Running in the time of Covid
This has been a year of disruptions, and one is to running. Races and formal runs that might have served as milestones and motivations have been cancelled, and runs with our local group have had to be suspended at times because of lockdown rules, but in the main, to some extent, I and others have kept running, more or less. Running has implications for general fitness, health and mental welbeing so is important in that respect, though for someone like me who runs for fun I can't say it is essential. The biggest impact for me is social: our run group has been meeting every Saturday for years, and after-run coffee has become a stable part of our lives and a weekly chance to catch up with friends, so we all miss that. But there is also a nice aspect, in an odd way, due to the social distancing. Running can be a bit of a selfish pursuit: I am guilty of it myself sometimes, running in a bubble, oblivious to people I see or pass, on a mission, focussed on my pace or my style or my exhau