5 Ways to Build Up Your Stamina and Stay Strong

“Part of resilience is acknowledging hardships while simultaneously looking toward a better future.”

Photo by Janelle Pol

We’re coming up to the anniversary of the March 14th, 2020 weekend when New York City went into lockdown. Overnight, four walls became the world for many residents for the next few months. Rumors turned into reality as offices, restaurants, and schools closed their doors in an effort to shut out the virus. The normally vibrant avenues resembled a ghost town and packed subway trains rattled by empty. The lights on Broadway darkened but, as I read in one article, expected to flicker back on a month later. I must admit, I thought the same — surely the city would be back to its lively self in a month at the most.

Yet, here we are, not knowing how long we will continue to limit our interactions, face restrictions when we travel, take COVID tests, have our temperatures taken, wear masks the moment we leave our apartments, and wash our hands regularly. 

Last year, as the pandemic wore on and spring slipped into summer, we learned ways to embrace our limited worlds and restrained interactions — sometimes with enthusiasm and other times hanging on with a fine thread. 

Now, as I write, snow blankets the city, stifling any remaining normality but adding a beautiful layer that muffles the normal sounds we are accustomed to. With vaccinations being administered at a trickle, we’re having to readjust once again and pace ourselves for the long haul. We are all ready for it all to be over. 

But it’s not all gloom and doom! There is much we can do to gain encouragement and build up our stamina mentally and emotionally. I compiled some suggestions to help you stay strong, and have posed them as questions to help you think through your own situation and build much-needed resilience. 

5 QUESTIONS FOR RESILIENCE

Where can you move on?

In some ways, we are unable to move on right now — with travel and vacation plans, weddings, graduations, or plans for other celebrations that involve groups of people. But, in other ways, especially those that hold us back, it is so very important to move on. Just how do we do that? 

First, consider any negative feelings or thoughts that are weighing you down. Perhaps you’re feeling guilty because you have a job at this time, but you have friends who don’t. Maybe fear of the virus, getting sick and having long-term consequences, or side effects of the vaccine overwhelms you. Perhaps you are making comparisons that are unhealthy by focusing on what you used to be able to do and comparing it with the limited things you can do now. Don’t dwell on the negativity. Acknowledge the emotion, and then move on. Write down five things that you have more time for now, or five “silver linings” that have come about despite the pandemic.

How can you wait it out well?

The reality is we have to wait it out. Although every little bit we do to curb the spread of the virus can help, we cannot change overall circumstances on our own. We want life to get back to normal, but it’s going to take longer than originally anticipated. A recent New York Times article commented that the city that never sleeps is taking an extended snooze with restaurateurs going into hibernation. Probably, like me, your knowledge of hibernation is limited. We think it just means sleeping — a lot —and we see this as a good excuse to not get out of bed, to work with our laptop propped up on pillows, or to hide beneath the covers. Binge-watching, anyone? Actually, hibernation is defined as an adaptation to extreme environmental conditions. NYC in the winter under COVID seems to fit that definition to me! But hibernation isn’t completely passive. Did you know some animals give birth in hibernation? Let’s flip our perspective around and instead ask: What new thing are you birthing during this time?

Are you rethinking and re-envisioning the future?

That same NYT article interviewed five restaurant owners who closed the doors of their restaurants. One of them I frequented regularly. If I had not read the article, I would have been saddened as I walked by and saw the dark interior and abandoned, outdoor eating structure on the sidewalk. But now I know that what looks like nothing’s going on from the outside doesn’t mean nothing’s happening inside. These restaurant owners are taking time to clear their heads, focus on smaller projects they didn’t have time for before, and make plans for going forward. Maybe you are having to take a pause from normal activities or work, but you can stay active in other ways — networking, researching new developments happening in your line of work, and setting goals. Like the restaurant owners, focusing on these projects will help you in the long-term.

Are you setting up a permanent camp in the hard places?

Camping, in my opinion, should be temporary. There’s a reason why we say we like our “home comforts.” Home comforts contribute to our physical ease and well-being. You don’t get heating, air conditioning, or lighting inside a tent, unless you’re glamping. Maybe you’ve found it hard to embrace working from home, not being in the city, or back living with your parents. It’s important to see any hardships or failed dreams as temporary. Part of resilience is acknowledging hardships while simultaneously looking toward a better future. Don’t make the current situation your permanent home in your mind. 

Are you looking and listening for the truth?

My pastor said this the other day: “There are things that are untrue that we speak of as true.” We have a lot of that in our world at the moment. We have a responsibility to ourselves and to others to focus on the truth; to find out what is and what is not true. Don’t be taken in by conspiracy theories, scare-mongering, or sensationalism. We have little control over what other people think and say, and over the media, but we do have control over what we read, listen to, and our own thoughts and words. A follow-on question is: Are you speaking the truth? I’m not talking about not telling little white lies, but focusing on what we know to be true, trustworthy, and life-building. What global truths can you affirm, both to yourself and others?

Leave your answers to one or all of these questions below.