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The coronavirus has severely limited our outlets for exercise. But we’ve still got a number of options.
Our condolences to the many who were just starting to hit a stride in routinely going to the gym right before coronavirus reared its ugly head. As it turns out, you can’t anymore, due to the necessary precautions society must take to slow the spread of the virus.
So, what now? How the heck are we supposed to burn calories, feel healthy, and hit the goals on our fitness trackers?
Two key resources help with this endeavor: technology and the outdoors. Like school teachers, personal trainers have migrated their classes online. What’s more (so long as social distancing is practiced), we’re still able to lace up our running shoes and go outside.
For this week’s 4 on 1, our editors were asked: In a time when isolation is the norm, in what ways are you exercising and tending to your wellbeing?
Brian Kendall: If you had asked me this before the pandemic, I would’ve said “not much.” I often like to joke that my anxiety serves as a natural cardiovascular exercise, and, during these times, my heart has certainly gotten a good workout. All joshing aside, I have taken some time exercising what one might deem the biggest muscle in our bodies: the brain. While others partake in online yoga classes, I’ve been brushing up on my virtual chess skills and managing to put a decent dent in James Joyce’s “Ulysses.”
Samantha Calimbahin: For a couple years now, I've been doing barre — something like a mashup of pilates, yoga, and ballet. These days, I've been partaking in Smart Barre Camp Bowie's virtual classes, following the fabulous Natalie McElroy from my room, using the edge of my desk in place of the ballet barre and my BB-8 plushie as an exercise ball.
Mentally, what's helped me before the pandemic — and continues to help me now — is spending more time with God. Reading the Bible. Praying honest prayers. Turning on some gospel music and getting lost in worship. All that's been keeping me sane in these crazy times and probably the reason, believe it or not, why I haven't gone stir crazy yet. I have to remind myself daily about the blessings I do have and be open to what spiritual lessons I'm meant to learn in the midst of this crisis.
Scott Nishimura: Like the rest of my colleagues, we're in our second week of working from home. I've made a home office out of the sweeping, private front porch of my 99-year-old bungalow on Fort Worth's Near Southside, and I spend my entire day out here, where the chirping of the birds is one vestige of normalcy. I have a more set routine than I did before. I read for about an hour or so early in the morning, and then try to get out for an hour-long bike ride on the nearby Trinity Trails before settling in for the 8:30 a.m. Slack call with my editorial colleagues. My "office" stash of citrus, multi-grain bars, and bottled water is within arm's length. The magic of Zoom allows my family to keep up with friends. After hours, a Tuesday night theology class my wife and I take with a number of friends from church resumed this week, after three weeks at bay. This morning, my Thursday morning men's bible study from Trinity Episcopal Church of Fort Worth resumed after three weeks off, but with a "BS, not bible study" format through Zoom. My wife and I are thankful we have jobs, and we take stock of that daily. Spring lingers! What a blessing that is, in this time.
Matt Payne: I was lucky enough to take my road bike in for a tuneup at Bicycles Inc right before stay-at-home guidelines were put in place. And the benefits of cycling — particularly throughout this pandemic — come in spades. It’s, of course, a good means for physical activity, but pedaling at a quick pace also promotes social distancing and helps diminish my proximity to other pedestrians. Moreover, it’s cathartic. When I ride, typically around twilight throughout my sleepy neighborhood, gliding just under 20 mph as wind rushes past my face feels especially liberating through this period of self-quarantines and lack of human-to-human interaction. It makes me happy.
I’ve also mixed in frequent jogging, and even if it's sometimes torturous, it spices things up. Just don’t ask me how my push-up/sit-up regimen has gone.