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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to hate going for walks?

181 replies

junebaby2020 · 19/02/2021 15:44

I'm still on maternity leave and DH is on furlough. We try to get out for a walk with our 8 month old most days so they can get a change of scenery and some fresh air.

However, I just can't stand going out - I hate the miserable cold weather, the fucking relentless grey skies and the boring, concrete, suburban area we live in with very little to see or do, particularly as everything is shut due to lockdown.

I just feel so lethargic, dread the thought of walking anywhere (it seems like so much effort to walk walk walk for an hour or two) and just CBA - I'd much rather sit at home on the sofa with a cuppa and some biscuits and put my feet up.

Is it normal to feel like this or am I exceptionally lethargic/lazy?

OP posts:
DarcyJack · 19/02/2021 21:54

Its boring. But I do it everyday. The alternative of getting even fatter and less fit is worse.

dividedwefall · 19/02/2021 21:57

"literally agog" gave me a chuckle.

I live in such a long street that it takes ten minutes to walk to the end of it so the first half mile of a local walk is basically the same old houses there and back. No fun whatsoever after a year.

SilverGlitterBaubles · 19/02/2021 22:01

I am lucky to live where there are some beautiful places to walk. I actually love walking and feel so much better when I get out after WFH. I also appreciate that my teen DC are desperate enough to come with me when normally they would be too busy with their friends.

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 19/02/2021 22:13

Obviously there aren't any on mine either. I meant you could perhaps drive to somewhere a bit nicer occasionally.

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 19/02/2021 22:15

Nowhere in the rules does it say you can't drive for a walk. I did check. It says stay local but I see half an hour drive as local.

Masterpieceontheshelf · 19/02/2021 22:16

I have a dog, so walk everyday & enjoy walking.
This time of year it's very tough though, the fucking mud gets you down.
I'm ok about the grey skies, I look at the trees and listen to the birds, but still there's the fucking mud.
So I feel your pain.

yesyoudoknowme · 19/02/2021 22:22

www.geocaching.com/play

Macncheeseballs · 19/02/2021 22:25

The alternative is not being able to walk

Caneloalvarez · 19/02/2021 22:29

@singme I'm with you, my little one is the same age and it's so nice to go for a walk and have some me time while she sleeps in the pram (and have a break from the baby acrobatics lol) It's a great chance to listen to podcasts and audio books too!

@RubyFakeLips hahahaha I just read your comment and realised I also stare into windows and judge the decor when it's dark, no.1 lockdown hobby 😆

KatherineJaneway · 19/02/2021 22:32

I hate 'walks'. Gym is far better.

MrsJBaptiste · 19/02/2021 22:38

Hmmm, it depends.

My walks after work are dull...the same paths, houses, people... I've seen them 100 times after 11 months of lockdown!

My walks with friends that involve sitting on a bench with a bottle of prosecco... I still very much enjoy those!

Donoteatthekittens · 19/02/2021 22:51

I live on a military base. There is only so much walking around buildings you can do. The surrounding area is muddy fields. You can walk into the village to the Tesco Express. That’s it. No footpaths apart from that!

Original poster
junebaby2020 · 19/02/2021 22:54

Nowhere in the rules does it say you can't drive for a walk. I did check. It says stay local but I see half an hour drive as local.

@CovoidOfAllHumanity bit tricky when you don’t own a car though, isn’t it?

OP posts:
Original poster
junebaby2020 · 19/02/2021 22:55

the fucking mud gets you down.

This. My local park is a mud bath.

OP posts:
Original poster
junebaby2020 · 19/02/2021 22:56

"literally agog" gave me a chuckle.

Grin
OP posts:
Peanutbuttercupisyum · 19/02/2021 23:07

Out of interest, what would you do with your baby if it wasn’t lockdown? Considering you don’t have a car and you say your local area is horrible and boring? Days are what you make them, and I would have thought trudging off on foot to the nearest playgroup morning after morning in the winter would also get pretty boring, cold and wet too.
I mean no your 8 month old cant do scavenger hunts but you can still sing her/him a few songs, point out things you see, if your DH is with you you can have a nice chat/gossip with him, bring yourself a coffee in a flask/cup thing. Or do two walks - one for nap time where you can listen to podcasts or books etc and one for when your baby is awake. Not sure if this is your first baby or
not, but lockdown or no lockdown, maternity leave often involves ALOT of ambling around your local area with your buggy! Also..lethargy breeds lethargy! The more time you spend sitting on the sofa, the lazier you’ll feel!

CovoidOfAllHumanity · 19/02/2021 23:07

Well that is true but you didn't mention it in your OP so I thought maybe you were just worried about being caught by da fuzz.

