To clarify the one hour of exercise 'rule'

[Itstheprinciple]

I've seen this mentioned on so many posts and I've seen people clarify it within the post but I've not seen a specific post about it. I thought this could help people who seem confused about what is 'allowed'.

Michael Gove was asked on the Andrew Marr show what he considered to be reasonable exercise. This is his response:

"I would have thought that for most people, a walk of up to an hour, or a run of 30 minutes or a cycle ride of between that, depending on their level of fitness is appropriate."

So it is not a hard and fast rule or law. No one is standing with a stopwatch as it gets to 59 mins. It's guidance and it will vary between individuals as Mr Gove says himself.

Genuinely keep checking as sometimes they open at funny times, not all day. And get in your local Facebook page and see what help is available. I’m leaving this now good luck 😉

As I said, can Facebook help me with getting to see my kids, getting out for some exercise or even communicating with my parents neighbour to get her phone fixed?

Honestly Hooves.

Not only are you the highest level of person shielding, you also cant eat the food on the list. Have allergies so unable to take up an offer of help. You cant get out anywhere because people are all over and you cant social distance. You worked in the worst supermarket in the country.

It's really not likely.

As I said, can Facebook help me with getting to see my kids, getting out for some exercise or even communicating with my parents neighbour to get her phone fixed?

You said previously, it was essential to your mental health to go see your kids and stay 2 meters away. That's medical need. You classified it as essential.

You CAN go out for exercise. No one has banned you from doing so.

Search my history.

Seriously, I have spoken about this before Covid.

I have Crohn's disease. It has affected my bowel. I can't eat many foods because of it. In turn, that has caused enteropathic arthritis. I am on immunosuppressants. I don't have allergies, that's something you've just made up. My bowel cannot tolerate certain foods or food groups because it has so much inflammation and scaring.

Strange that isn't it - one illness has caused these problems.

Some of you really need to revise your ideas about people with disabilities. Good for you if your needs are accommodated. Maybe think about people who have more complex needs.

Actually, @Shitsgettingcrazy, with the update I’m now wondering if Hooves is my neighbour... 😂😂

It's not the food

It the food plus everything else being the worst versions of everything in your area.

That suggests this is more about you. Not other people

Shitsgettingcrazy

I know but it's 120 mile round trip. I'm not convinced the police would view it as essential.

As for going out - I know I'm not a prisoner and that I can go out but no one will explain to me what the risk is. I don't know what to avoid, or what precautions to take. If it's as simple as "maintain two metres distancing" then I cannot understand why the government haven't said that to us? It feels right now, like playing russian roulette. If someone would explain the risks then I would consider my options. Right now, I am too scared of getting seriously ill or dying to think about taking the risk. As I said yesterday, we've just been told to stay inside and then forgotten about.

The government have given you advice. How you use that advice is entirely upto you.

You CAN go out. You are not locked you house.

I didnt say the trip is essential. You did. And it's up to each of us to decide what is essential.

You say it's a medical need. They were your words. You dont need facebook to see your kids or go exercise.b

It the food plus everything else being the worst versions of everything in your area.

The worst versions of what? I live in London. High concentration of people. Is it such s shock that supermarkets are busy and there are a lot of people on the streets?

We don't all live in the arse end of nowhere with the nearest neighbour five miles away.

I'll take hooves at her word. Life isn't fair.

But I'm afraid that the fact that some people may have a perfect shitstorm of problems doesn't mean that what's generally reasonable for everyone else has to be calibrated by this.

My son is abroad, living with my sister. I can't get there just now. My son has several conditions and had to go there for medical treatment. That's just life! We all just have to cope with different things.

The government have given you advice.

That's my point. The advice is (in bold letters) stay at home.

That's it. No explanation as to why, in our case, we aren't allowed out to exercise. That isn't advice is it?

Why can't we go out?
Why can't we maintain social distancing? What's the risk if we maintain social distancing?
Is it safe if we maintain twice the social distancing?

That would be advice.

