When Drew Forbes planned a trip with his wife, Emily, to visit her family's farm back in their home state of Missouri in the spring of 2020, they didn't expect to be out of Cleveland for longer than a week.
Forbes, a sixth-round pick for the Browns in 2019, was visiting his in-laws before preparing for his second NFL season as an offensive lineman. After missing nine games with a knee injury and returning to play two games his rookie season, Forbes had bigger plans ahead for 2020 — his versatility at both the tackle and guard positions made him a viable depth piece, and he was even a possible candidate for the starting right guard job once competition could commence in training camp.
But before his offseason work, he planned to take a trip to the family farm, where he could help pitch in with some daily tasks on the farm — driving tractors, hauling hay bales and assisting in the everyday needs of the family's livestock.
The trip was only supposed to last seven days.
"We only brought one little suitcase each of clothes," Forbes said in an interview.
"Then COVID hit."
Forbes' stay in Missouri lasted for the next five months. During the end of the prolonged trip, he made the difficult decision to opt out of the 2020 season and avoid any risk of contracting COVID-19.
Forbes was one of five Browns players who chose to forgo the season, and while he certainly missed being a part of the action for Cleveland's trip to the playoffs, he believes his time away from football will help him feel as refreshed as ever when he can finally strap on pads and a helmet.
"It's been a bit of a blessing in disguise," he said. "I would much rather have the opportunity right now to go back and play some ball, but just given the situation, we made the most of it, and I'm happy where we're at."
So what did Forbes do in his spare time? The answer is loaded with a combination of activities related to farm life, outdoor workouts and keeping up with the Browns.
After the extended stay with his in-laws, Forbes and his wife purchased their own farm in Missouri, where he continued the same farming tasks he enjoyed at the beginning of quarantine. His main source of physical exertion became hauling hay bales, which weighed between 30 and 80 pounds and needed to be hauled onto tractors to be shipped to neighbors. Forbes and his wife have moved hundreds of them since they purchased their own property, and the heavy lifting has provided Forbes just as strenuous of a workout as he'd receive in the weight room.
"I'll tell you right now, that definitely gets you into football shape," he said. "It's probably the most labor-intensive part of farming."
In non-farming activities, Forbes has built an outdoor weight-lifting area on his property and has made daily usage of a mile-long loop he mapped around their farm. Missouri is also full of state parks, and he's frequently taken advantage of the open land on 13-mile bike rides through the woods.
For Forbes, the one key element of keeping a fit body and clear mind can be traced to one life ingredient: staying outdoors.
"We have plenty of opportunities to work out in the area we're in," he said. "We're just immersed in nature. My wife and I, we've loved just getting to sit and look out the backdoor and be immersed in nature. It's been a really healthy thing for both of us."
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Drew Forbes 'can't wait' to return to football after using farm work, outdoor immersion to stay fit during opt-out season - clevelandbrowns.com
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