A personal trainer with over 15 years of experience, Karen Gilbert’s Instagram content used to be geared towards moms with postpartum depression.
But with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, she’s also started demonstrating family workouts to self-isolating parents under the hashtag #coronavirusworkout.
She says the workouts are aimed “especially at new moms” who were “just able to start leaving the house” and now “are being quarantined even more," in an interview with ABC News' Raleigh station WTVD.
In one recent post, Karen shows herself squatting while holding one of her toddlers -- using him as a makeshift 21-pound weight.
It’s a quick way to bring your “heart rate up through the day (and get some good laughs)”, she explains in a caption on one of her posts. “Remember to breathe out as you come up to keep your core/pelvic floor engaged."
Other posts show Karen practicing yoga with one son and performing what she calls the “flying toddler exercise” with the other.
MORE: US coronavirus death toll surpasses 100; Kevin Durant tests positive“I’ll be sharing a lot more of these,” she promises.
But it’s not just about physical well-being. As Karen points out, “kids are […] picking up that there is something different going on, you know, the routine has been disrupted”.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) agrees. In its guidelines on coronavirus, the organisation warns that children react to what they see in the adults around them. As such, parents should “take breaks, get plenty of sleep, exercise, and eat well”, and make sure they “connect” with family members.
According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, there are 63 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the state as of March 18. Durham -- where Karen lives with her family -- is the second worst-affected county, with 12 residents infected with the virus.