Working For It

I tried to keep my promise to join a new gym Friday. Mike and I came home from work, changed, gathered our gym necessities and hopped on our bikes. The beauty of my new gym is that it is less than a mile from our home. I had been planing on this workout all week. It was the first time all week I could make it and it was finally time to start taking better care of my health.

We locked up our bikes, and as we walked in I reached in my backpack for my wallet. No such luck. In my rush to leave, I had forgotten the one thing I needed most. My wallet had not only my debit card and ID but also my last free pass, which Mike was going to use. I was angry, oh so angry. But of course the only person I could be angry with was myself.

As I pedaled back home, I thought about my commitment to get back into shape. I didn't want to let my forgetfulness best me. I also didn't want to turn right back around and pedal back there. I had lost Mike in my failed mission. His only mission now was dinner.

I was frustrated when we got home. The only way I could stop beating myself up was to go for a quick run. I told Mike I'd be back, and I'd be happier when I did. Mike, not wanting to put up with surly Amy all night, agreed to this idea, but tried to make me take a knife as protection. It was already really dark outside and running the Chicago streets alone isn't the best idea. I took my iPod instead.

As I headed out our front door I turned on my iPod, only it wouldn't turn on. I pressed every button on the freaking thing but nothing was making it display my musical options. It was dead. No doubt because I had unknowingly turned it on earlier and let the battery die. At that point, I became even more frustrated. This was yet another obstacle standing in my way of my fitness goals. I hate running without music, but on Friday that's just what I did. And as I ran I thought about how easy it would have been to cop out on working out. I had been given a couple prime example to throw in the towel and chose not to. And as I ran, I felt better because if that's not a sign for my re-commitment to working out then I don't know what is.

After my run, I came home and did some strength training exercises. In total, I biked 1.5 miles, ran .75 miles (it was a little too dark out) and did strength training for about 25 minutes. Not too bad of a start. And in keeping promises to myself, I did join the gym yesterday. I even saved $100 on the initiation fee because they were running a special this month. I'd like to think this monetary reward was my prize for not giving up yesterday.