Any day now, She thinks. (She hopes!)
mathnerd314 and I have known for 15 years now that, more often than not, we are living the same life. It rarely comes as a surprise to either of us when we're on similar wavelengths or in similar situations. Sometimes we find this to be true for "big things"; today I find it to be true for something on the smaller side: exercise, math, and motivation.
Most of you know that I haven't been able to get to the gym for quite some time now. For a good portion of that time, I was barely able to walk. After the first ankle sprain, I managed to take care of it well enough to get around pretty well throughout our vacation to Maine. I wore no "cute" shoes and had to practice my RICE every night, but I don't think I held up the trip too much. I was able to pack and clean the entire apartment, though I couldn't lift heavy furniture or carry boxes over long distances during the moving process. After we got into the house, I was feeling just well enough to start cardio classes again. My ankle felt great during class; I re-sprained it immediately following my second class back.
Of course, the second sprain was more serious than the first. Moreover, I didn't actually fall down accomplishing the first sprain, but I unknowingly knocked my tailbone pretty seriously while achieving the second. I was in such shock and was so worried about the severe pain in my ankle after the second sprain that I didn't even realize I'd landed on my tailbone until I noticed grass stains on my shorts *and* underwear. Those first few days I was basically immobile, laying on the couch to keep my foot elevated while taking massive quantities of ibuprofen to keep the pain and swelling down. Undoubtedly, those behaviors had a secondary effect on keeping the tailbone pain in check. It wasn't until a few days later that I realized how much my tailbone hurt.
Last night I realized that I've spent 17% of this year not being able to go to the gym. I'm not happy about this. When I got hurt initially, I'd just gotten into a new, moderated class routine in preparation for being in lab full-time again. I was feeling pretty good about what I was able to do and always felt better after class than I had before. Now I'm out of that routine, hate the way I feel and the way my clothes fit, and am itching to be back to working out. I'm walking that fine line between "I must do something physical of moderate intensity immediately and for long periods of time!" and "How much can I get away with on this foot? I know I don't get a third free pass on serious damage." My patience is wearing thin. I need to do Combat. Plus, everyone just started doing new music, and I'm really looking forward to trying it out.
My gym time gives me more than just an opportunity to burn off a few of the calories that I eat each day. It's also required for soul maintenance. I feel better about myself physically; I'm stronger mentally. I can let out some pent up aggression in my Combat class; I can stretch out and breathe in yoga. Working out minimizes my headaches, though I had to add periodic massages to my regimen in the last few months to provide further control. (As you may imagine, when I couldn't walk more than a few steps, I couldn't get to a massage appointment, either. My absence from working out corresponds identically to my absence from seeing my massage therapist. I'm calling her first thing on Monday morning.)
When I work out I see my closest friend at Mile High, and even though I don't spend any social time with most of the other people I see at the gym, I still know who to expect in what class on what day at what time. We have our "spots" that we stand in. We motivate each other during class and look out for each other when we haven't been in the same class for awhile. I need that, too.
Unlike the MathNerd, I am totally unable to sustain myself with the treadmill/elliptical/cycle combination. I get bored too easily and need someone else doing the same thing to keep me motivated. I believe that if I had a dedicated workout buddy I'd be able to use machines with more regularity, but I would still crave the social aspect of classes once in awhile.
I'm hopeful Sunday will be my lucky day.
Most of you know that I haven't been able to get to the gym for quite some time now. For a good portion of that time, I was barely able to walk. After the first ankle sprain, I managed to take care of it well enough to get around pretty well throughout our vacation to Maine. I wore no "cute" shoes and had to practice my RICE every night, but I don't think I held up the trip too much. I was able to pack and clean the entire apartment, though I couldn't lift heavy furniture or carry boxes over long distances during the moving process. After we got into the house, I was feeling just well enough to start cardio classes again. My ankle felt great during class; I re-sprained it immediately following my second class back.
Of course, the second sprain was more serious than the first. Moreover, I didn't actually fall down accomplishing the first sprain, but I unknowingly knocked my tailbone pretty seriously while achieving the second. I was in such shock and was so worried about the severe pain in my ankle after the second sprain that I didn't even realize I'd landed on my tailbone until I noticed grass stains on my shorts *and* underwear. Those first few days I was basically immobile, laying on the couch to keep my foot elevated while taking massive quantities of ibuprofen to keep the pain and swelling down. Undoubtedly, those behaviors had a secondary effect on keeping the tailbone pain in check. It wasn't until a few days later that I realized how much my tailbone hurt.
Last night I realized that I've spent 17% of this year not being able to go to the gym. I'm not happy about this. When I got hurt initially, I'd just gotten into a new, moderated class routine in preparation for being in lab full-time again. I was feeling pretty good about what I was able to do and always felt better after class than I had before. Now I'm out of that routine, hate the way I feel and the way my clothes fit, and am itching to be back to working out. I'm walking that fine line between "I must do something physical of moderate intensity immediately and for long periods of time!" and "How much can I get away with on this foot? I know I don't get a third free pass on serious damage." My patience is wearing thin. I need to do Combat. Plus, everyone just started doing new music, and I'm really looking forward to trying it out.
My gym time gives me more than just an opportunity to burn off a few of the calories that I eat each day. It's also required for soul maintenance. I feel better about myself physically; I'm stronger mentally. I can let out some pent up aggression in my Combat class; I can stretch out and breathe in yoga. Working out minimizes my headaches, though I had to add periodic massages to my regimen in the last few months to provide further control. (As you may imagine, when I couldn't walk more than a few steps, I couldn't get to a massage appointment, either. My absence from working out corresponds identically to my absence from seeing my massage therapist. I'm calling her first thing on Monday morning.)
When I work out I see my closest friend at Mile High, and even though I don't spend any social time with most of the other people I see at the gym, I still know who to expect in what class on what day at what time. We have our "spots" that we stand in. We motivate each other during class and look out for each other when we haven't been in the same class for awhile. I need that, too.
Unlike the MathNerd, I am totally unable to sustain myself with the treadmill/elliptical/cycle combination. I get bored too easily and need someone else doing the same thing to keep me motivated. I believe that if I had a dedicated workout buddy I'd be able to use machines with more regularity, but I would still crave the social aspect of classes once in awhile.
I'm hopeful Sunday will be my lucky day.