Sunday, April 11, 2010

Day 87 - Workout Loner


I was totally dreading this week's homework assignment, but finally I made it went to the gym today, for pilates. The bruise on my tailbone has made the v-sits and bicycles a bit painful (and hard to maneuver with the extra padding of a towel or mat), so I figured the lower abs needed some serious burning up before our 90 day "reveal," which is THREE DAYS away. I feel super nervous just writing that, the way I did 17 years ago, right before prom. I'd bought a super tight dress (and girdle) and remember doing plies all night long, til my thighs were on fire. The desperate last minute didn't work very well.

Anyway.

While I waited for pilates class to start, I ran on the treadmill next to a friend I hadn't seen since the start of the project. She asked about how things were winding down, and I admitted that I wished I could have accomplished more (a pull-up, for example, 5 sets of 1 minute 45 second planks). Being a capoeira instructor-gymnast-superwoman, she reassured me that these 90 days were only the start of a life-long project. Totally! I'm so geared up for more. There are so many things I want to accomplish now that this amazing foundation has been laid.

So, normally, pilates kills me. 90 days ago I would have left class with a stiff neck and aching lower back. But today I felt much stronger, much more controlled than I ever have. I didn't experience anything particularly negative at Crunch (mean trainer tried to make eye contact but I breezed past him and did some chest dips), though I did realize how much I love working out alone.

The noise of the gym (those treadmills! the whirring! How did I ever tolerate it?), the misogynistic tunes, having to wait for machines, the mean girls, the slimy dudes, the lack of space on the mats where I was itching to do my abs - it all annoyed me. I missed having control over my environment, down to the lighting and temperature (you gotta set the mood, dude!), blasting my playlist, and, most importantly, exercising my god-given right to wear stinky gym clothes three days in a row! Ok, not three days, but you know. Somedays I like to get my Olivia Newton John on, headband and all.


While sweating it out solo is definitely more convenient, I have to say that I do miss the opportunity to gab with my girlies at hot yoga or catch up with old friends (as we kick and attack each other!) at capoeira. Still, Patrick's email about being alone while we feel the burn made a lot of sense to me. Number one, being around people as I exercise can make me too self-conscious to perform my moves effectively. Secondly, the distractions (even friendly, soothing ones) really do divert attention away from what we're trying to accomplish with and for our bodies...

It's funny how "alone" so many of us have felt during this project, even while having access to an amazing community to share stories with everyday.

On that note, I'm using the power of the blog to send my group a huge, sweaty, muskley virtual hug! Can you feel it?


3 comments:

  1. Thanks Shivani, that was the warm, defined and slippery hug I needed!

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  2. Poca, if you're butt is as muscular as these guys, we might need to talk about laying off the steroids.

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  3. Yay for group hug. Although I found that photo a bit ... squicky!

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