Two years ago for Christmas my newly found husband decided to renew his gym membership, but then also add me on to his account. When he gave me the new card he told me that (1) he didn't want me to get offended by the gift (2) that he wanted us to use it together. I thought it was so sweet, but really was I going to use it....let's be honest....no. However, this was also the year that my husband decided to quit his 20 year smoking habit. So, I thought what the heck I could go. Well, here it is two years later and I am now officially using the pass. Not only using the pass, but all of the benefits that go along with the membership.
One day I was just doing my own thing riding the bike jammin' out to Pink or something like it when an instructor came up to me and asked me if I would like a private session with a trainer for free.....so, really what the heck do you say? No, I like doing the stuff that I am doing now, except I haven't lost anything and I don't feel that I getting any benefit out of what I am doing, but I don't want to get out of my comfort zone so I will not do the trainer thing.....ok, that is what I was thinking, but then I say yes.
The first thing that we did was take my measurements and weighed myself...oh that really sucked. Then we did a workout together and he had me sweating like I have had never sweat than much before. By the time that I was done I was about ready to kill him, but he had beaten be to it, because I had no strength left. Then he had me sit down and go over all the charts on what I looked like and what I could look like in 12 months if I signed up and worked with a trainer. I have to tell you that I was pretty impressed with what I could look like. Then he laid it out there....the price. WOW!!! That was a lot. First he suggested that I see a trainer three times a week for 12 months. That was close to $400 per month on top of the price of the membership. That sucked. I said thanks for the work out, but there is no way that I could possible afford that. I proceeded to get up to go and he said wait let's talk about this some more. So, we talked and I still said no.
That night I went home all excited about what I had done at the gym with the trainer and I proceeded to tell my hubby all about it. He then convinced me that I should go and do it, but only if I was going to commit to doing it and not waste our money. Wow, what a big decision I had on my hands. Was I really going to commit to something and follow through with it?
Well, I did sign up and the next thing that I knew, Dave had gone to the gym and got sucked into the same thing. So, now we are both working with a trainer once a week for 12 months. I do have to tell you that it is such hard work, but I have to give my trainer props for putting up with my comments, complaints, griping, cussing, and of course those dirty looks that I give him (especially when he mentions the kettle bells...oh, I hate those!!!). JT is awesome. Dave has lost 40 pounds since starting to work with the trainer....bastered. I have only lost 8. That is right 8 pounds in approximately six months.
Just to let all of you women out there, do not try and go up against your husbands in a weight loss challenge. You will fail. I didn't really understand this until Dave and I decided to make a bet on who could lose the most weight by our Anniversary. We started to work out with our trainer, changed out eating habits, exercising on our own, and it just melted off him like butter in a hot frying pan...me, I got discouraged. I lost a couple of pounds the first week or so, but then I maintained the weight....lost and then gained a pound every other week. I finally decided that I was not going to weight myself every time I went to the gym and just stick to the plans that the trainer had set out. This worked for a couple of months, but I have to confess that I was not going as much as Dave was going. He really was going the three to four times a week and working out when I was really going one maybe twice a week.
About a month ago I really had a heart to heart with myself about what I really wanted out of life. I also had to own up to some of the stuff that I said I was doing, but confessing to myself that I really was not doing it. One of the things that I said I was doing was going to the gym three times a week...honestly, I wasn't. I was going once a week to meet with my trainer. I was so discourage with my results and blaming my lack of motivation on stupid things like having to watch Harley and not having the time to go to the gym, working late, being involved with other projects that were more important. After having this discussion in my head, I felt that I really had to try and make it all work. So, I decided that I was going to drag Harley to the gym with me and do my exercises that I needed to in order to start seeing results. Harley was all for going to the gym and playing at their playplace for kids. We started to have a routine (I just love routines). Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturday mornings was our time to go to the gym. I loved it, but felt that I wanted to do something different then the machines.
Did you know that the gym offers classes??? I have seen them going on all the time, but always felt that I wouldn't be able to keep up or that I would look foolish doing them. Well, one day I decided that I was going to throw caution to the wind and dive into a class head first. Well, I did it. I took my first ever yoga class a month ago and let me tell you it was an absolute BITCH!! Loved the teacher (too sweet for words), but the after math of doing the class was hell. I hurt for about three days. I was so sore, but my body started to feel much better. So, what did I do next?? I took a pilates class....oh, that was just as bad if not worse than the yoga class.
I have to confess that I thought that the yoga class was going to be easy, but when you are positioned in the downward dog sweating like a stuff pig trying to relax with sweat running in your eyes....it is just not all that fun. The weird thing about it all is.....that I keep going back to these classes....I am now starting to say bring on the pain, I kinda like it.....so, my question now is am I turning into one of those musclebound "meatheads" that I see in the gym every day? Man, I hope not, but I think that these new workouts are my drugs of choice.
I do have to say that it is a great stress reliever. One day I was so pissed off at something, that I told Dave that I was going to the gym. I did a pilates class and even worked out on some of the machines...that was hell and my body is aching, but I am starting to feel just a little bit skinner and what I thought was a big angry situation just really turned out to be nothing....that is what I get for over reacting. Dave has also been noticing some small changes in my body...actually my butt, he says that it is getting smaller, but I feel that it is getting more defined. He diffidently is not complaining....and neither am I when he grabs it and says that I am his for all time.....awwww and this all happened because of a little Christmas gift that I thought I would never use.
