I have a love/hate relationship with exercise. I'm either at it every chance I get or I do nothing at all. I love the buzz I get when I work out. Running is my jam and is probably the exercise I enjoy the most. I love the solitude of pounding the pavements on my own with only my iPhone and my favourite songs for company. 7am is fast becoming my favourite time to head out. At this time of year the light is eerily beautiful and there aren't too many cars out or people on the street.
I love the buzz I get when I finish a long run. It's that buzz that keeps bringing me back to exercise. And it's that buzz that drew me to A G Fitness Training in Glasgow. When Andy got in touch asking if I fancied trying out their gym I was very tempted. I hadn't done any exercise in months and despite a heap of stress earlier in the year causing my weight to drop to under 8 stone, a fortnight in Cyprus & a jaw that hadn't stopped moving since I returned meant that I had steadily crept back up to just over 9. Not huge but a little on the uncomfortable side for my rather petite 5,3" frame.
But more than that, I just missed it. I would drive past my old running route and immediately get this desire to get my butt back on the pavements and knock out a few miles. One of my old running songs would come on the radio and that pang of nostalgia would appear. I missed the buzz. I missed the rush. I missed the sweat.
I decided to take up Andy's offer and combine my re-discovered passion for running with some of his weekly classes at the gym. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little daunted at the prospect. From what I had seen Andy's gym was all very much weights focussed and boot campy. For a very girly and cardio obsessed girl like myself I was worried it would be scary. What I got was a pleasant surprise. It's an unintimidating and friendly environment and the laid back and fun atmosphere of the place was probably the nicest I have ever encountered in a gym. No scary looking meat heads hogging the weights and throwing threatening looks around or size zero girls with perfect make up pretending to work out whilst just checking themselves out in the mirror and texting their latest conquest. Just a bunch of nice people trying to keep themselves fit while still having a laugh. And the scary gym equipment I had worried would make it more like a Tough Mudder challenge ended up being kinda fun...
I genuinely loved this gym and the only reason I didn't stick with it was the distance from my flat. Trying to juggle work, blogging, Ava, etc while travelling to the other city of the city for a work out got a bit much. However I would highly recommend these guys and have been doing so regularly. Thanks to them I decided to join the gym next door to me and have been attending their classes regularly. After weeks of what can only be described as torture, I'm even a Spin convert. I may even go as far as to say it's my favourite class. Don't worry, I hate myself enough for the both of us...
Attempts to 'get fit' in the past have never lasted longer than about 6 months. And they were always for superficial reasons. I once ran like a demon for three months between visits to LA because I pathetically knew what sort of 'ideal' I would be forced to fit into when I got there. And also because there was someone over there who was enthusiastically waiting to see me naked. I threw myself into running, personal training and gym sessions for a good part of last year. This time because I'd got to that stage in a relationship where cosy dinners in, take away pizzas in bed & meals on the town had left my jeans feeling a little too tight. But again I wasn't really doing it for me. I was doing it because there was someone else who quite liked to see me naked.
This time? This time I'm doing this shit for myself.
This time it's not about vanity. For the first time in my life I'm exercising for my health & well being. I'm discovering how medicinal regular exercise is. It's keeping my head straight, my heart happy and my mind worry free. Ironically I'm starting to see results on the outside that I have never experienced before. My legs feel more toned, my butt tighter & my tummy harder to the touch. Maybe it's because I'm doing classes for the first time. Maybe it's because I'm watching my diet more than I used to and not 'rewarding' myself as much. Truthfully? I don't really care. Because I'm exercising to be happy.
And thankfully I seem to be hitting the ground running.
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