During the current Corona crisis, one of our favorite activities is unfortunately out of reach for now: traveling. Planned vacations are canceled, the long-awaited weekend trips are skipped, and regular family visits are on hold. But necessity is the mother of invention, and many travel items can be creatively repurposed at home in various ways. This includes the ever-popular travel pillow. While a nap on the plane with a neck pillow or restful sleep in a hotel room with your familiar travel pillow is not an option for now, these travel companions can be used in many other ways. Here are 5 (not entirely serious) tips on how to pass the time at home with our small VOLAR travel pillow.
1. A sofa cushion for every occasion
It’s not uncommon for a large part of daily life to take place on the couch at home: a good book, an exciting series, or just relaxing and taking a nap. Often, we spend more time on the sofa than we realize. Even in the home office, changing your environment to the couch from time to time is advisable, or we might fall asleep in front of the TV now and then.
A comfortable sofa is at least as important as a few cozy sofa cushions. These can be used in many ways: as a pillow for a short nap, to relieve the lower back while watching TV, or as a gentle rest for your feet on the coffee table. Our VOLAR travel pillow is also perfect for use as a sofa cushion. The Visco SmartFoam not only provides optimal support for the occasional midday nap but also fits perfectly on any living room couch in a handy size of 40 x 25 cm. The subtle anthracite QuickDry pillow cover also matches almost any sofa style in terms of color.
2. Staying productive in the home office: the power nap
Working from home still carries the stereotype of lower productivity in many companies. In times of crisis, it is now practiced wherever possible. But the popular cliché of unproductivity can now be disproven once and for all. Tips for productive work from home are everywhere right now: setting up the workspace accordingly, creating daily plans, eliminating distractions. But one aspect often goes unmentioned: the power nap.
A short midday nap can be healthy and performance-enhancing – if done correctly. There are a few things to keep in mind: the nap should not last longer than 30 minutes and should be scheduled about 12 hours after the midpoint of the previous night. The more regularly it is done, the easier it becomes and the more refreshing it feels. Our VOLAR travel pillow is ideal for a power nap on the go: small, handy, and suitable for all sleeping positions so you can continue working with focus afterward. But don’t worry: a midday nap isn’t for everyone, and the restfulness and effectiveness depend on your individual sleep type. Even a short rest after lunch can already be refreshing during the workday. Here you will find more information about the power nap.
3. Keep moving: workout with the travel pillow
Sitting around at home often has a particularly negative effect on fitness. But it doesn’t have to be that way – exercise doesn’t always have to take place outdoors. You can effectively train all parts of your body at home without expensive sports equipment and with simple aids: whether yoga and meditation for balance, bodyweight fitness for strength training, or jumping rope to maintain endurance.
Unusual aids can simplify your daily workout: travel pillows, for example, are suitable in yoga as a seat cushion or lower back support, as well as for strength training exercises as resistance between the legs to train the abdominal muscles. Our VOLAR is both flexible and stable, making it ideal as additional resistance. Here you will find more creative ideas for workouts with pillows.
4. A healthy sleeping position with a knee pillow
Travel pillows can be useful not only in hotel rooms. They can also be used alongside the familiar head pillow in your own bed – namely as knee pillows. These are especially popular with side sleepers who find it comfortable and relieving for the back and knees to place an additional barrier between their legs or knees. But even for back sleepers, tensions in the legs can be reduced by placing an extra pillow under both knees.
Pregnant women especially benefit from the pressure relief for hips and pelvis provided by a knee pillow, as do people who suffer particularly from back and knee pain. But more and more people are also using a relief pillow for the knees in general. Special knee pillows can come in various shapes and firmness levels but do not necessarily have to be newly purchased. For a first test, a travel pillow can be used to determine over a few nights whether the effect leads to an improvement in sleep quality.
5. A healthy back can also delight
Despite sports activities and variety in everyday life, you spend most of your time sitting at home, whether at the desk or on the sofa. You miss the commute to work, the walk in the park, events, and leisure activities. This is also tiring for your back, which struggles with so much sitting. Here, a travel pillow like the VOLAR can help relieve the lower back during long sitting periods. Whether at the home office desk, on the sofa, or even in the car if you need to go out occasionally. The travel pillow improves posture and relieves the back muscles. Of course, these can also be strengthened through regular exercise.
So your travel pillow can also be your companion during the Corona crisis for various daily activities at home. And even though nothing is foreseeable at the moment – someday it will surely take on its original role again and accompany you on your next vacation! Until then, make the best of it and get creative.
About Third of Life
Third of Life is backed by sleep experts with many years of experience who want to help you sleep better. In close collaboration with sleep researchers and based on studies from science and practice, we develop functional sleep products, from nightwear to pillows and duvets to mattress protectors, to improve the special third of our lives: sleep. In our magazine, we also provide helpful tips and recommendations for restful nights.
More on the topic:
#NickOnSleep: Sleeping with Light and Electronic Devices
#NickOnSleep: Breathing and Sleep