Thursday, I joined a new gym.  Friday, I went for my first workout.  I really didn’t know what to expect as I entered the facility.  When I signed up, the manager gave me a quick tour, but I had my son with me, so I was a little distracted.  So, as I entered the gym on Friday, I barely knew where the changing room was.  Eventually, I found it, got a locker-key from the front desk, and changed into my workout clothes.

I hit the treadmill for a 20 minute walk.  It felt good to stretch the old muscles.  I walked for a total of 25 minutes, with a 2 minute warm up and a 3 minute cool down.  And then, things got interesting.

I decided to checkout the aerobics room and see what class was on the schedule.  As luck would have it, the next class was a class for guys and girls called ‘lunch box’.

Nervous - terrified really - I decided to throw caution to the wind and join the class.  I need to mention, for the record, that I have NEVER attended an aerobics class of ANY kind.  Heck, I don’t really like to work out if there are more than 3 people in the BUILDING.  As I stated, I was terrified - but I was also DETERMINED.  Change requires determination!

The class consisted of 45 minutes of weighted arm and leg lifts along with some ‘boxing’ style punches - and a few kicks.  There were two other guys in the class and five women.  I situated myself at the VERY back of the class - and started to work out.

45 minutes later, I was exhausted, still a little embarrassed - and TOTALLY HOOKED.  I cannot explain the euphoria that accompanied the end of the work out.  Don’t get me wrong.  It was gruelling, I felt silly being outworked by everyone else in the class, and I have a LOT of work to do, but, when I finished that final rep and laid down that final weight, I felt amazing.

Two days later, I’m a little sore.  But, I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s class.  I talked to the trainer after the class and he encouraged me to come back.  I’m going to arrive a little early, hit the pool for a few laps. and then go to class.  Hopefully, tomorrow will be just as awesome.

Oh, yeah.  I now throw a pretty mean left hook.

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My wife is an educator.  Tomorrow, she’ll head back to the classroom and our daily schedule will return to normal.  While I’m bummed that she has to go back to work, it’ll be good to have a bit more structure than I had during the summer.

I have decided to join a new gym!  I’m going to go early tomorrow morning and fill out the paperwork.  The gym is administered by a local hospital, so I’ll have to have some blood work done before I can begin to workout.  (This is actually a good thing.  Hopefully, I’ll come back with a clean bill of health!)

I’m trying to decide if I want to hire one of the personal trainers of I just want to go it on my own.  We’ll see.

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I’m thinking about joining a new gym.  My old membership expired a few months ago, and I haven’t felt like renewing it.  But, now that I’m in the mood to workout, I think I’m going to join a new place.  They have an indoor walking track and an indoor pool, for year-round swimming.  I think I’d enjoy swimming a few laps, instead of pounding away on the treadmill.

I called and asked them about the cost of a membership.  Monthly rates start at around $35, with unlimited use of the facilities.

Speaking of exercise, I think I’ll go outside later tonight and go for a walk.

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I hereby commit myself to daily postings here at No. Calories Needed.  For as long as the site has existed, I’ve never really given it - or my weight loss - proper respect.  But, now that school is almost back in session and our family will return to its normal schedule, I can devote more time to getting in shape - and more time to blogging about getting in shape.

I’ve also decided to use my nightly posts to plan my eating / exercise for the next day.  If I write things down, and put them on the blog, then they become ‘more real’.

Here’s my food plan for tomorrow, July 30th -

Breakfast - oatmeal and some strawberries

Snack - a few peanuts and some grapes

Lunch - grilled chicken, small potato, and some strawberries

Snack - peanut butter and an apple

Supper - grilled chicken, green beans, corn, and some grapes

There, that’s my list.  Now, all I have to do is follow my list and I’ll be fine.

Here’s my exercise plan for tomorrow, July 30 -

Morning - I’ll walk for 30 to 45 minutes

Evening - I’ll do crunches and push ups

Man, why didn’t I think about this before!  I’ve been fooling around with this site for a year and a half - and it just now dawned on me to do this.

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There are basically two kinds of thoughts - those that disect the past and those that imagine the future.  I struggle to forget.  So, when I eat the wrong thing or fail to exercise, I get depressed, and when I get depressed, I simply eat more and excercise (even less)!  I’m trying to LEARN how to forget.  Does that make any sense?

Take yesterday, for example.  I ate like I a madman.  Why?  Well, if I were a psychologist - and I’m not - I’d make the obvious connection between my high level of stress (due to the fact that my daughter is in the hospital and I’m trying to care for my other kids) and my lack of time (to prepare proper meals and to exercise).  I’ve been on the road for the better part of three days, back-and-forth to the babysitter’s, doctors’ appointments, and the hospital.  So, I’ve been eating junk.

Well, today I woke up, and instead of thinking - Hey, NCN, here’s your chance to start over, with a clean slate and an empty stomach - I thought - Hey, NCN, you are an idiot, you always overeat, so why not start the day with a big bowl of ice cream?!?

Yes, that’s how my mind works.

But, I resisted the urge to eat everything in the house, and I had a sensible breakfast.  I then spent some time in prayer and I really focused on MY FUTURE.  I need (want!!!) to be healthy - and if I’m ever going to move forward, I have to stop looking in the rear-view mirror!  Sure, I want to learn life’s lessons and I want to remember ‘where I’ve come from’, but I don’t want to get stuck in the past.

So, even though it’s been a week since I hit the treadmill and my emotions tell me that all my hard-work will be for naught, I’m shutting out the negative stuff, and I’m going to go for a nice, brisk walk.  And, I’m going to drink my water.  And, I’m going to have fruit and vegetables and chicken for supper.  And, I’m not going to think about the bag of chips (okay, two bags of chips) that I ate yesterday.

I’m going to become a positive, forward thinking dude…

In fact, I’m not even going to reread this post.  If there are errors, so be it. 

To the treadmill… and beyond!!!

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