After not cycling for about five months, on Thursday morning I finally got on my bike to go to a doctor’s appointment about 15 minutes away from home. This was the most difficult journey. Not because of the roads or the weather, but because I went from cycling 24 km a day to 0. on average, I was panting for breath after five minutes.
I was so disappointed in myself for struggling. I have always been proud of how much and how fast I cycled, but the truth is that I have become comfortable with myself at closing even though my habits are unhealthy for my physical and mental wellbeing.
There is no reason why I didn’t cycle. Winter is far from an excuse because there is a still bike at home that I could have used to continue my daily movement even though I am physically off the road.
Some call it a locking wall, or a locking fatigue but many of us have reached breaking point in different ways and to me, that was Thursday. I was so ready to go back home immediately and torture myself with the heaviest works, but this was later followed by tremendous guilt. I felt guilty that I couldn’t stick to a healthier routine. I felt guilt that this sudden burst of energy will float because there is no exit plan for locking us here at the moment and it is inevitable for me to get back down.
Returning to being physically active can be daunting. But if we want to be honest with ourselves, most people experience what we are going through right now. It feels disconnected because we are all isolated, but the situation has been the same for almost all of us.
Start small
You may feel that your energy levels should go back to where they were before you took your break and that is understandable but not realistic. There is nothing more depressing than feeling tired and feeling lost at the same time. Accept that you are not as strong as you were before; rebuild your strength.
Make a plan
Being comfortable on your own is easy after a long time and cutting habits can sometimes be difficult. Try to schedule a time in your day to be active and intentional in making your plans. I have found that because the gyms remain closed, it has been easy to make excuses. Life is not the same and although it is difficult to imagine doing things differently, it does not mean that it cannot be done and with the same results.
Build back muscles
Muscles don’t stay the same if you don’t exercise and naturally after a break you will feel stressed even for something as simple as cycling. Stretching and gaining solid warmth are useful for building endurance and not putting extra strain on parts of the body.
Although I still feel sluggish and at times not too optimistic to be as active as I was before, I think that the constant goal for most of us is to try to feel better that we are when we realize first that we hit the lock wall.