and come to classes that have never taken yoga, but they knew they needed something for their mental and physical health,” said Christa Conn, the owner of Sparks Yoga.

Conn says that the pandemic brought a new awareness to the importance of fitness.

“It gives you stress relief, it gives you that movement that releases endorphins and then of course with meditation and breathing is just continually coming back to a positive place and reminding yourself to let go of those things that are out of your control.”

This helps make room for something better.

“The pandemic has allowed us to come together and take care of ourselves, but also take care of each other during these crazy times,” said Conn.

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