avocado8

Work Out!

I'm sure I've probably mentioned this before in passing, but in case I haven't: I'm going to a gym these days. I "won" a six-month membership at the Beaner's school auction ("won" being in quotes because what I won was the auction for the membership, not the membership itself—meaning that it still cost me a decent amount) a couple months ago, and upon returning from our Spring Break trip to Disney World, I started the clock on it.

I think my first day at the gym was April 14, and I've been going almost every weekday since then. At the same time, I've been keeping track of what I eat every day at The Daily Plate. Although I've only lost about 3 or 4 pounds so far, I'm starting to feel (and see!) results. I'm finding myself *wanting* to get up early and go to the gym every day, and I find I miss it on weekends. (This past weekend, when we were in Lancaster, I actually used the hotel gym both days. Usually I pack some workout gear and then never use it.)

Part of the attraction is, of course, the time it affords me to read. I listen to an audiobook on my iPhone—currently Mansfield Park, which is one of the Jane Austen novels I never got around to reading on paper—on the walk there & back, and then I read a physical book—currently Feeding the Monster—while working out on the elliptical trainer. The fact that I'm now up to 40 minutes total (35 program + 5 cooldown) is both a testament to the absorbing qualities of my recent reading material and to my improving fitness levels.

Every other day I spend another 10 or 15 minutes doing upper-body weights after I'm done on the elliptical trainer. I'm starting to see biceps, and my massage therapist definitely noticed the difference in my upper back and shoulders. I'm mainly doing the upper body training to complement the workout my lower half gets at hockey for half the year, and also in hopes that it'll make me stronger on the ice. (I'd like to have a more powerful shot.) I imagine it'll also help me lift the Beaner, who's now about 43 lbs. (Actually, now that I think of it, both the aerobic workouts and the weight lifting are already helping; I was able to carry him more than 1/2 the way to the PATCO station at 16th and Locust last Sunday without my arms burning like they used to.)

Lately I've found myself waking up at 6:50 or so in anticipation of my alarm going off at 7:05, even when I've gone to bed past 11pm. Last night I realized that there's really nothing stopping me from leaving for the gym earlier than I currently do except for a desire to sleep, so I pushed my alarm back to 6:55... and found myself awake at 6:40. This is EXCITING. Sleep is good, and I'm more than happy to get at least 7 hours of it, if not 8 or 9, when possible. But I'm pretty thrilled not to be feeling tired and mopey during the day despite barely getting 7 hours. The workouts seem to be putting pep in my step.

Having so much time to myself in the morning is, of course, a bonus as well. Although my errand options have become much more constricted than when I was roaming all over town on morning walks, I do have daily access to Whole Foods, I still get some mind-wandering time on the walk to the gym & back, and with my back deck garden I get as much Zen-like relaxation as I could wish for before starting work. It's heaven. I'm already starting to worry about what I'll do when the membership is up in October. Can I go back to morning walk + twice a week hockey and be happy? Or will I be a gym addict by then?