Staying active outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic
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John Davidson reflects on the impact of the societal changes taking place in the fight against Covid-19, and says it's important to keep exercising
Freedom and fresh air are things we tend to take for granted but they have been taken away from us in the battle to beat coronavirus.
The scale of the problem is unprecedented and lockdown and social distancing are the only answers to keep the pandemic under manageable levels.
We all know that’s true – but it means all our lives have been torn apart for who knows how long.
For those of us who love the outdoors, events that we have been training towards have been postponed or cancelled, our social groups are no longer allowed to meet, and even popping out for a weekend run or bike ride with a friend is off the cards.
On top of that, there are the stresses and strains of the huge changes to our everyday lives. It’s a difficult time for everybody, as we all try to cope with the situation, our worries over loved ones and neighbours, concerns over our jobs and livelihoods, dealing with home schooling and looking after younger children and working from home.
It would be easy to shove exercise and getting that daily dose of the outdoors on the backburner while we try to juggle all these additional pressures.
However, this is probably when we need the mental and physical boost that exercise and being outdoors gives us – so how can we go about it under strict lockdown measures?
With three kids aged between two and nine at home, we’ve been juggling work with doing PE lessons in the garden. For those lucky enough to have some garden space, there’s plenty you can do – and some of the children’s lessons are akin to a good strength and conditioning workout!
I’ve turned a rope out of the garage into a skipping rope and the children have been making obstacle courses and playing games outside too.
There are also loads of online workouts being made available now, including the popular Joe Wicks with his daily PE lessons, which I’m about to try after I write this.
If you’re a serious fitness fanatic, you may already have a turbo trainer or treadmill – not something I’ve ever been keen to own, as I much prefer getting out for real, but now I wish I did have that option.
Just before the lockdown kicked in, I enjoyed a little bike and run from my home in Inverness, cycling down to Dores on the cycle route then running back on the South Loch Ness Trail. The idea was to do it as part of my preparation for the Loch Ness 360, which I was still being optimistic might take place at the time but has since been called off, like so many other events.
The good news for now is that we can still get out once a day for exercise, with a run or bike ride perfectly acceptable as long as you stick to social distancing advice by staying at least two metres apart from others outside of your household.
Going out alone is nothing new to me but I already miss my weekly JogScotland social runs, which are a chance for a bit of banter and a release from the daily stresses of life as we head up onto the trails above Inverness.
For those used to more sociable cycle rides, it is perhaps the café stops that they will miss the most!
However, since getting over the initial shock of the lockdown measures, I’ve made sure I’ve been getting out to do a run, ride or walk each day, marking them as #oneaday on social media. Our various groups have been staying in touch in similar ways, too, adding up the miles for different groups and supporting each other as best as possible for as long as the measures need to be in place.
With events no longer a motivating factor, one of the things I’ve learned already is to set your own challenges. For beginners, that might mean doing a couch to 5k programme, while for others it could be setting personal targets or using things like Strava challenges to encourage you to make the most of that daily allowance of exercise.
We must all stick to the rules and do our exercise from home – with no unnecessary travelling allowed – in order to reduce any potential pressure on the emergency services and the NHS.
But for me the important thing is that we continue to be active outdoors as it is so important for our physical and mental health at this tough time for all of us.
