Getting & Staying in shape.

So I went to the gym today…an actual gym and I actually worked out. Now don’t get me wrong, I work out at home a little and I do the walking but it had been a few years since I was in an actual gym (with the exception of one visit about a year ago).

I hate gyms. I really do. Gyms have this smell of plastic and rubber that gives me a headache after a while. Of course you look like crap I mean, who does their makeup and hair to go workout? And then there is the sweaty, wearing clothes I don’t’ care about factor. It’s not a sexy time for me. And then I feel like everyone is watching my pathetic self struggle to lift 20 pounds on a weight machine. It’s just not fun.

I’ve lost 35 pounds over the past year and many people ask me how I did it. Well, the biggest thing was increased water consumption. Drink water with everything and get filled up faster. Not to mention hydrating the body is always a good thing. Second, I went from sitting my ass at a desk job for 40 hours a week to walking if not running around the university campus (plus I walk evenings). And third, I read labels on EVERYTHING! For example, if canned spinach has 80 calories per serving and frozen spinach has 40 calories per serving…well it’s not rocket science which one I am going to buy. This type of awareness helps me make better dietary choices.

Blah, blah, blah…but really, people ask all the time. Now, back to my story…I lost 35 pounds without doing anything overly drastic but I’ve been stagnant since then. I know that what is left is more-so an issue of toning up. I’d like to lose 5-10 more pounds but nothing more than that because I like curves and the stick-girl thing really isn’t for me. But toning up meant some more serious exercise. Blah. Even free access and use of the university gym which was abundant with hot young men, didn’t quite motivate me enough.

So I tricked myself. I signed up for a fitness class which is really nothing more than 40 minutes of obligatory working out in the gym. Now I have to go. See, I’d slack off otherwise but now it’s a “class” with an attendance policy. My first day was today.

Um…so it’s been a while. I spent 10 minutes on a bike after stretching out and doing some yoga to warm up. Then I circled the weight machines looking for old familiar friends. I found three. Each one left me thinking, “No, that couldn’t have been the one I liked”. But really, they all were. I am just that shot and out of shape. I couldn’t manage any more than 10 reps at 20 pounds on any of them. Sad. Yes, I know.

But here’s the real point of my story…

I liked the first job I had, I like my present job. Everything in between has pretty much sucked ass royally. So, when I’d be out shopping I’d utilize this little exercise to keep my spending in check. If I was (for example) earning $10 per hour and a shirt cost $20, I would ask myself, “Is this shirt worth 2 hours at my job?” Nine times out of ten I would put the item back.

So I was on the bike today which is the less of all the cardio-evils. Upon finishing the ten minutes the machine tells you how “far” you’ve traveled and how many calories you have burned. In ten minutes I traveled 4.6 miles and burned 60 calories. So let’s do the math. A McDonald’s double cheeseburger has 440 calories. Now I hardly ever eat fast food but when I do, that is my most likely poison. That’s equivalent to approximately 73 minutes of cardio. Is that double cheeseburger worth over an hour of cardio at the gym? I think not. So I’m going to apply this knowledge to eating as I once applied my hourly wage at shitty jobs to shopping. That’s the plan.

So today is Wednesday, January 16^th 2008.

Let’s see what I can accomplish by summer.