Sick of going for walks

[User158340]

Anyone else having to really drag themselves to go out at the moment?

I actually love going for a walk, but after 9 months of the same local walks i'm sick to death of them. The freezing cold weather obviously compounds it and the rain etc.

Yesterday I actually didn't leave the house at all and ended up awake half the night. Now I have to motivate myself to go for a longish walk today in 'feels like' minus temperatures.

I’ve just downloaded that Footpath app. It doesn’t show anything. I’m confused😖

We have a dog, that would walk 24/7. My DH does the early walk, myself and adult DS1 do lunchtime and DS2 does late pm. It does get you out and when I’m out, I do feel better than being stuck inside, plus I’ve lost weight during the past 2 years and all the walking I do, I am managing to keep the weight off, something I’ve never been able to. But I agree it gets tedious walking the same routes all the time.

Yes. Used to love walks, hate them now. Never doing another when this is all over.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

I’ve just downloaded that Footpath app. It doesn’t show anything. I’m confused😖

I've just downloaded it. You have to zoom in quite close and the footpaths appear in yellow.

DH and I aren't big pub goers but usually on one of the days between Christmas and New Year we have a pub lunch followed by a bit of a drinking session. I would probably meet some girlfriends for a couple of cocktails one day too. DH and I were planning our walk for today and I very grumpily thought, "But I don't want a walk I want to go to the pub!!" I've always enjoyed walking but now that it feels like the only leisure activity on offer outside home it does seem a bit dull!!!

Ahhhh l will try!

Yep you’re right!😂

I only find it bearable by listening to audiobooks on my phone - I borrow them from the library I've got through rather a lot in the last few months.

No advice as I’m in the same boat. Even the dogs are bored of having the same walk every day 🤣. The other day the dog wouldn’t even move when she saw me grab her lead, she’s that fed up!

I caved and drove to the local woods the other day (5 min drive). We had a rare day of sunshine after days of torrential rain and the dc were itching to get out of the house. We spent 5 hours there and only came home because it was starting to get dark.

I just took a look at that app - the footpaths don't show up at a scale useful for planning a decent length walk. OS maps may be better; we've got MemoryMap which is excellent but pricy and takes quite a bit of space as it stores the maps. We walk quite a lot usually and DH gets bored with the same routes. Taking note of any wildlife and changes in plants helps a bit - there are buds and shoots emerging even now.

You aren't being unreasonable. You could add objectives and vary things.

Go biking instead. Add it to a fitness regime and try to cycle further every other day.

Do the rspb garden birdwatch. Spend some time outside fixing up bird feeders and then retreat in out of the cold, and watch.

My DS has a nature photography competition for school so we've been outside looking for good shots.

Or walk to see a friend, even if you are in tier 4 you can gossip over the garden fence.

I used to love a long walk that ended with a drink in a cosy pub by a log fire ... it just isn't the same without that.

God, me too. We have a dog, so we have to go out every day but as it's been so wet lately, we've had to stick to exactly the same route with a path EVERY BLOODY DAY for the last few weeks. Tomorrow we are dragging our children out of bed early (8.30) to drive to the beach, bribing them with the promise of a McDonald's breakfast on the way home.

I am quite glad we have a dog though, as there is no way I would drag myself out for some fresh air every day if I wasn't forced into it, even if I know it's good for me.

I feel exactly the same. So so bored of all of the local streets, parks and routes. Within a short drive we have other nice places but when you’re feeling low and depressed (as I am) it can take everything I can summon to get me out of the front door.

I have dogs and it has been not the most enjoyable couple of weeks with all the rain and mud. There are several different parks we go to to keep me from getting too bored but I ventured into the woods at one point and we got very muddy indeed!
Truth be told if it wasn't for them I'd be staying home.

Agree. I’m dreading us moving into tier 4 as the gym will shut and that will mean my only exercise options are bloody walks or my living room

We have to walk ddog so it's not optional but god I am bored of the same places and everywhere is so busy that the mud is ridiculous as everything is trampled down so much.

YANBU.

And the worst is when someone posts to say how depressed and down they are with it all, someone pipes up to say "Why don't you go for a walkl?" as though you'd never thought of that before.

Going for a bloody walk is about the only thing we've been allowed to do these past 9 months!

I hear you OP, it is very tedious. However some of the suggestions upthread are worth looking into - geocaching is great fun and kids of all ages can get involved. Lots of the caches are in urban areas, it's not all tramping to the top of a mountain. Also like a bit of Pokemon Go, or there's a similar Harry Potter themed one called Wizards Unite. Podcasts or audio books help pass the time.

I also downloaded an app called Walk the DIstance which was free but you pay a small amount to unlock features. It tracks your distance walked and measures it against well known walks - so while you're trudging around the local streets you could actually be completing the Boston marathon or like me, the Appalachian Trail. (Currently done Georgia and North Carolina and half way through the Smoky Mountains leg.)

I know how you feel OP. Yesterday whilst putting the washing on the airer I was thinking about the days when we used to wake up on a weekend and say ‘what do you fancy doing today?’ ‘Oh we could go to x y or z’
Can’t do that now. Have to bloody plan in advance and buy tickets if anything is actually open. So sick of it all now too.

Oh gosh, I know exactly what you mean, OP!

DH and I have walked the same 3-mile circuit from our front door hundreds of times this year. We know the route intimately well and notice every small change - the depth of the puddles, a new fallen tree, new litter (which we periodically collect). I do love walking and on days when I haven't walked I feel that my mental health reduces. But it would be lovely to get further afield for our walks. I want to walk some of the long distance paths, but that involves a lot of travelling and overnight trips so out of the question for the time being.

I do often have to force myself to go out, but I do feel better afterwards*. Wrapping up nice and warm - and preferably rainproof - is essential at the moment.

*plus I can then slob on the sofa with a clear conscience.

i am also fed up trying to socially distance whilst walking. Why do people walk down the centre of the path, so i have to stand in the bushes to let them past? And whilst i'm happy for the oldies i saw yesterday who had had their jabs, we dont know if you can pass it on yet....so please dont take up the whole path

It takes a relaxing walk into a not great experience

I was saying this just yesterday. Tier four here and been traipsing around the same bloody footpaths since March. We’re lucky because we’re walking distance to 3 country parks, but they are totally rammed at the moment and everywhere is just so muddy. Sick of having to get changed as soon as we get in from anywhere. I booked lots of lovely National Trust places to visit over Xmas but our tier changed and all our booked ones were just out of our county and in a different tier 🙄 however the one that we can visit is booked for today, so we’re going there after lunch. Have started couch to 5k again, as otherwise I have no motivation to leave the bloody house.

Please don’t travel out of your tier. You may think that you are outside but you are still touching metal gates, car parking meters and you will still be within 6 ft of each other, especially in the coffee shack queue, as everyone else will have had the same idea.