Rather than dwell on the range of emotions we are all experiencing just now, I want to spread a bit of positivity and share how I am trying to cope in the current climate.
Normally on any given weekend, I can be found running along the Scottish trails, pounding the streets around Edinburgh or running a race. I love the outdoors. I love to get out and get some fresh air. Now that we are currently limited to how often we can get outside, I'm needing to make the most of when I do get out.
I'm lucky that where I live I have access to miles of cycle paths but none of these paths are a replacement to running the Scottish trails.
However rather than running my usual routes, I have found myself exploring a bit more. I'm avoiding the cycle paths because everyone and their dog is walking along the paths now. I've been running up busy roads which are now empty. I've been making up loops around my local neighbourhood and just having a bit of fun. Keeping it local is the secret, well, actually, not so much a secret but what we are all being asked to do.
I train 6 days and cover anywhere between 40 and 60 miles a week. Thankfully, I tend not to run more than once a day, even when we aren't limited to how often we can leave the house so my training, this far, hasn't been impacted too much.
Although my training hasn't been impacted, I am finding it difficult to get out and train as hard as I usually do. Mentally, it's difficult. I'm working from home for the first time but it's not the usual working from home. I can't just nip out to the shops, go for a walk when I want to get away for a minute. When I do leave, I need to be constantly thinking about keeping my distance from others around me. It's tiring.
I've had some good training sessions and some not so good. It's just what it is.
How do I cope with this? I am learning to accept it. I'm trying to find the quieter paths. If I don't feel up for a hard training session, I either can the run and go for a walk instead or I go out and enjoy an easy run with no pace or time in mind.
I go out and enjoy the sunshine, the rain, the wind. Find the small things. Find a new route, run a 1 mile loop around my neighbourhood, just find something that makes that one run or outdoor activity enjoyable.
