Shaping up

As I mentioned, I joined a gym last month. It’s a nationwide affair, but for me the primary considerations were: there’s one close to me (there are actually three quite close to me), & it’s cheap. They have the cardio machines I like (well, “like” may be too strong a term; let’s say “can willfully use day after day)—the StepMill & the Treadmill, & there are approximately 648 weight machines as well.

(I find it interesting that they only have five upright & five reclining stationary bicycles; but since there’s a dedicated spinning room, perhaps they think that’s how you’ll get in your cycles, so to speak.)

So I overlook the fact that they’re pretty spare with the amenities (there’s not so much as a box of tissues anywhere; & their single-ply toilet paper gives new meaning to the term “insubstantial”), or that the women’s locker room can only be described as groady. I don’t know when/how often it’s cleaned, but from what I’ve seen, the answer to both is seldom. I just do my workout & go home to shower.

On Monday one of their personal trainers called me to “welcome” me to the gym & offer a “free introductory” session. That, of course, was basically a sales pitch for signing up for a package of training. The questions she asked about my goals and current condition didn’t impress me. And while I do understand the value of having a training partner who’ll hold you accountable and push you out of complacency while at the same time not letting you do anything completely crack-brained, I’m not ready to fork over $1500 for the privilege at the moment.

Especially to someone who’s still on the sunny side of 35 and starts her work day at 0930. At my gym in Seattle (which did, BTW, have clean locker rooms, much nicer towels & actual soap, shampoo & conditioner in the showers), I had to push back on that—I told their sales guy that if I were going to have a trainer, she’d better be over 50 and have had enough experience of joint pain so what I was telling her wasn’t theoretical. The first one they signed me up with was named Brittany & had just graduated two months before from ND State (or maybe it was SD State). That didn’t work.

But Penelope, my second match, was perfect. She saw me through a rigorous program that seriously got me into shape. She also worked from 0500 to 1400; I was her first appointment three days a week. So if I were looking for a trainer, it would be in the Penelope class.

& from the photos on this gym’s wall, they don’t have anyone, male or female, on the dark side of 40, so it’s unlikely that I’ll find an appropriate trainer there.

So I’ll just have to keep pushing myself, for myself, & dredge out the charts Penelope worked up for me.