To Gym or Not To Gym

Happy Monday! We made it thru the weekend.

Friday I went to Level 1 Aerial yoga. Went with my stepdaughter-to-be (SDTB). She really enjoys it too. One of the actresses from Pretty Little Liars does aerial stuffs. We enjoyed the scene from Pitch Perfect 2. And of course, there is the fun and freedom of doing yoga in the hammock.

It was a nice class with familiar faces. I was feeling a little stiff going into class. Stiff and tired. I also got to finally pick up my Christmas presents from the studio. Which reminded me to actually purchase their presents sitting in my etsy cart.

I don’t know that we focused on anything in particular in class. It just felt like a good overall workout. I felt loose by the end of class. My flexibility is suffering due to the running. I need to recover it. I would like to eventually get my splits. I never had them even as a child. Backbends, however, I don’t really have any urge to improve. Anyways, the class reminded my why it’s good to go to other classes than my own. It gives me a chance to relax and enjoy class more. Not to say that teaching low aerial is high stress but you have to be aware of all the students in class and help them with their needs. We talked about running for a minute too, which I never mind talking about.

Not from Friday's class

Saturday, we drove the SDTB to the Madison area in the morning, when I normally do my long run. It felt good to sleep in. It was nice to get up and see the sun already up. At the same time, it did feel strange watching what I ate on Saturday. I think the dog was happy to take a rest even though she is a bundle of energy at this point.

My fiancé has been wanting to start going to the gym. I’ve resisted. I’ve got plenty of body weight and yoga exercises I can do at home and have all the equipment already. Plus, I’ve got running stuff for cold weather. What do I need a gym for? Hold that thought.

The gym he chose is a good gym. Close to the house and lots of equipment including a pool and lots of classes. The staff is all sorts of friendly. They even have a treadmill that is easier on the joints and TRX straps that I can work on aerial conditioning. There is even a nice hot tub, sauna/steam room, and roomy and clean locker rooms.

But still why do should I spend money on a gym when the world itself is my oyster? The answer is this morning. It was -7 degrees and even the roads were shiny with a layer of ice. Because of this, I’m pretty sure I’ll be joining this gym.

While I was there on Saturday, I managed to get in 4.75 miles. Since I wasn’t going to be able to get in my normal 3 hours, I worked on speed. I played around with the pace and incline. I ran my butt off. I tripped a couple of times when I was starting out. It feels weird to run but go nowhere. With such a steady pace, I realized too how much my pace varies. Even though I average 5.2 mph, I definitely go slow in some spots and get a little more speed in others. It was tough to hold a pace. The fiancé checked in on me a couple of times, which made it hard to find my rhythm but I’m glad he did. He knows I can get anxious in new places.

So I’m joining a gym. I’ve got plenty of work I can do in the morning on my rest days. But on days like this morning, I can run safely inside. I wasn’t so worried about the cold, but the sheen on ice on the roads. Sidewalks were nearly a solid sheet of ice. We are also dog sitting a little Jack Russell and I don’t think he is up for runs in the morning. Right now, I’ve got a week pass. I will see about running in the morning and running/walking in the afternoon when I go with the fiancé. When I was using the treadmill, I had to admit that it could be a great tool, especially for me and my need for speed and ice free conditions. Now I’ve got some research to do on how to keep my skin and hair healthy with gym work outs. I might have needed to do it before but now I feel like it’s really important.

Saturday and Sunday, we watched football and I held Karn. The dog is getting disinterested in it as it seems to do very little and doesn’t move very fast. Karn hangs out under my sweatshirt or scarf or even hair where it’s warm and goes to sleep. He also got a new background of Monument Valley which looks rather spiffy.

Here is a shot of Monument Valley that I took this Spring

 

 The dog was also super snuggly. She was cuddled into whoever was on the couch. For a collie mix, she sure can be a couch potato.

That’s it. That’s my report in. Nothing too ground breaking or earth shattering. No epiphanies or wise words. Just staying active and happy.