No one, government or medical adviser, will ever say that any activity is completely without risk. They would be mad to do so, since 1) the virus has not been around long enough to study and 2) someone somewhere would be itching to take legal action if they believed that they had been promised safety when actually it was more a case of 'we are 99% sure it's fine'

I know this will probably get shot down but if you are so anxious about the virus being airborne, why not talk to your neighbour? Why not explain that you would love to sit in the garden for a bit and would they consider staying out of the garden for half an hour each day to let you go outside instead? If you explain how very afraid you are, maybe they will be understanding?

peppermintcapsules

I'm sorry for that. I have not felt pain like being separated from my kids.

I hope they don't jump on you and accuse you of lying for having compound problems that they can't comprehend.

What do people think of the college of police link I posted below re some clarifications of what's reasonable or not?

I welcome it. It'll stop the threads here from curtain twitchers who want to tell on people they think are wrongity-wrong for driving ten minutes for two hours' exercise in a deserted place, or who've dared to buy something nice with the rest of their shopping.

isabellerossignol

I don't expect the government to guarantee something as being no risk but I would like an explanation for the instructions they've given us.

They've explained why you all need to do social distancing, why it's two metres, why you should stay home and go.oyt only for four reasons. That's been explained so you can understand the reasoning behind it.

They've given us no explanation for the instructions they've given us - stay at home, do not go out. They've not explained why social distancing isn't ok, of said we can go out if we stay X distance apart. It has just been "stay indoors". You can't do a risk assessment with that. That implies that there is a possibility that this is airborne.

As for my neighbours, I'll ask my husband to put s not through their door but I'm not sure how well received it will be. How do you even begin to work out what's reasonable?

Eh? One of my kids is also dead. I don't spend my life making excuses, though, or feeling bitter that it's unfair because I feel quite blessed, I am! I live in country with good infrastructure and all sorts of great things, I have a wonderful family here and abroad. Everyone has problems, but being bitter isn't going to do me any good, not is being miserable. I've done my best to disseminate that attitude to my kids so they don't become negative, miserable people. My mother is also a very resourceful, positive person, so maybe that's where I get it.

Maybe that is.

I was empathising with the fact that your child is abroad for medical treatment and you can't go and see him. Obviously, you are a stronger, better person than me because you can cope with it.

Oh, give over with the PA digs. They're water off a duck's back to me because I don't spend my time wallowing in self-pity or looking for excuses to be even more miserable. It's nothing to do with being a better person, it's just life, some people have a smoother ride than others, that's the way it rolls and applies to us who also have the good fortune to live in a country like this. As for coping, well, it's not a choice. You get handed some circumstances it's either cope or end things and luckily, I haven't got to that point, come close enough and for that I'm able to help people who feel that way, too. 'Get busy living or get busy dying'. You can't help people who don't want to be helped, though.

Yes and usually I am busy living and getting on with things and now that rug has been pulled from underneath me.

I having nothing to do but sit here thinking about it all day. Bully for you that you can go out and walk and be busy. Great too for you, that you can cope with your problems. I'd love to have coping mechanisms to help me get through this.

Essentially, the govt have said that more people than they expected are following the lockdown. Yes,they need it to continue, but none of us expected it to only last 3 wks anyway. This isn't the fault of people, it's a shitty virus.

Well, Hear, you have to find them then. What do you expect others to do? I once injured my legs badly. I had to have two major surgeries on my knees within weeks of each other and then two more. It took a year to recover. I thought I might never walk again without pain. I was only in my mid-20s. I'd been highly athletic. All my friends were, too. Other than work, I had not a lot to do. It was a beautiful Spring and Summer, I suffered my injury in March. I didn't expect all my friends or my husband at the time to sit at home all Spring and Summer because I couldn't go out. I was an adult. I had to find other outlets, do other stuff, hang off the edge of my dining table and do pull ups, keep believing it was only temporary, that I'd get past it and move on with my life. This is temporary. If you all you do is moan, it doesn't help anything, least of all you.

I'd love to have coping mechanisms to help me get through this.

Hopefully you'll develop some, but such things are very individual. Spending too much time on these sorts of MN threads may not be one of them (applies to me too, tbh)

Again peppermint that's great for you.

I'm glad you managed to walk pain free and do pull ups off your dining table.

I have multi joint inflammatory arthritis - I pay to have weekly physio to manage my pain and disability. That's been my coping strategy. I don't know how to replace that at home. Again, I'm obviously not as strong or resourceful person as you. Hope you feel suitably superior.