I know I'm probably not the only one, but I really hate going to the gym. It's not because I don't like exercise... which I don't. It's because I don't like feeling like I'm being stared at... I don't like being the biggest person there. I know when I go to the gym, I always scan the equipment and try to find someone who is heavier than me. If there's someone who's heavier than me, I don't feel as self-conscious. Usually though, the gym at my local YMCA is filled with athletic men on weight equipment... or women in short shorts and tank tops running super-fast on the treadmills. Usually when I get to the gym, there's not even much equipment open and I get stuck on a recumbent bike. I do like recumbent bikes, but you don't get a great workout with them. I burn a lot more on a treadmill than I do on a recumbent bike any day. I'm really thinking into canceling my YMCA membership and getting a treadmill. I pay a little more than $20 a month for my gym membership... So about $250 a year. I don't ever go because I don't like being the heaviest person there. I also don't like having to settle for a recumbent bike because all of the elliptical trainers and treadmills are taken.
When I was doing my best at working out, I was going to Curves every day after work and then going to this little gym in town and walking on a treadmill. I would just turn on Pandora and have at it... I wouldn't talk to anyone or watch the TV or anything. I'm really considering just buying a treadmill. I was going to buy one off Craigslist from a girl this summer. She bought hers and then broke her ankle and needed the money. She was going to sell it to me for $200. I found the exact same treadmill brand new at Walmart for less than $300 and it comes with some added extras. I'm considering canceling my YMCA membership and getting the treadmill with my tax return.
I didn't use my last treadmill. I know this. Mainly it was because the wiring in our house was screwed up and the circuit would trip every time I turned the treadmill on... We got this fixed over the summer. Our breaker won't trip all the time now. I also now know that I get a better workout alone with just some music to guide my way... I want to keep my Curves membership and start going after work again. Then as soon as I get home, I'll walk on the treadmill for however long... I honestly think this will work for me. But do I really want to spend $300 at one time for a treadmill... Decisions, decisions...
You know, I used to feel the same way when I ran in public. I used to think people judged me and thought I was this huge girl jiggling down the road.
ReplyDeleteBut then I talked to some runners at a race. They congratulated me on finishing and kept telling me I did great. I put myself down and told them I had a terrible time. But then they told me that it doesn't matter. What mattered was that I showed up and raced. I was there putting forth effort.
And then I thought about when I see people jogging down the road. I see a lot at work. I see skinny girls, fit guys and chubby people. I never look at them in a negative light, they always inspire me. I think, if they are out there doing it, I should be out there.
In fact, I was at my second race and I ran past two skinny girls who were walking. My friend was behind me and heard what the girls said when I passed them. They said "If she is running, we HAVE to run"... and then they passed me.... At first I was a little offended, but then I realized that I inspired them to push themselves further.
If you think the people at the Y are jerks and are making fun of you, don't work out there. But don't let what you think people are thinking dictate whether you work out or not. You're only hurting yourself.
-Abby. (I didn't want to sign in:) )