I couldn’t be more excited for this week, with high temperatures coming in Michigan and it is becoming harder to stay indoors.
Day 1 – Sunday, May 03, 2020 – Quarantine Day 48
For the last few days, the count of positive COVID19 cases doesn’t seem to slow down. But, today’s count of 196 has been the lowest I have seen so far, so somewhat good news, I would say.
This gave us a little cheer and we decided to head out for our hiking adventure. This time, we decided to head to the Waterloo State Recreational Area. It has been a blessing to get to explore all these State parks/area during these times. One thing that I have learnt over past 50 odd days to not take anything granted and have been fortunate enough to spend these tough times with friends and family.
So, the hiking started off in great spirits. I loved the spot from where we started our hike and was happy to see the lakes all around us. Unfortunately, this happiness was short lived when we arrived at a dead end and had to return to the spot from where we started.
Since we are used to more distance, this 2.4 mile hike didn’t seem that much, but kids were hungry so we had to take the break and eat some food.
After our lunch, we started off on our second hike, which was again, short lived, as my friend, Monika, started feeling a little bit of pain in her legs, so she decided to take kids with her to the car, leaving myself and Anupam to hike further.
We decided, instead of hiking, let us try Trail Running. We haven’t had a chance to trail run, so this was a perfect opportunity to see if we are upto it, and, boy we had fun! I couldn’t imagine, Trail Running would be this good for my knees and toes. I could feel the start difference between running on a concrete surface as compared to the trail/mud. It is definitely better to run on a trail as compared to the concrete, and, I think, I will run more on trails based on the availability.
I remember being drenched at the end of the run, but was relieved that I survived the 5K distance, though, I could have gone for more. The one interesting discovery that I did during this run was that I hardly paid any attention to my pace and the time I was taking to cover such a short distance. I think this will be the key for running the ultra marathon. So, I will remember this run and my mindset during this.
Now, after all this hiking and running, Sunday would have been incomplete without our Biking. So, after finishing up our dinner, we had some sunlight for an hour or so, so we decided to bike for that time and we had nice time. It was relaxing to end Sunday on this note and loved every minute of it.
Day 2 – Monday May 04, 2020 – Quarantine Day 49
The COVID19 positive have risen to ~400 today. It is a concern with these many cases even after a month, so, we are taking all precautions while going to the market for food and other necessary things. We will get through it.
The weather was not that great, so, I decided to skip the run and opted for a bike ride with my friends. Though 12 miles look a lot, but our bodies are used to this long distance now and we were glad we could come back in time for dinner, before, it started drizzling a little bit. You know, Michigan Weather!
Day 3 – Tuesday May 05, 2020 – Quarantine Day 50
One more day with almost 500 cases reported. Each day feels like a test to me now. After hearing these numbers, we decided how our mood is going to be.
Anyway, we were gonna cook some lovely dinner, so we decided to go for a longer biking route than our regular. Turned out, it was little bit more than our bodies anticipated. We could finish the 18 mile loop in a decent way, but as soon as, I had dinner, I couldn’t stay up to read, as I usually do, and went to bed straightaway. It was a much needed rest, with no running for the last couple of days.
Day 4 – Wednesday May 06, 2020– Quarantine Day 51
Not a good news when it comes to number of positive COVID19 cases. Today, we saw an increase of 200 more than yesterday. A little bit of concerning and hopefully the count will go down soon.
The weather today was excellent. We had Sun for the majority of the day which was enough for me to be happy throughout the day. The work was too much today, so I spent most of the day in front of my laptop and cried over the fact that I could not enjoy the nice and warm sunlight outside.
The moment I shut down my laptop around 5 PM, I was so excited to run outside. I got ready and ate some chips and guacamole before heading out to run. I had so much fun running in such a nice weather that I didn’t need to use my knee cap and CEP compression socks. At the end of the run, I found myself to have preserved enough energy to go for more, but didn’t as it was almost dinner time.
Day 5 – Thursday May 07, 2020– Quarantine Day 52
One more day when we saw the increase in number of positive COVID19 cases. Not a good day, but I think, we have gotten used to the fact that it will be a while before we could see only a couple digits as this number. Hopefully, that day will come sooner than later and we will be able to go back to the normal, whatever that means in these unprecedented times.
Today, I had to skip running as my knee was not 100% for a run, so opted for biking. Biking has been an essential part of our lifestyle now. Having spent some grueling hours in front of the screen, the biking helps to revitalize some energy and acts as a trigger for never say never attitude.
We did somewhat around 15 miles of biking, now a norm. It took a couple hours as we had to take more breaks due to windy weather. In the end, it was a good effort and the dinner followed by biking was so good!
One thing that I forgot to mention is the push-ups and Burpees that we did before biking. I was feeling a little bit pumped up as soon as I closed my laptop screen, so I cranked up 120 push-ups and 50 Burpees before heading out for biking.
Here’s the overview of the day.
Day 6 – Friday May 08, 2020– Quarantine Day 53
A little bit relief for COVID19 positive case numbers. The number have been dropping steadily, so hopefully, we will be able to see the two digit cases in a week or two. Fingers crossed!
Today, the work had been really overwhelming, so I didn’t want to stretch myself with running and opted for biking instead. We covered our usual route and tried to keep things a little light as it was Friday.
Nice effort by the kids too, who were not at all exhausted after this bike ride.
Day 7 – Saturday May 09, 2020– Quarantine Day 54
The COVID19 positive numbers increased today, diminishing whatever hope I had to get away from this. Also, our Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer extended the social distancing protocol till May 28th, and the manufacturing plants to open by May 18th for Big 3 – GM, Ford, and FCA. Good news for the business, not so sure how the cases will fare after May 18th.
So, as far as the running goes, I couldn’t go out for run today. But, we did something which we never did before.
We biked for 34 miles in 4 hours.
I cannot stress this enough how hard it was to actually finish the 34 miles and especially when you are with kids, Aryan and Arnav. But, they are no ordinary kids and know how to push themselves when the odds are stacked against them.
It was a special day for Aryan as he got the new bike and got to try a long distance on the first day itself. Here’s him showing off his new bike.
When we started this bike ride, I was not mentally prepared for such a long distance, but, eventually figured out that my body is in tune with such a strenuous physical activity. With Aryan and Arnav riding alongside, we took, I think, 4 breaks to recharge and were taken at a regular intervals so that they don’t sore their tender bodies.
At the end, I was not at all tired, and could help my friends with dinner preparation. However, by 9PM, I was done and went to bed and fell asleep before I realized. It was an awesome day, which will be remembered for a long time. Next target – 50 miles.
This brings to the end of this week. I have realized I have started biking more than running, partly because of the weather and the wonderful company that I get while biking.
Here’s my running journal.
See you next week!
stochasticity 