Running is enjoying a boom because of the coronavirus pandemic
Updated 5:53 AM ET, Sat April 25, 2020
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(CNN)Gyms are closed. Spin classes and boot camps are canceled. Worst of all, you're stuck at home for most of the day.
As people look for an outlet to exercise and escape the confines of self-isolation at home, running has seen a boom during the coronavirus pandemic.
"Right now, when the sun comes out, every path, park and neighborhood is crowded with runners," Brooklyn Track Club Women's Performance Team running coach Kate Gustafson told CNN. "I live in Brooklyn Heights and I've never seen so many people out running through Brooklyn Bridge Park at all hours of the day."
While Gustafson notes that New York City has long been a "running city," there has been a noticeable uptick in people running outside.
"Now I see that there are more people out running and cycling than doing anything else outdoors," Jessica Zapotechne, a performance running coach for adidas in NYC, tells CNN.
"It feels very hopeful when there is a lot of fear and anxiety going on, to see people getting out and moving their bodies."
However, even running is not immune to the changes that this pandemic has brought on. Running groups are no longer meeting, purposeful training is put on hold and races all over the world have been canceled.
"It's full of mixed emotions," Gustafson said of running in NYC right now. "The city is quiet and you can move more freely from one neighborhood to the next, but it feels empty and lacks the energy you come to expect from living in New York City."