Almost Half Of Malaysians Have Been Exercising More At Home Since The Start Of The MCO
Surprisingly, Malaysians have been eating healthier and working out more!
Published for AIA MALAYSIA, 05 Jun 2020, 10:26 AM
AIA recently ran a poll on how healthy Malaysians have been during the MCO
Previously, according to the Malaysia's Healthiest Workplace by AIA Vitality survey, up to 66% of Malaysians did not exercise on a regular basis. Besides that, a whopping 90% of Malaysians were found to have an unhealthy diet.
With the recent Movement Control Order (MCO), AIA wanted to see how working from home has actually affected the health of Malaysians. That's why they came up with a poll across multiple platforms, and the results have been surprising.
1. Nearly 5 in 10 Malaysians have been getting better sleep since they started working from home
In the poll, around 25,000 Malaysians said they've had more restful sleep compared to before the MCO. For those working from home, you not only get to skip the commute, you don't even need to get dressed or put on makeup! You can literally roll out of bed at 8.55am and start work at 9am in your PJs.
2. Almost half of Malaysians have also been exercising more at home
The poll showed that 45% of respondents have actually been working out more since the start of the MCO. Perhaps all the viral TikTok fitness challenges like the #PlankChallenge had a part to play!
3. It's good to know that more Malaysians are eating healthier compared to before
According to the poll, up to 43% of Malaysians have been eating healthier since the MCO started. It's most probably because we can no longer go out to eat and instead took to our kitchens (some of us even started growing our own taugeh)!
The great thing about homecooked food is that it tends to be much lower in sodium, and you can throw in all kinds of vegetables to make sure each meal is nutritious.
4. Around 42% of Malaysians have been keeping in touch with each other during the MCO
If there is one thing the MCO has done, it's brought us together and helped us reconnect with family and friends. Video call apps like Zoom have become second nature to us, while online games like Animal Crossing, Houseparty, and Skribbl have become popular Malaysian hangout spots.
5. However, one thing that most Malaysians found hard was to be productive when working from home
Even with the healthier eating, sleeping, and fitness habits, 62% of Malaysians said they were less productive when working from home. Many employees have to prepare their own meals and take care of kids at home, making it easier to get distracted during working hours.
Besides that, although video call apps and productivity tools like Google Docs make working remotely possible, nothing beats face-to-face communication at work.
Despite the circumstances, Malaysians took the opportunity of staying at home to pick up healthier habits
As we learnt to rethink the way we work, we also learnt how important it is to stay healthy, whether it's physically, mentally, or emotionally. Nevertheless, as people start to go back to work and we adjust to the new normal, it's not always easy to keep up a healthy lifestyle.
That's why AIA wants to encourage Malaysians to be rethinking health through their Little Changes Quest
For five weeks starting from 4 June 2020, AIA will be releasing weekly challenges with awesome prizes like Garmin watches and RM500 Shopee vouchers up for grabs. Here's how you can take part in it:
Step 1: Head over to AIA's website to find out the quest of the week
Step 2: Take a picture or video of yourself performing the Little Changes Quest on the AIA website
Step 3: Write a caption and upload your picture or video on Instagram or Facebook, tag @aiamalaysia, and include #RethinkingHealth #LittleChangesQuest #AIAVitalityMY
