Gentle Gym

I had hip surgery 3 1/2 year ago. When my 6 weeks of PT was almost over, I commented that I should probably join a gym as I had become addicted to the machines. An aide said, “We have a follow-up gym program for $49 a month.” And that was that. I never looked at another gym. 

There are several things I really like about this program. First, I am with my physical therapists so that if I have a question about my hip or an exercise, I can ask and they have a professional, health-wise answer. Secondly, I like being in a gym where the people around me are all about health. We are old and young, athletic and way over weight, male and female. We are all there to heal. I really didn’t want to be around a lot of hard-body folk doing their best to firm up, tone up, and be the best. It is good for people to do that. Bodies need exercise. And I needed a more gentle atmosphere. 

When in San Francisco, I went to the gym in the hotel in the mornings. The first morning there were three of us there. The second morning the place was packed and the first thing I noticed was all the frowns with the creases in the brow. Every body was about serious body business. iPods plugged in, towels around shoulders, jogging or running for all they were worth. They were Serious! 

Where was the spirit part of exercise being about body, mind and spirit? Some were watching the news on the individual televisions at the front of the high tech treadmills. Wow - watching the news really helps those muscles relax and have a productive workout. Occasionally I read a book. Mostly I visit with a friend I have made in the program. And of course I also just walk or ride, stretch and lift looking out the window at the pines ~ and breathe. I am serious about my mornings in the gym. They are important to me. They have gone from hip health to full body health as my cholesterol has clicked into place, my BP lowered, and my weight has dropped. But I am only serious, not brow-furrowed Serious. I like my gentle gym. It works for me.