I hopped on the bike after another long day of working from home social isolation and played instructor roulette... and won. The guy whose class I chose to join was offering up an eighties music blast with a Marty McFly theme. Thirty minutes of intense speed-work left me ready for a crash in the recliner and some classic television eps.
Of my three remaining races this year, the three I am (was) registered for, two were cancelled this morning. If ... IF ... it still happens, my next registered event turns out to be the Chicago Marathon which I am moderately convinced that the universe does not want me to run. So, when Jenn texted at half ten and said that she was going to ride in in the 10am live ride on the Peloton, was I in, I said obviously and went to get my shorts on.
I once ran 32 kilometers on a 250 meter indoor track while winter training for a marathon, but to one French runner that would have been relative paradise. According to a story in the Washington Post he ran 42.2 kilometers (26.2 miles) straight, never leaving his 7-meter-long (23-foot) balcony. Staying in shape during a crisis of any kind definitely sits pretty high up on the hierarchy of needs — in other words, a bit of a luxury for many — but finding ways to keep sane for many athletes locked indoors is probably as much about mental health as physical.
Last night I went for a run with a couple of the guys and it was breath of fresh air, literally and socially, to get out with some people after even just a few days of stress and working from home. The Runologie podcast chats about social distancing and how running can keep you connected during times of social challenge. "The conversation covers his visits to remote places in the state, discovering new elements of your own neighborhood when you’re forced to find pedestrian routes, and using Strava to maintain a social aspect of running."