Corona. A few months ago, it was a word associated with a Mexican beer that I’d treat myself to after a run.
Fast forward an absolutely insane few weeks, add in another baby to our previous collection of one, three unruly dogs and a global pandemic (whilst on maternity leave, I may add)!
Corona is now a word affiliated to an invisible virus that’s seen us locked in, locked down and creator of a bucket load of chaos (and that’s just our house, don’t get me started on the worldwide situation).
I’m not going to get into the nitty gritty of it all, neither am I going to give you perky motivational tips.
What I am going to do is urge you to think about being active because it’s taken me just over three weeks of pondering to get to this point and I’d like to help you get there now.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m well into sitting on the sofa in PJs that probably definitely need a wash, eating biscuits by the bucket load and watching my eldest kid bounce around to Joe Wicks. But, for the sake of my ever-increasing bum size and my poor, frazzled brain, I know I need to move.
I need to feel my beating heart work, I need those endorphins to kick in and I need to feel alive in what is a definitely a stagnant period of our history.
But what am I supposed to do? I wondered, necking a glass of wine and inhaling crisps in my ‘used to be for special occasions but now smell a bit stale’ PJs.
I got thinking … wouldn’t it be nice to look back and say, the world stopped but the people...well, the people got active on their doorstep?
Rose tinted and optimistic I know, but Rosa Parks, Martin Luther, hell, even Lady Gaga had to start somewhere with their campaigns, didn’t they?
So, with all this in mind, (naturally scaled down of course) the pressures of having the kids home, the anxiety of the unknown and a prevailing uncertainty of what we can and can’t do to help the situation, I really asked myself how on earth are we meant to get active, be active or remain active simply and safely?
I’ve been running on and off for a long time but this absolutely insane situation is new to me. Then it hit me, not having the freedom to ‘just run’ isn’t. I’ve run on the spot before because of childcare. I’ve done laps of my street before because of breastfeeding restrictions, I’ve even walked on the spot, in my pants and trainers, for ten thousand steps (to win a Fitbit challenge).
I have a sort of working, if not wonky body, that needs to be healthy for my girls. I have trainers in the shoe cupboard and a complicated but beautiful ‘past’ with exercising, so, technically, none of this is new, it’s just a bit different.
I took to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and found some virtual support, advice, general sense of community and a tone of inspiration which reassured me, I could sooooooo do this!
I could get, stay and remain active in the house - in my PJs if I wanted to (plus sports bra!)
It’s all in the way you look at it, isn’t it?
I could down tools (trainers) and exclaim that I just can’t get out or I could dust off the daps and make the best of what I’ve got right here, safely and hopefully – sanely. I’d love to inspire a few others to do the same! So, you game?
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In 2020, the virtual world is where it’s at. How to enjoy it safely.