April Wellness Thread

[reginaphalange72]

Happy April everyone! How are you all doing this month?

Reminder, this is NOT a thread to talk about diet or weight loss. Please have those conversations elsewhere. This is a thread to discuss your journey in holistic health and wellness.

[reginaphalange72]

Answering my own question -

I'm doing alright. My May 50k got canceled, as expected. And with all the changes in our world, H and I have decided to head back east this summer rather than staying out in CO for another year (our previous plan was to stay here for one more year before heading back). We want to get onto our own property and start setting up our homestead and building more self-sufficiency into our lives sooner rather than later. Also, this allows us to be closer to his family, who we expect will be needing more help in the upcoming years, especially now. But the decision to move back this summer has also impacted my extended race calendar - I won't be registering for any more 2020 races, and the odds of us having the time or disposable income to travel back for my 100 in September are very, very small. Also, I expect that will end up getting canceled as well, since all the predictions are for another spike in COVID-19 cases this fall.

All of this came together and drove me to make the decision to stop following a training plan, and go back to what I did all of last year - run just for enjoyment and whenever I feel like it. I was already starting to feel my anxiety creeping up (above the already sky high anxiety with current events) any time I thought about "I have to run X today." And now with virtually zero races on my horizon, there was no point in inviting that extra anxiety in. I talked with my coach (who is amazing and wonderful) about this and putting my training on pause, and immediately felt some relief from the nagging anxiety that has been constantly haunting me. So it's a crappy thing, but ultimately a win in the mental health department.

Big hugs to all in H&F land. Thinking of you and hoping you are all healthy and doing as well as can be.

[scm1011]

I've decided to do an April run streak. Since this madness has started I've seen a marked improvement in my mood and attitude on the days I go out for a run, so I'm challenging myself to running at least 1 mile every day in April.

[reginaphalange72]

Apr 1, 2020 11:42:05 GMT -5 scm1011 said:

I've decided to do an April run streak. Since this madness has started I've seen a marked improvement in my mood and attitude on the days I go out for a run, so I'm challenging myself to running at least 1 mile every day in April.

Same!  I was my happiest when I was just running for the fun of it, which resulted in a 30+ day run streak back in December/January and I loved it. I was just thinking about that this morning! I'm not going to force it if I don't feel like it, but that's kind of my goal with the "run when I feel like it" mindset. (Counterintuitive, I know)

I noticed when I started a specific training plan in January that I was upset on the days that I didn't run initially because I wanted to keep my streak going, but I had to force myself to not run and just trust the plan. Now I'm excited to just do whatever I want and enjoy it for what it is, rather than adhering to some plan.

Good luck!

[scm1011]

Apr 1, 2020 11:47:11 GMT -5 reginaphalange72 said:

Apr 1, 2020 11:42:05 GMT -5 scm1011 said:

I've decided to do an April run streak. Since this madness has started I've seen a marked improvement in my mood and attitude on the days I go out for a run, so I'm challenging myself to running at least 1 mile every day in April.

Same!  I was my happiest when I was just running for the fun of it, which resulted in a 30+ day run streak back in December/January and I loved it. I was just thinking about that this morning! I'm not going to force it if I don't feel like it, but that's kind of my goal with the "run when I feel like it" mindset. (Counterintuitive, I know)

I noticed when I started a specific training plan in January that I was upset on the days that I didn't run initially because I wanted to keep my streak going, but I had to force myself to not run and just trust the plan. Now I'm excited to just do whatever I want and enjoy it for what it is, rather than adhering to some plan.

Good luck!

I totally get that! I will definitely re-evaluate if my run streak starts to give me anxiety or feel forced vs. boosting my mood per the goal

I’m sorry your race was cancelled, even if it was expected. I’m glad for feel good about your plan going forward.

[hurricanedrunk]

So far this month I've been doing ok. I stared working from home last week and my anxiety level has dropped significantly. It helps to have 24/7 access to snuggle my dogs. I am fortunate that both H & I are working and in "essential" fields.

As of today my race is still on. I've been stalking the Ironman website and no updates as of yet. I have a feeling that it will get cancelled and at this point I want them to cancel, postpone or defer until next year. It's been two weeks since I've been in a pool and probably another 4-6 weeks () until the gym opens back up. I will not be ready for the swim portion. I ordered resistant bands and am continuing training as if it were still on with the bike & run portions. If I start to skip workouts, it will snowball into extreme laziness... It's such a slippery slope with me.