Doctors who specialize in obesity say during a respiratory pandemic like COVID-19, keeping your weight under control can be a real lifesaver.

Dr. Ania Jastreboff is a physician with Yale Medicine specializing in obesity. She says data from New York suggests those with obesity are at nearly twice the risk of being hospitalized with COVID-19.

Aside from closing the gyms, social distancing has brought with it a lack of structure in the days. Jastreboff says that can make it harder to keep extra pounds off.

Jastreboff says it's important not to try to change everything at once. She recommends adding a healthy snack or five minutes of exercise per day at first and increasing as you feel comfortable.

Doctors also say getting a full night's sleep has been shown to help make better decisions about food and exercise.

"Let's say your usual commute time is 30 to 45 minutes, you could use that time to exercise," said Jastreboff.

She also says family time can be a great chance to teach some healthy life lessons too, like cooking, hiking or going for a walk.