So.......... Now I am mad and again disillusioned by the medical field and its lack of support for individuals. So I continue talking to a few people about this frustration and what the next step will be. As I was talking to my wonderful sister in law , REM (aka; Robin) she too was thinking maybe it was time for a gym...........
Well I NEVER thought I would even discuss this as a possibility because as we know those of us who really need gyms rarely go because it seems the fit and beautiful people live there, making it very uncomfortable for those of us who really need to make us of their services. So as REM and I talked we discussed the power of doing it together, support and accountability. We found a women's only workout place, Curves, and thought lets do that.... maybe it will be less intimidating and more suitable for me. So off we went ...........
We went and signed up , went through their process which of course included weighing and measureing..........Fun...NOT. This is never fun but I was pleasantly surprised as when I weighed it seemed that my lifestyle changes, as few as they were, had already made a difference. I actually was able to register a weight on the scale, which meant my cutting out of fastfood and drinking water was paying off. This was encouraging even though the number on the scale was alarming. So we began to go to a few times a week. Now those of you who know me know I am not a morning person at all so you will appreciate the determination I had developed because not only was I going to work out I was going to have to go in the early morning to accommodate REM's busy schedule with work and the three kids. Also at this time I was working my new job which happened to be in Oroville which is 20-30 minutes away and I had to be there by 7am! Ahhhh, this was a late night, anti morning girls nightmare..... BUT I did it. REM and I went when Curves opened first thing..... we did this on a average of 3 times a week, sometimes less sometimes more but we did it. I was feeling good about it as I was working out and not feeling the intimidation & pressure of the "beautiful fit " people normally found at a gym. As I look back this was the perfect transition. There were some machines / equipment that I struggled to use but I did what I could. REM was a great support through this phase. I really do not think I could have done it without her as I don't know I would have ever gone by myself. REM and I did this for several months and after a while she said that her and Ken were talking about doing a family membership at some gym. Hmmm..... So I had to start thinking about my next step.... Was I going to do this on my own or consider a "real" gym? I could hardly believe I was even tossing the idea around, but I was. REM and I had also grown tired of curves as there was certainly limits to what we could do there. So maybe it was time to move on..... So after about 10 or so months we were about to jump ship. REM and Ken found a deal for the family at a gym and were ready to join. I was still unsure...... So I began thinking and asking around about what gym people belonged to and who might want to join up with me and be a workout buddy. I did me research into cost and such and then found a buddy who was considering joining with me.... I had decided I wanted to look into doing aqua aerobics since I was having issues with my knee and lets face it with all this extra weight anything was hard on my body and bound to cause me some issues, like with my knee. So every gym had some sort of aqua program so it came time to just go visit and see what was going to be a good fit for me and my comfort level of going to a gym. So my new workout buddy was Wendy, she and I decided one day to go check out a few gyms......... This was so interesting......... One we went to I could not even bring myself to walk through the door ...... It just looked like a dating service more then a gym. I mean the first thing you saw from the outside was a sitting area the practically looked like a restaurant, where people sat and had their protein smoothies and green tea..... WAY out of my comfort zone. Not too mention I did not see one person, not one who looked even remotely like they "needed" to be there. When I say need to be there understand what I am saying........... Of course everyone regardless of size needs to be active and exercise, what I am saying is there was no one who was even remotely overweight and certainly No one my size. Anyway......... So off to the next one we went. So after a little "shopping" around we landed at what I affectionately call the "ghetto" gym. I call it this because it was dark, dusty and very out dated! It was the cheapest gym and they did have a indoor pool. They also had "average" people walking around.... It did not appear to be a beauty contest or dating service. We saw old , young, big and small people. I felt comfortable going in and even comfortable enough sitting and talking with someone about the membership options. (who am I..... and who would have EVER guess I would be looking for a gym let alone signing up) So Wendy and I joined and began our journey with the "ghetto" gym, 70's rug wall decor and all! (Yes they still had those rugs on the walls that were popular in the 70's! I kid you not!)
