Back in the gym

A warning regarding this post: it rambles on and on in an unusually unintelligible fashion. Reading it in its entirety may cause brain cramping.

January at the gym is hilarious. The Resolution Crowd is there in full force, and while I do certainly cheer them on and hope that they stick with their plan for a healthier lifestyle, it is priceless to watch the crowd dwindle over the next few weeks. I confess that my catty little self occasionally chuckles when people attempt to use the equipment in a manner that requires as little effort as possible. Usually they're lifting only a couple of pounds or using the cardio machines as slowly as they can. I know I shouldn't laugh, but it is rather funny. There is no benefit in working out that way - it doesn't stress the muscles or the heart, it will hardly enable weight loss much less toning and defining one's physique. They're the less like explorers and more like annoying tourists.

I know I shouldn't laugh at the tourists. Usually I just want them to get off the machines so I can carry on with my own workout as efficiently as possible. Sometimes, though, you come across one who is really interested and really wants to put in the effort. I met one like that the other day; she was interested in the weight machine I was using, and wanted to learn how to use it. Spending some time to show her how to use it, and describing how to figure out how much effort she needed to put in to get the benefits of the exercise was actually really fun. I like chatting with the other people in the gym, newbies and old hats alike. The resultant conversations and exchange-of-tips can be quite interesting.

Generally, I don't use gyms. I don't like paying access fees and commuting to my workout when I can go through great strength routines on my own at home. Plus, I generally feel that freeweight and body resistance exercises are more beneficial overall, as they make use of all the stabilizing muscles as well as the primary powerhorse muscles. When I was in my first couple of years of university, however, I went to the campus gym several times a week. Membership to the gym was automatically paid through student union fees, so I figured I may as well use it. It was enjoyable, too.

Now that I work for that same university, I again get unlimited access to the campus gym. While I now mostly enroll in group classes (part of my staff benefit plan includes funds to pay for on-campus fitness classes), I've been getting a little tired of my regular at-home strength routines. Being on campus and having complimentary access to the gym has removed my two primary objections to using gyms. Hence, I've started going again. Maybe that makes me a bit of a tourist, but so be it. Some of the old hats are undoubtedly watching me work and giggling themselves.

At any rate, this academic term (I always think of the year in four-month academic cycles, a byproduct of being entirely too obsessed with advanced education) sees me engaging in a toning and flexibility group class, a step aerobic class, and weekly or bi-weekly lunchtime gym workouts. Ideally, using my lunch hours for my strengthening and conditioning workouts will leave more time at home in the evening for personal dance practice. That isn't to say that I won't do at-home strength training as well, just that I might be able to make more of my spare time by trying this type of routine.

If that sounds like a new year's resolution, it isn't meant to be! It's just that this was a convenient time to re-jig my dance and fitness schedules, what with the new school term and all.






If you read to the end of this ramble, congratulations. I have had entirely too much caffeine tonight to write coherent blog posts!