How to Stay Fit, Healthy, & Sane While Locked Down at Home
with Anthony Nehra.
Letter From the Editor
Professional Liar
Have I got your attention? It’s all BS. Hair and makeup, collagen and Botox, new outfits (rented or otherwise), new nails, weight loss, tummy tuck, boob job, rhinoplasty, Rogaine, teeth whitening, props, retouching, beauty lighting, the wind machine, perfectly seared meat… all of these things by themselves mean nothing. But when glued together in a photograph to they become truth. The truth post lights, camera, action. I piece puzzles together that no one can see, and like that the story emerges into a new reality for my clients, inspiration and art departments.
Yes and…
The answer is always Yes. Yes, we can slim your neck down, and pump you up. Yes, no more wandering eye and javelin scar. Yes, we can change the background to neon pink…but why?? Yes I can take 20 years off naturally… 40 is the new 25. Lies lies lies. Truth is, I have a guy for that. The best in the biz, and you and I wouldn’t have it any other way. But seriously, none of that really matters.
Dahhhhhling, eh you look Mahvelos!
And then suddenly, one day when you walk into my studio, when that first iconic photo comes into view on screen, it IS the truth. Gasp!! The fantasy a reality, the embodiment of catharsis, Dahling, you look Mahvelos! You can’t explain it, replicate it. It can only be experienced. Those of you who haven’t experience me and my team may think it’s BS. And to you who have BS’ed with me on set, you’re full of it, and I love seeing you and your photos out there one truth at a time. I bull$shit and so can you.
Kick Covid. Keep the Bull$hit. Stay Creative.
House Arrested, Mind and Body Tested.
How to Stay Fit, Healthy, and Sane While Locked Down at Home with Anthony Nehra
How quickly things change.
Like every summer, this was going to be the best summer ever. Spring was almost upon us, trips were booked, and I was gonna look fiiiiiine in the new swimsuits I had been impulse buying all winter.
But now, it’s house arrest. Either all alone (kill me) or with your family (I’m gonna crack). The same scene every day. And no one seems to know how long this is going to last. So you write a few emails, pretend to be interested in a Zoom meeting, and call it a day. Every. Damn. Day.
It’s easy to feel like you have no control, and fall into a booze- and snack-fueled stupor. But before you waddle into your sixth hour of Netflix and not chill, check out these strategies to relax, regain control of your day, and do your body good.
Keep a consistent schedule, even if you have nothing to do. It’s so easy to sleep the hell in and wake up whenever you damn well please. It feels great. One of my favorite things to do, really.
But this isn’t a snow day. This is your life for the foreseeable future. So if you want to have control over your life in uncertain times, take command of your daily schedule. It’s an easy fix that will put you in the driver’s seat of your day.
Wake up and go to sleep at the same time. Make an appointment with yourself to work out or get some kind of movement. Set a workout alarm if you have to. And set a reminder to get ready for bed…put the phone away, dim the lights, and prepare your body to sleep.
Which brings us to the second strategy…
Get enough sleep, and manage your stress levels. You have a unique opportunity to get the right amount of sleep every night. In normal times, getting 8 hours of sleep nightly can be tough for most people. Now, not so much.
Your nightly wind down is the key to getting into a restful, sleepy state. If, like most people, you’re boozing up at home more than usual, cut it off an hour or two before you go to bed. Then put away your phone/laptop/tablet, and don’t look at it again.
Next, sit quietly and take some slow, deep breaths. Focus on your mind on your breathing, check your posture, and observe where your body is tight. Count breaths if it helps you focus. Do this for at least 3 minutes.
If you can, do this exercise twice a day. Managing your anxiety during the day will help you feel more relaxed, in-control, and ready to wind down when it’s time to sleep.
Work out and move your body every day. From yoga to group workouts to online personal training, there are thousands of options for you to stay fit at home.
If you haven’t worked out much before, this is a great opportunity to start something new. Seasoned gym goers can take advantage of resistance bands or an all-bodyweight challenge. (It’s harder than you think.)
Working out at the same time every day will help you establish the habit. Once the daily habit is set in stone, you will get it done without having to think about it, and your day will have a sense of structure and control.
We’re all scratching at the door to get back to our “real lives,” however that’s going to look. But try not to fall into a state of suspended animation. This is your life, for the time being at least, so do what you can to make the most of your new found free time.
Stay fit, have fun, and good luck!
WannaCry Ransome – Work From Home Ransomewear Woes with Howard Globus
As days have slipped into weeks, things that were normal appear novel and vice versa. Some of us have worked from home for our jobs or businesses for months or years. For others of us, this has been a rocky adjustment period. For all of us, the lack of social face to face interaction has turned regular habits up side down.
In the not too distant past, the WannaCry ransomware attack was front and center in the news. Over 400,000 computers were infected, including a portion of the UK’s NHS system where elective procedures were brought to a halt and emergency procedures took place in less than idea conditions with incomplete information.
The WannaCry threat was a straightforward encryption attack with a simple message: “Pay us or we will erase your files”.
Ransomware such as WannaCry works by encrypting files on a computer to make them inaccessible and unusable. After the files are encrypted the attacker leaves behind a pop up screen or a series of text files with a demand for payment that is set to expire within a set time frame. A popular time frame is 72 hours after encryption. The attackers work on broad attack plan and expect some percentage of those infected will pay. The others who don’t? Their files are never unencrypted by the attacker.
Ransomware has been plaguing local governments like towns and village police departments, cities like Atlanta, Georgia and states. Some pay. Some don’t. Those that don’t lose their data, if they don’t have it backed up.
WannaCry was a Microsoft-product specific problem. Despite what you may have read or heard, Macs and Linux computers can and are vulnerable to viruses, malware and ransomware. It can happen to anyone with an Internet connection.
The best way to survive a ransomware attack is to be diligent about IT security and keep antivirus and perimeter protection up to date and monitored. However, with hundreds of thousands of new attacks being launched a week, nothing is 100% guaranteed to prevent an attack.
For this reason, it is critical to have a backup solution in place that is doing a full back up at least once a day. With a good backup on a daily schedule, you will never be at risk of losing more than 24 hours worth of work or data. If that is still too troubling, a more frequent backup schedule can be used.
With a regular backup that is tested and secure (so the backup does not get encrypted) you will never have to pay a ransomware demand.
As we continue to work from home or in dispersed locations, the need for a high quality backup is more important than ever to ensure we continue to be productive, safe and secure.
Want to know more about ensuring you have the right backup solution in place? In need of weekly tips on keeping your information safe? Click to this link to get a short checklist to keep your data safe and subscribe to our mailer.
Security Evangelist Howard Globus has more than twenty years of experience designing, installing and supporting Windows server and workstation products in industries where security and reliability are critical. System
engineering and administration experience includes customized Windows Server and Workstation installs, designed to be deployed using the latest automated technology available and managed using products found onsite at most Fortune 500 firms to ensure a wide variety of potential personnel to support the products in the future.
