Driving To Heaven

I stumbled upon an article awhile ago that covered the basics of how to select a gym that fits your personal goals, style, and the type of workout that you prefer to do.  I didn’t think much of it at the time I read it but now, with the semester drawing to a close in just a few short weeks, this left me wondering if it was time for me to find a new iron watering-hole.  Since I won’t be spending as much time on campus I felt that I needed to relocate my fitness outlet a little more conveniently.  You know – settle in for a summer filled with a lot of really good workouts.

Now, I have been in the ownership of a gym membership, to one of those shiny 24-hour chain gyms, nearly since I started lifting.  Having an actual gym membership made me feel “serious” about what I was doing even though I didn’t spend a lot of time there.  Mostly I consider my chain gym a backup option and only use it when the University is closed down over break or holiday.  I wouldn’t consider it a waste that I have paid a monthly fee to use a gym that I very seldom visit, however.  It has allowed me to stay consistent on my journey where many of my friends have missed several weeks of training.  It was worth it to me.

But now I’m looking at the summer months approaching and I’m thinking, “I won’t be around campus much and I just cannot see myself spending the entire summer at my other gym, climate-controlled-elliptical-land, either.”  It was time for a road trip, local trolling, to case out what few options there were available where I live in hopes of finding a new gym.

It was a beautiful afternoon for trolling.  It really was.

You know those perfect afternoons where you feel completely free?  Brimming with curiosity and tempted to walk into every corner bakery and rustic pizza shop you happen upon?  It’s a fortuitous thing that I care so much about my diet or I would be getting around in a whale net by now, to be honest with myself…  But I had one of those afternoons.  The sunshine was bright, the windows were rolled down, my toes rejoiced in flip-flops, my face struggled under a pair of sunglasses too fabulous for their own good…

I was high trollin’ .

I knew exactly what I was looking for in my new gym but I was not holding my breath on finding it.  Especially after I passed over a couple of closet’s with mustard-colored walls and shared changing rooms.  Finally I ran across a very fair looking building, with a proud sign out front that proclaimed “Fitness Center”, and I pulled over.  What?  Ho!  Another pizza bistro!  I averted my gaze and crossed the street.  I pressed myself against the window and shielded the afternoon sunlight that obscured my gaze through the glass pane.  It was big in there.  It was also on a higher level than the street so I couldn’t see that much.  The door was locked, of course, and there appeared to be nobody inside to give me a tour.  I was a little disappointed but took the number down that was on the window and planned to call for some information later.

There was also a small nutrition store down the street that had escaped my initial notice and I decided that this, too, deserved further inspection.  I looked around there, purchased a healthy chilled peach tea, and spoke for quite some time with the shop keep.  I said something about how I would really like to find a way into the gym down the street and, just then, a spunky little Pontiac pulled up to the curb outside.  The girl behind the counter said, ”Get with them.”

Peach tea in hand I galavanted out into the street.  Spunky car, spunky boys.  Far too young for me.  Whatever.

“Hey there!  Are you guys going into the gym?  I’m looking for a new one – like to get a tour around if I could…”

Success!  I sauntered in through a door held wide open.  What?  Ho!  Not pizza, but complimentary towels.  Good sign.

Up the ramp to the main floor and the gym seemed to spread out before me.  It was system overload for my eyes and I wasn’t sure where to look first, so many details screamed to be noticed, and then there was the general ambience to consider.  The place was big all right.  It was like taking a step back in time thirty years, too.  I was looking around for Arnold a little.  I didn’t want to over stay my welcome so I made a quick tour by sashaying around the perimeter and stepping up to a few machines I had never seen before.  Here are some words that described this fantastic place:

Low-light.  Spacious.  Older equipment, but pristine.  Super clean.  Super quiet.  Well laid out.  My favorite station playing on the radio.

It was one of those gyms that gives you the urge to jump in the squat-rack, hang weights all over yourself, and make your fat cry for mercy.  It was just perfect!  It had everything I could have asked for in a gym.  The gym I learned to workout in was small, dingy, very dirty, stuffy, and full of athletes.  So I got fairly used to getting down and dirty during my workout.  The chain gym had a good array of equipment which was something I liked about it.  This new gym had it all, though.

I like to walk in and throw my bag in a corner, spend a few minutes stretching, and head for something heavy.  My main priority was finding a gym that was down with me dripping sweat on the floor, making some noise, and not look out of place if I wasn’t wearing a matching track-suit while I watched Real Housewives of Somewhere on the treadmill.  Not that watching Real Housewives is a bad thing (I like Food Network myself!)  but my style can tip on the side of business-like as I move around the floor.  To find a gym with like-minded goer’s was paramount to my personal comfort and sense of belonging in my workout ‘zone’.

When you are searching for your gym, your fitness home away from home, be specific enough in what you are searching for that you can write down a list of “must haves” using just a word or two to describe them.  That will help you become clearer in what it is you are truly searching for and it will help you recognize them when you walk through the door to the right place.  It’s out there and when you find it you will feel inspired, motivated, and excited to break everything in.

Happy searching!  I hope you find your perfect soul-gym.  I think I found mine.

Until next time  –  Cs.