The COVID-19 pandemic truly turned our lives upside down, affecting everything from how we socialize to how we make a living. As lockdowns, restrictions, and changes in daily routines swept across the globe, many people found themselves grappling with the consequences of a sedentary lifestyle, stress eating, and disruptions to their usual dietary habits. This has had a big impact on our physical health, with many people, all around the world dealing with unwanted covid weight gain.
So, why did people gain weight during Covid?
1. We moved less:
There was a distinct shift away from both focused exercise and incidental movement during Covid. Faced with lockdowns and remote work many people had fewer reasons or opportunity to get moving. Gyms closed, and outdoor activities got sidelined. Many people distracted themselves with screens and sedentary habits formed. Less movement means fewer calories burnt and sluggish metabolisms – the perfect recipe for gaining weight without even trying.
2. We went to the fridge for comfort:
The stress, uncertainty and loneliness of the pandemic sent many of us running to the fridge for comfort. Comfort foods, including ice cream, chocolate, cookies, and other indulgent treats, saw heightened demand. With alarming and confusing news constantly bombarding us and social connections dwindling, emotional eating became a coping mechanism for lots of folks, leading to unhealthy habits and extra weight.
3. We snacked like never before:
Sales of snack foods like chips, pretzels, popcorn, and snack bars rocketed during the pandemic as people spent more time at home and engaged in activities such as binge-watching movies or working remotely. There’s nothing like the combination of sitting in front of a screen and eating packaged food to create a calorie surplus.
4. We drank (a lot) more:
Sales of alcoholic beverages, including wine, beer, and spirits, surged during the pandemic as many turned to drinking as a way of dealing with the anxiety, boredom, and loneliness of the pandemic. With the closure of bars and restaurants, people were buying alcohol to consume more frequently at home, and alcohol has a sneaky way of becoming a bad habit. In the simplest terms, more alcohol means more calories. This is exacerbated by poor food choices when under the influence of that glass of wine.
5. Our food options changed:
Remember all the panic-buying? Well it didn’t just impact access to toilet paper. The disruption to grocery supplies messed with the availability and affordability of our usual healthy food options. Plus, with restaurants closed, we tended to rely more on home-cooked meals, which can be healthier but also lead to overindulgence for many people.
Let’s look at an example:
> Name: Sarah
> Age: 35
> Gender: Female
> Weight: 70 kg
> Height: 165 cm
> Activity Level: Moderate
Sarah’s Calories IN:
Due to the extra time and boredom of being at home all the time over Covid, Sara consumes an extra packet of chips (175 calories) and an extra glass of wine (125 calories) per day:
Extra Calories Consumed: 300
Sarah’s Calories OUT:
Before covid, Sarah would walk around 40 mins in her daily commute to and from work (20 minutes each way to the train), five days a week. This would burn approximately 180 calories*
Calories No Longer Burned: 180
The calories add up:
When you add the 180 that she’s no longer burning on her walk, to the 300 calories a day more in eating and drinking we get:
A 480 calorie surplus per day. This adds up to around 1 pound (0.454kg) per week of weight gain.
Even with what seems to be small changes to Sarah’s intake, once coupled with the loss of her daily walk – it all starts to add up. It will only take a few weeks, to see a significant impact not only on Sarah’s waistline, but her overall health and fitness as well.
* The calories you burn might be different – The number of calories you burn in 40 minutes of walking depends on your weight as well as your walking pace and intensity. You can get a good sense of your own calorie burn here: https://www.calculator.net/calories-burned-calculator.html
A quick fix might be tempting but…
With the expansion of waistlines post-covid, the business of dietary supplements (aka diet pills) has exploded. So many companies are looking to cash in on the misery of covid weight gain, by pushing pills and potions that accompany crazy fad and crash diets. Whilst the marketing can make these diets and supplements sound like a quick solution, they rarely do and you can end up in a very unhappy cycle.
> Crash dieting – All the ways it’s doing you more harm than good
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