Gym Rant...

Just a heads up, this post is kind of ranty and has no photos. #blogfail

This was supposed to be a post about my adventures and gripes with meal planning & prepping. Instead, I want to talk about something I (re)realized:

I think there are three kinds of people at the gym. 
     (1)  People who know how to use the machines*.
     (2)  People who don't know how to use the machines. 
     (3)  People who don't know how to use the machines but are at least with someone who does or are not alone in trying to figure it out.
           *treadmills and ellipticals don't count. 
I am People #2. I desperately want to be People #1 or People #3. 

Monday marked Week 2, Day 1 of my 6-week fitness journey. I was armed and ready with a list of exercises I had to do, complete with a cheat sheet printout of how-to's and photos of certain machines I had never used before. I was actually kind of patting myself on the back because this was my 2nd visit to the gym for the day since I had gotten up early to work out before work. That feel-good feeling went away as soon as I walked into the weight-room side of the gym. 

It's not like I think I'm hot $h!t and that all eyes were on me, but it felt like the first day at a new school... and I was the new kid... who started the semester late...and unknowingly wore mis-matched socks. UGH. 

Here were some of my issues:
--  It was hard for me to adjust the machine to my height/body. It felt like I was pulling knobs and levers at a kids playground because nothing was happening. 
--  Of the two rowing machines, one of them didn't have the triangular handle thing. Are you supposed to bring your own?  really!?! The one that did have a handle was being hogged up by some huuuge guy who was sweating, then texting, then sweating, then texting and texting some more. I think I must have checked for about 30(!) minutes to see if Mr. Texter was tired of rowing. NOPE. 
--  The assisted pull up machine looked ridiculously intimidating.  Step, kneel, grab, pull, WHAT??  I think I would have attempted this except... 

All of these machines were in plain view of all the people in the room who knew and could see that I had no idea what I was doing. Thinking about yesterday, I still feel like an idiot, and I'm kind of dreading to go back. 

After doing what I could on the machines that wouldn't make me feel like a complete loser, I did a few free weights and then I left. I wouldn't say I gave up.. but maybe I did. I was there for a little over an hour and I felt like so little was accomplished. 

I got in the car, called Ric and whined about how I felt so uncomfortable, so out of place, so embarrassed, so DEFEATED. It's so embarrassing to admit this but I teared up a little telling him my non-story. I felt so stupid getting worked up over all of this. And then to top it off.. I couldn't even drown my sorrows in food (lol) because I had already prepared my dinner the night before (fish, avocado, veggies...). boring. 

So what have I learned? I learned that I'm probably going to check out the weight rooms in the morning since there are wayy less people there. I wish I could say that I learned something else (be stronger, who cares what they think, etc), but I think it's too soon for that. 

On another note, if anyone reading this wants to be a People #3 with me, I'm with LA Fitness. Sigh... 

#PureFit

At the beginning of the year, most people like to make resolutions which usually go to crap in a few weeks, months if they're lucky. A few years ago, instead of making a resolution that would be impossible to keep, I decided to make it my "Yes Man" year. Unlike the movie, I wasn't going to say yes to every single thing, but it just meant that it was the year of no excuses. How many times have people asked me to go out and instead of going, I just stayed at home and did nothing? Or didn't go somewhere to avoid an awkward situation? Or didn't do something because of this, or that, or him or her? Whatever. So that was 2009. 

In 2010, I decided that it was the year that I would try to do things I had never done before. It didn't matter if they were big or small.. but just new things. I watched a movie in the theater alone. I learned how to juggle (not well). I learned how to cartwheel (also not well). 

if anyone can teach my how to embed this without it being huge... please do.

I think the years after this, I kind of kept with this theme. I wanted to DO and SEE different and new things. I went to the Virgin Islands. I went to Chicago.. New York. I traveled to New Zealand & Australia.

#nofilter

I flew to San Francisco and New York alone (this was a big one, as I am kind of a scare'dy cat when it comes to flying). I ran a 5k... and then I ran my very first marathon. 

2012 LA Marathon, 04:47:06

It's so corny to say but running that marathon changed my life. I say in my previous posts that before my marathon, I was never-- in any sense of the word-- an athlete. After months of training, I didn't want to stop and lose all my hard work. Suddenly, I was running everywhere. I would even bring my running gear with me if I traveled. When 2013 rolled around, I decided that this year would be my fitness year. 

Sometimes I look at older pictures and wish that I had taken better care of myself at that time. What if 3, 5 or 10 years from now, I think the same thing about present-me? I figure, this may be the best I'll ever look, the best shape i'll ever be in, and maybe the strongest I'll ever be. I decided that this year would be the year I would really focus on my fitness. I ran my 2nd LA Marathon, and my 3rd marathon in June in SF (damn those hills!).  I also sprinkled in 2 half marathons and participated in the SoCal Ragnar series. When the heat of the summer sun rolled around, I decided to give my feet a break. I wanted to try something different. 

This past Monday, August 12th, marks Day 1 of a 6-week program with my #PureFit coach.  So far, I've eaten something I haven't eaten in years (oatmeal -- and i like it!), worked out before going to work (which means waking up at 4:45am), and tried protein powder shakes for the first time.  

All of this is new, strange, somewhat scary and is definitely challenging my taste buds.  The feelings and nervousness I feel about this program remind me of the concerns I felt when I was training for my first marathon.  Stay tuned for updates and maybe progress photos!