| Wednesday, April 05, 2006 |
| A Day in the Life of a Gym Whore |
5:45am -
I awaken to the ding-dongs of my cell phone alarm, which is somehow a lot less offensive than every other alarm clock I've ever heard. I roll over and find my favorite slippers - I've got two pair that have arch supports built in that I found in Walmart, so the early morning rips and tears that accompany plantar faciitis do not plague me. Off to the restroom (ever wondered why it's been given this name when oftentimes there is quite a bit of wrestling going on to get our business done???). There I multi-task and either write down last night's dream, or open my bible for my daily devotional ("quiet time" - food for the spirit). I'm an avid believer in the notion that God speaks to people in dreams, having had experiences in the past where I was "prepared" for things to come, things were confirmed, and some dreams actually played themselves out in real life. My typical quiet time includes prayer, where I usually find myself offering up repentance for the notion of the whole "fitness thing" being a false idol in my life.
7am to 10:45am
Off to work! I arrive around seven and properly prepare my breakfast which is some assemblance of meat, egg beaters, a crumpet and piece of fruit, or a yogurt parfait. On an "off day" I'll have a South Beach Diet breakfast burrito (watch that sodium!). My day is basically spent dealing with the ins and outs of office management, customer service, and employee relations for the largest residential window cleaning business in the southeast U.S. In-between all this I'm checking out the lives of fellow bloggers, getting the latest diet and fitness info online, and looking to see what information or resources I can plug into my own life to make this journey a succes.
11am to 12:15pm
I'm usually excited about getting to the gym at lunch time, the gym whore I am, so I can burn up some calories. If I can get there early enough to get the elliptical machine I like, I use the cross-training setting which toggles through inclines that focus in on your glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves at different intervals. I work at a moderate resistance setting and am usually able to burn about 300-400 calories in 20-30 minutes. If psycho-Suzie and her friend have beat me to it, I concede and use one of the older ellipticals or walk on the treadmill at a high incline. These are just as productive, but quite boring and usually have more of an impact on my knees. The close-captioning of ESPN, CNN or The View can be quite fun as whoever the person or machine is that's responsible for dictation flubbs a lot. So you're reading about about Ricky Williams' (NFL receiver) marriage wanna problem and latest bout with rehab. Even more fun is trying to make out the dialogue of the divas on The View when they're squabbling. I've always got time to scan the entire upper level hot bods and the latest progress of my locker room buddies.
Sweaty, tired, and feeling like I stuck the American flag on the moon, I proceed back to work to have my actual lunch. LOL :) My employer is quite gracious in allowing me to eat breakfast and lunch at my desk, don't you think? I usually eat rotisserie chicken breast and salad, or some sort of frozen entree. I'll occasionally eat a Nutrisystem entree. Depending on my gym attire of the day, I may or may not freshen up and get back into my work clothes (the luxury of being in an office where I don't see the public). Wearing my gym clothes for the rest of the day serves as a reminder that I'm winning the calorie-in/calorie-out war...and to not snack my way into a longer evening workout. It's also at this time that I try to have downed 32oz of water.
1pm to 5pm
A repeat of the morning and closing preparation to get all the crews up and running in the morning. Sometime 2:30 or after I'll have a pm snack. My favorite is a power crunch protein bar, or a container of "muscle milk." Least desirable is more yogurt and fruit or cottage cheese. I try to consume that second 32oz jug of water as well.
6pm to 8:30pm
Back in the gym for another round of cardio and some strength training. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays I work with weights, either in a class or on my own. It's so funny thinking about the whole club dynamic, and how you can be intimately acquainted with other people's fitness regimes but not know them personally. I'm a gym stalker! I watch, sometimes painfully, what others are doing and take all the good stuff and lessons learned, research them and incorporate them into my own gym life. Needless to say, I do not do all the grunting, peacock strutting, wear spandex two sizes too small, flaunt a sports bra ala Brandi Chastain as even some chubby chicks do...no such thing. No bandannas, no sweatbands - nothing. I make nice with all the trainers and gather as much free advice as possible, in suitable gym whore fashion. If it's Wednesday night I get a double dose of my favorites...a strength class followed by two hours of volleyball open play. Sigh.