Put your feet up then and let DH take the baby out if he likes it more than you do. No-one says you have to walk if you don't like it. You could always do an indoor workout if you prefer that and you want to get some exercise in.
Or just have a nap.

Symbion · 19/02/2021 23:14

Gosh yes. It's easier with a playlist if I am not forcing the teens to come along. I dragged myself out yesterday and got hailed on. I am sooo over all that "no bad weather, just the wrong clothing" gubbins. It wasn't fun and bracing, it was cold and wet and crap.

Original poster
junebaby2020 · 20/02/2021 07:25

Out of interest, what would you do with your baby if it wasn’t lockdown?

@Peanutbuttercupisyum I’d go to baby groups, baby cinema, go swimming, go to friends’ houses, have friends round to mine, visit the library, do the coffee morning for mums at my local community centre, go shopping, sit in a cafe, see family, go for a meal out. I’m just sick of being outdoors all the time in the freezing cold!

OP posts:
ColdBrightClearMorning · 20/02/2021 08:28

@junebaby2020

Out of interest, what would you do with your baby if it wasn’t lockdown?

@Peanutbuttercupisyum I’d go to baby groups, baby cinema, go swimming, go to friends’ houses, have friends round to mine, visit the library, do the coffee morning for mums at my local community centre, go shopping, sit in a cafe, see family, go for a meal out. I’m just sick of being outdoors all the time in the freezing cold!

And you’ve every right to be sick of it. Mat leave is an ENTIRELY different experience usually. We went into our first lockdown when baby was 2-3m old and I crammed as much as I could into that first few months, not knowing that’d be pretty much it for my mat leave. You want to be seeing friends and family, socialising with other parents at groups, soft play, swimming, maybe accessing some bf support sessions if you hoped to bf, going for coffees and lunches with friends on mat leave, music groups, so many things.

I really feel for all of us who’ve lost our mat leaves to this pandemic. I feel robbed as do all of my mum friends. It’s just so sad when you never get this time back.

All we do is the supermarket in the morning and a walk to the park in the afternoon. Every. Single. Day. It’s soul destroying.

ColdBrightClearMorning · 20/02/2021 08:30

I miss the library the most. We managed to go once last year and then they moved to a closed door, swap books over at the entrance thing, when they were even open. I had such excitement and high hopes for going to their free singalongs and going to change books each week 😓 the only things we managed to do cost a bloody fortune as all of the affordable and free groups never reopened, we spent about £300 on baby groups and swimming as it was all block booking (most of which we didn’t end up being able to attend anyway, I’m still owed £90 of swimming lessons and it’s looking like they’ve gone bust). It makes me so angry, we were lucky we could afford to pay that but many can’t and the local provisions for those parents and babies is nonexistent. Absolute shit show, screw anyone who tries to minimise it or tell you it’s no big deal.

roarfeckingroarr · 20/02/2021 08:33

@Notanotherhun

Literally agog. So much you can do of a walk. Do a nature spot, look for the first signs of spring, count colours of cars, greet other people and their dogs. I mean it's not the same as normal but it is what you make of it. If you've got children, then skip, run, hop skotch or even play follow the leader. Me and my little one walk past the garage on our way to the local fire station and he will happily watch and chatter about what he sees. And that's within 10 mins of the house. It's all in the attitude, if you are negative about exercise and walking then it's hardly surprising if your children are they same.
Why TF would anyone want to count colours of cars?

I say that as someone who quite likes walking.

ColdBrightClearMorning · 20/02/2021 08:33

And the pressure to go for a walk is irritating isn’t it? The chirpy ‘you can still meet one other person for a walk!’ grinds my gears lol. Oh fucking great, I’ll wrap my six month old up, choose one person who’s willing to go walking with us, go out for the length of time it takes between shits or feeds, tramp around the icy streets in the cold rain. Fantastic. I mean, I do it daily, I force myself to for baby to get fresh air. But it’s shit, absolutely shit, when you can’t help but compare it to what you should be doing instead.

It’s okay to struggle and be sad and grieve, there’s so much toxic positivity around you feel a bit guilty sometimes cos ‘at least you’re not dead’ but fuck that. Own your feelings, you’ve ever right to them. New parenthood is hard enough at the best of times!

FHFG19 · 20/02/2021 08:41

I hate going for a walk, especially with no destination. Totally get how you feel, I struggle with motivation on my days off and then spend the day feeling guilty

Jupitersmoon842 · 20/02/2021 08:46

I love going for walks! I do have the option of countryside, river walks, beach or wandering around town here, so lots to look at. I also like nature and cannot stand the gym, now that I find dull. The weather is brightening up now so that might help things. I’d also agree with a pp, give geocaching a go, that is a lot of fun!!