@dawn16 Ugh yeah, there really is no substitute at that weight I hope it still provides some relief. Maybe there are some accessory workouts that you could spend time on? Any areas that you feel are weaker than others? For me, my left hip abductor is weak compared to my right so doing more exercises of that and because there is a difference between the two sidse I can really feel myself working
@gumcareblog It's not just fitness, it's everything. All the "you can work on X at home" motivational things are great, I'm sure, for some people. But also, this is a really strange and stressful time and not only is it okay to not be super productive or active or whatever, it's actually maybe sort of good to just slow down and allow yourself to feel your feelings and not feel bad about doing that.
@currycoma YES I was feeling so down because I wasn't feeling inspired to paint a portrait or write a novel like it seems like we're supposed to.... I have been keeping up with walking and workouts, and with working at home that seems like all I can handle right now.
@justbreathing Working from home is still working. I think the social media "feeling inspired!!" crap is not taking into account that most of us are still working 40+ hours a week, just in a different setting.
@currycoma It is ALL we are inundated with on social media. It’s annoying. News, impending doom, push up challenges, more doom, how to organize your spice shelf. Just leave me be and let me nap
I've been really struggling with not feeling like a piece of garbage watching my friends bake every type of bread bread, do 4 hour yoga sessions, learn how to cross stitch and master the trumpet by the end of the day, while I sit in my pyjamas trying to beat my high score on Mario and eating bagels.
It's great to see people making the best out of a crappy situation, but it feels like there's now this pressure to spend your time at home being ultra productive - it's frikkin brutal.
@bleslikethat And not everyone even has extra time. A lot of people (women probably more than men) have their kids at home and are trying to home school.
Personally, I work from home in a demanding, technical field. And I have three young kids home now. They have schoolwork they're supposed to be working on, and I'm still working full time. I have LESS time now than I had before. And since they're home all day, I don't usually have an opportunity to go outside and run at all. I'm still running on my treadmill everyday, but I kinda hate the treadmill and it's fit in where I can between everything else.
@dawn16 That's a really good point! Tbh you're a godamn hero for getting on the treadmill at all during what sounds like a crazy busy time. I hope it's helping alleviate some potential stress
@dawn16 I have to say, I didn’t know how badly I needed to hear other people were having this experience too. I work in a health care union and it has been going from crisis to crisis 24/7 for the last three weeks. Like, I knew logically I wasn’t the only one in this particular boat, but all my friends/family are baking bread/taking up hobbies/working out at 11am, and I’m like...I have not had time to eat a actual meal in 12 days. Thanks for sharing your experience (and providing perspective - I don’t have kids I need to care for!!) because it honestly was really bolstering.
@dawn16 Yes! I cannot stress this enough. I don’t have children, but I work at a wine store and our delivery orders are through the roof. Although the store is closed to retail, I’m still in the warehouse, stocking and packing orders. It’s more physical than my usual customer service-oriented tasks! I’m grateful to still be employed, but I’m exhausted. Many people don’t realize that “essential businesses” are not just those in the healthcare sector. If I can fit in an isolated walk or yoga YouTube video at the end of the day, great. But I’m mainly focusing on sleep and quality meals. “Healthy” can mean drinking more water and taking vitamin C, not necessary gym-quality workouts.
@dawn16 Ugh. While grateful for my high-stress job that I can work from home with, I am low-key envious of the free time that people are talking about. I definitely have less time now.
@hybridpaul I'm super grateful that I can usually work from home. And it gives me the flexibility to pick my kids up from school and usually to take a late morning break for a run outside. Although I miss interacting with adults on a daily basis.
I listened to a podcast called Happier on the treadmill last night and they had a COVID-19 episode from a week or two ago. And they're going on about making the most of all this free time and I'm running on the treadmill I hate thinking what free time! It did not make me happier.
@bleslikethat I finally quit my terrible job, not being able to work from home was just the last straw for me. Now I have all this free time and energy, but no money, lol. Baking and doing yoga is filling a void for me. It feels unproductive as my hours long Stardew Valley sessions. I think it's the same for many people - try to find some new distractions so you don't have to think about the world ending. My BFF was planning a wedding and her vendors are possibly going out of business and ghosting her. She ordered some computer parts and built a desktop so she can switch job fields. She just wants to stop thinking that her entire wedding is probably cancelled or at best has no vendors. So these people picking up new hobbies and doing a bunch of fitness challenges may be doing it to make up for other things in their life that feel out of control.
@dawn16 I'm definitely there too, I recently moved and was/am looking for a new job, but opportunities have pretty much dried up and its given me crazy anxiety. My husband is still getting paid but not quite enough to support a housewife lol.
I'm sorry to hear about your friend - there's so much build up to a wedding date, she must be crushed
@bleslikethat You are NOT a piece of garbage. I've been doing some yoga and at home workouts soley for the reason my severe anxiety disorder has me so jittery I feel like crawling out of my skin but like yesterday? Insomnia flared up, felt so miserable ten minutes into a yoga routine I felt like puking on my mat ( not actually sick just so tired I was nauseous). So I put my PJs on, crawled into bed and didn't leave for like four hours.its an awful, strange and crazy time right now. We gotta do what we gotta do to survive! Showering and putting on clothes has been impossible for me lately, I look like a goblin crawling out from the garage bin .
@vivian100 Thank you fellow goblin I've been trying really hard to set a routine to quell my own anxiety but it's hard to fight the feeling that time has no meaning - sooo I too am a greasy little goblin who's almost always in pyjamas now.
@bleslikethat This exactly how I’m feeling right now! Sometimes I manage to do something useful but most of the time I’m just sitting around knitting and watching YouTube videos I don’t even knit useful things like sweaters, I make cute useless crafts lol
@triplej68 I don't think it's useless if it brings you some joy, or even just a bit of distraction! In times like these there is no such thing as too much cute. I think knitting is a great activity for isolation, too. Ya gotta use your brain at least a little bit and I think seeing a project through to the end is great for mental health at a time that feels blah and unproductive. I'm currently anxiously waiting for my own yarn and already looking at getting more lol.
I hope it still provides some relief. Maybe there are some accessory workouts that you could spend time on? Any areas that you feel are weaker than others? For me, my left hip abductor is weak compared to my right so doing more exercises of that and because there is a difference between the two sidse I can really feel myself working
I've been trying really hard to set a routine to quell my own anxiety but it's hard to fight the feeling that time has no meaning - sooo I too am a greasy little goblin who's almost always in pyjamas now.
I don’t even knit useful things like sweaters, I make cute useless crafts lol