What Is Different About Running in Lockdown

Hint — A lot of other people have started running!

A lot of people picked up running for the first time in lockdown, which is nice for them. But for those of us that were already running regularly, it has meant more people out on the roads/fields/pavement. Don’t mistake that statement for a complaint (well maybe a little), but it is a reality of lockdown life, so I worked out a few little life hacks. I hope they help.

There can be no denying it, there are a lot more people out running. We might see fewer people in general. Fewer cars on the road? No doubt. Unfortunately, most shops are empty too. But compared to pre-COVID times, there are definitely more people out pounding the pavements.

Right now, we all want to keep a distance between people when we are out. But that creates a problem because the pavement is not really big enough for people, and the weather has made it harder to get off-road and into fields or parks or even forests in some places. So how do we manage this?

I’ve found myself running on the roads a lot more than ever before. It’s not ideal but it feels better dodging cars than trying to avoid other runners — this is what the pandemic has done to us! The main thing has been selecting new routes that have wider passing areas.

I’ve been selecting when and where I run based on very different criteria from before. It used to be about how flat I fancied my run, how I wanted it to feel underfoot, how light it was outside. Now it's about when I can avoid people and what routes have the largest pavements.

Another thing that will help all runners is if everyone became a little more self-aware. Everyone puts on some headphones, puts their head down and runs. Which was fine when the paths were clear and it’s certainly how I always used to run. But right now we all need to keep our heads up more, we need to listen out for others.

Take it in turns to quickly step into the road if that’s safe. Be the one that goes onto the grassy part of the path. Wait for 5 seconds in a little side gap until the other person goes by. I know these are all a little bit of a pain, but it will make everyone's lives easier…

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