May 5, 2020

Lockdown… The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

As I am sure you are all aware we are currently in the throws of a global pandemic.

Covid-19 has had our pants down and torn us all a new one. I for one, never thought that I’d be sat here in May, working from home, locked in my house, by myself and only allowed out for essentials or a daily walk/run/cycle.

The first I heard of the Coronavirus was back in January. I was on holiday with my friend in Morocco and we were watching the News one evening, because it was the only channel in English, and they were talking about Wuhan and a virus that was spreading and killing lots of people there. We discussed it a little but ultimately brushed it off as something that wouldn’t impact us as we are not in China. Wow, if only we’d known then that this was only 6 weeks away from causing global panic and a UK wide shortage of loo roll and pasta.

In March I flew off to NYC still with the attitude of not wanting to admit defeat. When I landed I got the news that Trump was going to be stopping all UK citizens from entering the US in the next few days and that lots of things in NYC were closing to try and stop the spread of the virus. I won’t go into too much detail about NYC as I will write a blog post about it shortly but it was surreal and I cute my trip short a few days and flew home early to make sure I could get home before the whole world shut their boarders.

7 days after I landed back in the UK good ol’ Boris announced a UK wide lockdown and everything started to close. Life as we knew it had changed over night. No shopping, No Gyms, No Beauty salons and most importantly, no leaving your house for unnecessary journeys or seeing family and friends who you don’t live with.

Now here we are, 7 weeks later, still in Lockdown and awaiting an update on the next phase of the plan. The last 7 weeks have felt like a lifetime and I think the one thing we can all agree on is the rollercoaster of emotions that have come with this virus.

I’ll summarise my journey over the 7 weeks, the highs and the lows…

The first two weeks – Luckily I was in a fortunate position where I had a lot of food already stockpiled. It’s a habit that comes from having chefs as parents. Always keep your staple foods of pasta and tinned goods stocked up and your freezer full of meat. I was grateful for this as it meant I didn’t have to venture outside and fight someone for supplies. What I didn’t plan for was the amount of food I’d actually eat through those first two weeks. While I got used to working from home I went though, what felt like, a years supply of biscuits and chocolate and any other food I could reach for. I binged watched Netflix, spent my days working from home & my fitbit must have thought I was dead. Everyone was on edge and speculating how long it would last and how to find a new routine without social contact. There were plenty of video calls with friends and a phone call every day to my parents which isn’t something that usually happens. Everyone seemed to take up baking, myself included, even though 75% of the things I baked failed miserably. Oh and I downloaded tiktok and spent far too long scrolling through videos.

The third week was, I guess, the ugly. I moved in to my own place back in October and I am away a lot for work usually so I don’t spend a lot of time here. during week 3 I hit a wall and the realisation that I was seeing the same 4 walls every day and only enjoying my own company was taking its toll. There was no one to talk to face to face, no one to watch shit TV with, No one to sit in silence with and no one to just ‘be’ with. Even though I have a wonderful bunch of friends and family that are at the end of the phone or zoom call, I’d never felt so alone and lonely. I spent the weekend staring into space, and there were definitely a few tears. The realisation that this wasn’t going to be over anytime soon was dawning on me and I was miserable. Everyone on social media was looking like they had their shit together (I know now, this was a lie), and every man and his dog was offering free workouts and programs which just made me feel worse because I just COULDN’T BE BOTHERED!

By the start of the 4th week the weather was sunny, and that always improves my mood. I took myself out on a walk to the shop to get some bits and on that walk I just switched off from social media and listened to my gym playlist, the songs that get me motivated. By the time I got back from my walk I was feeling more positive. For the first time in years, I could have a consistent routine. I wasn’t working here, there and everywhere. I was working Monday – Friday, 9-5 and I had no long travel time to factor in. I decided that it was time to seize the day and with a little help from a challenge set between my friends I started making sure I got out of the house for my daily walk every day and getting to bed at a decent time. I also decided that being at home and being able to accurately tract my food meant there was no better time to get back into the calorie deficit lifestyle. Every day in the last 3 weeks I have been out for a walk and every week I’ve ended in a deficit. I even managed 21 days of the pushup and squat challenge, started skipping and got a personal best on my 5km run (Yes I do cardio now because the gyms are closed and weights require a mortgage) The weather has been mostly great and I seem to be out of my funk and have my mojo back.

Last week I started Project X with Diren Kartal in a bid to up my training as walking and the occasional workout isn’t going to help me get fit before I have to leave my routine. Week 1 and I’m 8cm and 1.2kg down. I’ve just started week two and I am positive that I will stay consistent. I still have some days where I am feeling alone, and a little low and I am gutted that I have had to cancel my 30th Birthday party on 31st May and it is likely that I will be spending it alone but then I remember that this new normal will not be forever. It is a massive change for everyone and the measures are for the greater good of saving as many lives as possible. One thing is for sure though…

I WILL NOT COME OUT OF LOCKDOWN BIGGER THAN WHEN I WENT IN.

If you want to follow my lockdown glowup then check me out on instagram @rhiannons_way

Lastly I just want to share some of my thoughts and feelings in the hope that anyone struggling finds some solace.

  • No one has their shit together.
  • Everyone will struggle at some point.
  • There is no perfect way to do isolation.
  • Don’t compare yourself to others.
  • Don’t suffer in silence.
  • Be grateful for technology, it would be so much harder if we weren’t able to contact friends and family.
  • Stick to the rules in your country so that we can all see each other sooner.
  • Be kind, random acts of kindness mean the world at the moment.
  • Cherish your loved ones and remind them often that you care.

I’ll sign off this blog post by sending my thanks to the front line workers who are keeping this country running… Every single one of you are Heros! X

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