Isn't it funny how there's the same sort of dynamic on the gym floor as there was in your high school lunch room? There's the popular clic, the geeks, the rejects, dropouts and druggies, the gym bunnies and their male counterparts (I refer to them as peacocks), the jocks, and all the wannabes who have no idea what the heck they're doing. There are the spinners, the runners, the pumpers, the boxers, the racquet ballers, the ballers (basketball), swimmers and wet bar whores (they don't actually work out, but come in and frequent the wet area - sauna, whirlpool and steam room), dancers, steppers, the crunchy-granola folks (pilates and yoga vets) and aerobic whores. Very similar to high school, at different points in time I envy certain groups for what they're able to accomplish with their bodies.
The culmination of the day is summed up best by a trip to the sauna, followed by the whirlpool. It's when sitting in the sauna that I reflect on why I subject my body to the rigors of working out multiple times a day, the progress I've made, and how much my life is changing. I flex muscles to remind me that this investment is paying off. I take part in the sauna community conversations - typically current events, and then when done I shower, dress and saunter my way out the door.
9:30pm
It's dinner time, and I eat it in front of the teli. I don't want to hear anything about eating and t.v. viewing...I've just spent the day offering my body as a living sacrifice and it's earned me some veg time. I'm usually gulping down a Nutrisystem entree, salad and steamed broccoli/squash meddly (yum). I eat my dessert shortly afterwards.
10-10:30pm
After having food for the body, I usually pick up a fitness magazine or my latest book interest and peruse it before going to bed (food for the soul). By this time the teli is now watching me, and I'm snoring shortly afterward. My daughter usually comes by for a good night peck (my 20 year old and I still hug and kiss each other good night) and turns it off for me. I usually whisper a prayer of thanksgiving to the Great One above, and I'm off to la-la land.
On Saturdays it's a 10am strength class and then a movie or errands when I can. I work in the church nursery for two services and then enjoy the night. On Sundays, in true Christian tradition...I have a day of rest (from the gym...lol). I attend service and lead a homegroup bible study twice per month.
When people ask me how I am and what I'm up to, I always say: work...gym...home...work...gym...church. It's pretty predictable. My former aqua aerobics instructor asked me what I did for fun, in which I replied...come here! She looked a little perplexed. On many days the gym is my "fun" time because I actually enjoy some of the workouts, but even moreso I enjoy doing something for me. I will not fail to mention the fact that she's probably 105lbs soaking wet and can't understand me at a sweltering 250 being of single-focus to get myself in better health.
Anywho, such is a day in the life of a confessed gym whore. |
posted by heavenlydm @ 8:26 AM   |
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| 5 Comments: |
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I LOVE your description of the gym. Totally dead on accurate! I don't work out twice most days, but I do understand going to the gym for you. I enjoy my time there most days. I need to get back to using the sauna and hot tub to reward myself after a workout. That really does make the time there more enjoyable.
I loved seeing your day at a glance. You are a busy, busy, lady. I find that the busier I stay, the happier I am. Atta girl at getting your life and body in order. You seem to be very well-rounded.
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I've been wondering what you gals have been up to!
Jen: I never liked ding-dongs, ho-ho's or anything up that line. Hated twinkies! My favorite was chocolate or golden cup cakes with the creamy middles, or a crumb cake. We only really had the crumb cakes around the house on a regular basis - the root of my problems...LOL
Em: If I didn't go in the sauna or whirlpool, I'd pay the next morning and much like the Tinman my body would cry out..."oil, oil." Anywho, I definitely get in less trouble with my time occupied.
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awesome job with the workouts! wow! that's dedication right there!!
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Ok, now I feel really bad when I said I worked out only one day... Twice a day would kill me, at least that's what I keep telling myself (LOL)!! You really are a "Gym (a word I can't call a woman)".
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As always, you are an inspiration!
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I LOVE your description of the gym. Totally dead on accurate! I don't work out twice most days, but I do understand going to the gym for you. I enjoy my time there most days. I need to get back to using the sauna and hot tub to reward myself after a workout. That really does make the time there more enjoyable.
I loved seeing your day at a glance. You are a busy, busy, lady. I find that the busier I stay, the happier I am. Atta girl at getting your life and body in order. You seem to be very well-rounded.