Well I NEVER thought I would even discuss this as a possibility because as we know those of us who really need gyms rarely go because it seems the fit and beautiful people live there, making it very uncomfortable for those of us who really need to make us of their services. So as REM and I talked we discussed the power of doing it together, support and accountability. We found a women's only workout place, Curves, and thought lets do that.... maybe it will be less intimidating and more suitable for me. So off we went ...........
We went and signed up , went through their process which of course included weighing and measureing..........Fun...NOT. This is never fun but I was pleasantly surprised as when I weighed it seemed that my lifestyle changes, as few as they were, had already made a difference. I actually was able to register a weight on the scale, which meant my cutting out of fastfood and drinking water was paying off. This was encouraging even though the number on the scale was alarming. So we began to go to a few times a week. Now those of you who know me know I am not a morning person at all so you will appreciate the determination I had developed because not only was I going to work out I was going to have to go in the early morning to accommodate REM's busy schedule with work and the three kids. Also at this time I was working my new job which happened to be in Oroville which is 20-30 minutes away and I had to be there by 7am! Ahhhh, this was a late night, anti morning girls nightmare..... BUT I did it. REM and I went when Curves opened first thing..... we did this on a average of 3 times a week, sometimes less sometimes more but we did it. I was feeling good about it as I was working out and not feeling the intimidation & pressure of the "beautiful fit " people normally found at a gym. As I look back this was the perfect transition. There were some machines / equipment that I struggled to use but I did what I could. REM was a great support through this phase. I really do not think I could have done it without her as I don't know I would have ever gone by myself. REM and I did this for several months and after a while she said that her and Ken were talking about doing a family membership at some gym. Hmmm..... So I had to start thinking about my next step.... Was I going to do this on my own or consider a "real" gym? I could hardly believe I was even tossing the idea around, but I was. REM and I had also grown tired of curves as there was certainly limits to what we could do there. So maybe it was time to move on..... So after about 10 or so months we were about to jump ship. REM and Ken found a deal for the family at a gym and were ready to join. I was still unsure...... So I began thinking and asking around about what gym people belonged to and who might want to join up with me and be a workout buddy. I did me research into cost and such and then found a buddy who was considering joining with me.... I had decided I wanted to look into doing aqua aerobics since I was having issues with my knee and lets face it with all this extra weight anything was hard on my body and bound to cause me some issues, like with my knee. So every gym had some sort of aqua program so it came time to just go visit and see what was going to be a good fit for me and my comfort level of going to a gym. So my new workout buddy was Wendy, she and I decided one day to go check out a few gyms......... This was so interesting......... One we went to I could not even bring myself to walk through the door ...... It just looked like a dating service more then a gym. I mean the first thing you saw from the outside was a sitting area the practically looked like a restaurant, where people sat and had their protein smoothies and green tea..... WAY out of my comfort zone. Not too mention I did not see one person, not one who looked even remotely like they "needed" to be there. When I say need to be there understand what I am saying........... Of course everyone regardless of size needs to be active and exercise, what I am saying is there was no one who was even remotely overweight and certainly No one my size. Anyway......... So off to the next one we went. So after a little "shopping" around we landed at what I affectionately call the "ghetto" gym. I call it this because it was dark, dusty and very out dated! It was the cheapest gym and they did have a indoor pool. They also had "average" people walking around.... It did not appear to be a beauty contest or dating service. We saw old , young, big and small people. I felt comfortable going in and even comfortable enough sitting and talking with someone about the membership options. (who am I..... and who would have EVER guess I would be looking for a gym let alone signing up) So Wendy and I joined and began our journey with the "ghetto" gym, 70's rug wall decor and all! (Yes they still had those rugs on the walls that were popular in the 70's! I kid you not!)
I have never been in a ghetto gym but I am very proud of how brave you are. You go girl!
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