She Wants To Move

I love the gym. I love the cardio machines, free weights, classes and, just recently realizing, I can shower while my kids are in child care. I know there are people that despise the gym and the atmosphere in the facility. I, too, am not a fan of the douchers that creep the free weight rooms curling 100lb dumbbells once, failing to re-rack and have chicken legs because they fail to remember the lower half of their masterpiece needs attention too. Classic tale: When I worked for 24 Hour Fitness I would work out usually at night around 8 or 9 when I got off. It just depended on what my schedule was but I definitely tried my hardest to avoid peak times for two reasons; it was busy and I liked working then and the stereotypical doucher entered then; a good audience for his killer traps and the thousand shrugs he did to maintain. One time, ONE TIME, I tried to get lift on during this time of day, I got my 10lb weights and assumed the position on a bench on my back ready to start some chest presses. Second set in, I see there are hands helping mine and sweaty basketball shorts touching the crown of my head. Taking my earbuds out, I sat up, "Can I help you?", "Uuuuhhhh, yea, yea, you can. You need a spot?", "I think I'll be good with this 10lbs. thanks, though.", "So, you wanna work out together? We can mix in. I see you're doing chest. I can do chest today", "No, but, thanks. Have a good work out.", "Bitch."...aw, shucks, he probably won't ask me out now (he did, another day, yes, I declined.) The gym isn't the only option for exercise; it's just what I prefer.

I like group exercise classes like spin or boxing because it's a solid 45 minutes you're doing cardio and sometimes it's nice to get off the hamster wheel. Moving with other people is a good motivator because you 1) don't wanna be the one to crap out and leave and 2) there's always some bouncy, toned bitch in the front that makes you either work harder because you wanna look like her or you want to get stronger and better than her so you can then assume her role in class. I was the bouncy bitch in front; now I'm the fatty in the back. I tried Zumba, it was fun but I think it might be more fun if I was doing it with a friend or maybe the teacher wasn't the greatest. I've done it a couple of times with different teachers, I'm just not into it. I'm not really into any of the cardio dance classes, weird right? Being a dancer my whole life it's just not my deal. Like I said though, maybe if I was taking it with a buddy it may be more fun. 

Yoga and Pilates. Love. I started doing yoga when I was 16 with one of my besties Kristina. I really liked it but some of the poses and breathing got the best of 2 16 year old girls and as hard as we tried we just giggled too much. I really started loving it when I went by myself. Just feeling like it wasn't the time to think about what I ate that day or who was mad at me at school or who I was trying to impress and what they thought; just time to breathe and re-ground myself. My favorite part of class is the last 15 minutes of savasana (corpse pose) and meditation. Now, I've never been able to completely clear my mind and just meditate. I've tried; I've tried hard. hmmmm...maybe I'm trying too hard. It will come one day; I'll get it. Anyhow, pilates was really easy for me to latch onto coming from a dance background. I'm more into the mat classes but that is mainly because I've never been able to afford the reformer sessions. Once you get the hang of yoga and pilates it's easy to do at home on your own. I did yoga and pilates during both pregnancies, more with #2 because I had more confidence in what my body was capable of during pregnancy. The hours I was in labor with Oliver with no meds my yoga breath helped, doing certain poses helped. If you start doing anything, start with a walk and a beginners yoga class, not dvd, a class. trust me. 

I am currently going to the gym at least 4-5 days a week. Sometimes I roll solo but I usually wait for the husby to come with. The days I, for whatever reason, can't make it I do p90x. That is some intense stuff, good, but intense. I have quite an addictive personality and the soreness and burn you feel after a workout is addicting. Also, hummus, that shit is addicting too, but make your own, it's better. Any how, always trust your body and listen to it, don't ignore signs of fatigue or distress. I've seen people drop dead on treadmills; it's not fun for anyone. Don't be afraid to to do a beginner class in anything, start easy, no need to start advanced and get hurt. Pushing yourself to go farther and get better at something is great but that takes time. Over doing it is completely different, recognize the difference with yourself. And just because you did whatever in high school doesn't mean you can do it the same way 10 years later. Quality vs. Quantity; better quality is more beneficial than doing 1000 crunches wrong. that is when you get hurt. Pace yourself, it's okay!

 

"You are worthy of good health. It's never too late."- say that to yourself in the mirror. 

be well

xoL