Our Daily Breather is a series where we ask writers and artists to recommend one thing that's helping them get through the days of isolation during the coronavirus pandemic.
Who: Alice Bag
Where: Los Angeles, Calif.
Recommendation: Home workout videos
I wake up and pour my cup of green tea, which I sip while making breakfast and brewing my coffee. I used to turn on the morning news but these days, I've been feeling a little overwhelmed. I'm 61 years old, I have asthma and about a year and a half ago I was hospitalized with a scary bout of pneumonia. I take in this viral threat and try to move through my days but the feeling of dread is still in my subconscious.
My new schedule is all about staying inside or at least in my own yard. I find that I'm sitting a lot: getting tired quickly, turning to coffee and sweets for energy — until I finally snap out of it. I remember that I used to be an exercise instructor; sure, it was over 40 years ago and we mostly did basic calisthenics, but I've watched my share of Richard Simmons and Jane Fonda videos in the past and I still do the occasional Fitness Marshall workout with my daughter, so it makes sense. I'm going to put together my own single song workouts.
Making up exercise routines is challenging but it's fun and forces me to be creative. I use my favorite upbeat punk songs that never fail to energize me and I post them on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook so that others can join me if they want to. The moves are pretty easy; I make mistakes and laugh at myself and hope others feel like they can also just get up and move, have fun and lighten the mood. It's not much, but at a time when the best thing we can do is to stay home and avoid contact, it helps me feel connected to others even if it's only through a screen.
Alice Bag's new album, Sister Dynamite, is coming soon.