Let's Get Physical

     

Leg warmers and headbands?

My wife and I wanted to join a gym for the longest time but we kept finding excuses to put it off. Good excuses like “we’re too tired” or “it’s too late to go check it out” or “it’s too expensive”.
The warmer weather gave us incentive to want to do something – anything – after the horrendous winter we just survived. We spent weeks online looking at various web sites to determine which gym would best suit our needs. We factored in location, price, and services. And we still couldn't make a decision.
    

     It's so much easier not to join a gym than it is to make the commitment to join one. We weren't ready to take the final step. I was paying per month to use the “health club” where I work, but the facilities left a lot to be desired. I liked the convenience of being able to work out during my lunch break, but I was willing to change my routine if I could find something better.
One night after dinner, I ran out of excuses.

      “Do you want to take a tour of one of the gym’s we’ve been considering?” my wife asked.
     

     “I’d like to, but I thought we’d have a cup of coffee and watch TMZ,” I answered.
     

     We ended up at the gym taking the tour, a much better choice than spending another sedentary night on the sofa.
     

     Surprisingly, we liked what we saw. We signed up that night for a year’s membership. The monthly fee is less than I was paying to use the substandard facilities where I work. The new place only had one downside: I didn’t see anyone reading books while pedaling on the recumbent bicycles. I noted this fact to my wife who responded, “Who reads books at a gym?”
     

     “I do,” I said, finding myself just outside the norm once again.
    

      Later that night, my son threw a few offhand comments my way after I told him his mother and I were now officially gym members. “Why did you join that place,” he said. “It’s not even a real gym. It’s for people who don’t really want to work out.”
     

     “In that case, it’s perfect for us,” I said, “because we don’t really want to work out either!” I usually don't get the last word in conversations with my son but he had no retort for my remark.
My wife and I are slowly getting used to our new routine. We meet at the gym most nights after work. We exercise separately since we both have different goals. I have more gym experience but I don’t try to impart my workout philosophy on my wife (that much). Exercise is personal and we both learned a long time ago the secret to a happy marriage is not to try to change your spouse. Change has to come from within. We are keeping up with a five-night-a-week schedule, which is more exercise than we’ve ever done in our lives. I’m not looking for a Schwarzenegger body at my age. I just want to be able to bend my knees without tightness and pain. If we stick to the program, it won’t be long before we reap all kinds of healthy rewards from our new active lifestyle.
     

     Our workout routine has been working out for us. We made a positive choice to overcome whatever mental block was preventing us from doing this before. So far, so good, although I don’t want to give any free plugs by mentioning the name of the place until I’m sure it’s not too good to be true. After all, it’s only been a week.