A Body in Motion Stays in Motion

Running through post-COVID symptoms and grief

My current mantra. The law of inertia: a body in motion stays in motion, and a body at rest stays at rest until another force acts upon it. 

These last few weeks have been extremely challenging. I’m now 12 weeks post-COVID and am still not back to normal. Sure, my energy levels for day-to-day activities have returned, but my running is most definitely not what it was pre-COVID. My pace is still so very slow, and while I may feel like I’m putting out an effort that would pace me at 10:30 minutes per mile, my watch says otherwise. It’s depressing. 

At least my lingering chest pain from the infection is subsiding. This used to be a constant companion, but over the past week or so, it’s become far more intermittent. This is a very welcome change. I’m hoping this indicates my speed will begin to improve as well. 

My strategy for healing is to stay in motion. One foot in front of the other. To give myself some grace when my runs are a struggle. To appreciate the fact that I can still run despite having had COVID. 

The recent loss of my father-in-law also weighs heavily on me. As we kept vigil in the last week of his life, I lost so much sleep, and my energy needed to be spent doing things other than running. I missed two planned runs, including my Sunday 12-mile long run the morning that he passed. Besides being up most of the night, my family needed me, especially my young adult daughters, who both went above and beyond in giving care to my in-laws. 

My family and I are navigating our new normal, as my father-in-law was a big part of our lives. Living next door, we saw him almost every day for years, and recently, several times a day as caring for him required more assistance. And now, we are helping my mother-in-law adapt to a life without her partner. 

I hopped back into my running schedule for taper. I won’t make up the 12 miles I was supposed to run the Sunday after my 20 miler. My final long run before my marathon was a mere 9 miles. I’m grateful I managed to get a 20 miler done this training cycle. And now I’m fighting a cold, and I skipped all of my runs in this final week. 

My marathon will be run on a wing and a prayer, relying more on my mental toughness than my athletic ability. But then, that’s typically how they go, anyway!

For now, I’ll simply keep moving. A body in motion stays in motion. I run the Chessie Trail Marathon on Saturday. 

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I’m pretty sure the expression on my face in the lead photo says everything that needs to be said about my expectations for this weekend’s adventure.

Are you a runner who is trying to maintain a training schedule for a race post-COVID? I’d love to hear about your experience.

As always, I hope you all are safe and healthy.