A year has passed since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, a year marked by unspeakable tragedy and stressful routines for almost all Brazilians and billions of people around the world.

Without a doubt, we are persevering, we are going through it. As vaccines become more concrete and we are closer to the end of this maelstrom, we need to reflect on new beginnings and throw away the bad habits many of us have picked up along the way. Millions of Brazilians spent the year confined to the vicinity of their home, sometimes doing homework, wearing pajamas and snacking against stress. In some ways, it was the only way to get over it.

In the interest of self-knowledge and setting intentions for our best and healthiest year, in a survey of more than 2,000 Americans about their unhealthy (and healthy) habits during the pandemic. 74% of respondents said they wish they had taken better care of themselves in the past year, including many admitting to having subpar skin care. The most commonly cited reason for unhealthy habits? The emotional price. Stress and anxiety.

The good news is that of those who say they should take better care of themselves, 61% have already started to make progress towards healthier lifestyles.

Unsurprisingly, much of the attention is on weight gain. 61% of respondents said they gained weight during the pandemic, at an average of 4.5 kilograms per person. This is no small feat, especially for people who were already overweight. Let's not forget that obesity is one of the main comorbidities with Covid-19.

We asked people why they think they gained weight. The reasons aren't surprising, but they aren't always as simple as eating more and moving less. For example, one in five people said that part of their weight gain is due to the fact that they don't feel the pressure of seeing other people in social situations, such as being able to talk and go out.

Looking beyond weight gain, in particular, we asked people about a wide range of unhealthy behaviors known to correlate with the unique pressures of life during the pandemic. By far the lack of time spent moving around outdoors has been the biggest culprit and unfortunately for many of us this will continue to be a challenge for at least a few more weeks. One of the most annoying bad habits we asked about is poor posture, which more than half of respondents said they suffered from.

Of course, not everyone fell apart during the pandemic. Some took the opportunity to make positive changes in their lives. While bad habits were more prevalent overall, a significant number of people resisted these trends and emerged better. Notably, 41% of the people we surveyed say they got more sleep than they did before the pandemic.

In addition to exploring healthy and unhealthy habits, we were very curious about trends in looks, hygiene and morning routines. We're certainly not the only ones to notice a collective relaxation when it comes to how people present themselves. 77% of people we interviewed said they noticed a trend towards more casual looks, and 61% who work remotely report feeling less pressure to be presentable than they do in the office.

Exploring the details on these casual looks, we asked people where specifically they are saving in regards to their pre-pandemic routines. Fortunately, only 14% have neglected oral hygiene. The most impacted part of our routines is the attention to looks. In short, people are keeping things simple and not worrying about the details.

Finally, we asked those who have moved from commuting to working remotely about the glorious time they gained early in their workdays. For some, it's a pretty dramatic change. Many people are saving five to ten hours a week just in the morning.

Blessed be our hearts, the main way to use the time saved is to get more sleep. If you're looking for a silver lining to emerge from all this madness, here it is.