What It’s Like Working Out Outdoors During the Wildfires
We're very lucky that we don't have to deal with the wildfires happening on the west coast or even those happening to the south in Colorado. And yes, there have been some in Wyoming. But we're most certainly having to deal with the fallout.
I'm a habitual runner. I typically go running five or six times a week and I will run outside as much as I can opposed to going to the indoor gym as long as it's weather/temperature permitting. For anyone that's a runner, you know that some days are just tougher than others. But what's it like when you check the weather on your phone and instead of saying 'Sunny' or 'Partly Cloudy', it says 'Unhealthy Air Quality for Sensitive Groups'?
Wednesday (September 16th), you may have known there was quite a bit of haze in the air. There was so much haze in Cheyenne on a sunny day, visibility was limited somewhat in certain areas. As I prepared for my run, I thought to myself that maybe it was a bad idea, but the competing athlete in me decided to take it on as a challenge.
Let me preface by saying that I'm lucky enough to have never had any sort of running issues such as asthma, or any trouble breathing while running at all. But today there were times at specific points during my route that I've ran several times that it was not easy at all. I also noticed that during the time of day that I usually run on the trails I do, there really wasn't anyone else running, like I would usually see. They may have been smarter than me to not want to be running in the haze on this day.
By the time I finished, I was more exhausted than the several times I had previously finished. I typically run some sprints when I finish the distance portion of my workout, but I decided to not even attempt anymore. It was a day when you could really feel the air being that much tougher to breathe around you. If I had to do it over again, I probably should've just went to my indoor gym and hop on the treadmill.
If you've been following any of the news recently, you know that many spots around the country have it much worse than we do in Cheyenne. But for example, the National Weather Service showed this map on Twitter.
As you may notice, it's not even near the worst of it in southeast Cheyenne. But it's definitely still something that we have to deal with in the air quality. If you ask me, I'd much rather go for a workout indoors than have to deal with what's in the air outside. Stay safe, everyone!
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