Gyms-can't live with 'em I get fatter without 'em

Gyms can be interesting places.  Full of machines that would have been proudly used by any oppressive regime to torture it's citizens.  The people who go to the gym for their daily dose are an interesting lot as well, you have the skinny soccer moms in one corner trying to hide their cellulite with 'LuLu Lemon Pants' and others who are there looking at the soccer mom's cellulite (this is NOT me).  Others are serious body builders with penis envy and breast issues and the rest of us are there because we need to be not necessarily because we want to be.  All in all gyms are possibly the wierdest places on earth.  Where else could you get as many parts of humanity in one building all running in one direction, away from being 'Fat'.

I was thinking the other day what my grandpa would say if I was able to take him to a gym.  I think he would be confused.  He would wonder why I am running or climbing stairs on a machine when I could have easily just ran around outside, or climbed a couple of flights of stairs.  He might wonder why I don't go back to the farm and sling some bales of hay or carry some water in 5 gallon pails rather than curl these bars with weight attached; which my dad actually told me to do once when I was younger and needed to lose weight and I wanted my own weight bench.  My Grandpa probably would think I am crazy that I pay money to do all these things that he did when he was growing up.  I think it's funny that we now live in a society so bent on developing technology to make life easier, we have to invent other machines to make our lives harder so that we don't all end up laying on a couch dying from 'Laysitis'(for you lay persons out there thats 'fatspeak' for eating yourself to death with Lay's potato chips).
This week I discovered a new machine that I am sure Hitler would have used in 'Aushwitz' called the "Stairmaster".   Now I am not sure what kind of person you are but there are two kinds in this world.  Stairs people, and any-other-friggin-way else kind of people.  I am NOT a stairs person.  This thing hurts me like someone was grabbing my thighs and ripping the flesh from the bone.  I do ten minutes and it takes me a day to take a crap because I am so tight.  Honestly why do I do this to myself? Now whenever I have a craving I just think of the word 'Stairmaster' and it solves the issue.

I think it's funny who goes to the gym, here are a couple of people that go to my gym.

'Guy'
For those of us who grew up playing school sports we all know 'Guy' really well.  He's the guy who used to be the all-star athlete who is now a coach of a football team and thinks he's still buff, but he's really about 50 lbs fatter than he thinks he is and walks around high-fiving everyone.  He's the guy telling the boys "Give me one more rep!", when the last time he did a real rep was the last kegger when he had to carry the keg to the patio.  

'No-Sweat-Sally'
When I got to the gym I want to sweat, I envision that my sweat is actually the fat dripping off of my bones as I become a thinner, more healthier version of me.   It's good for my soul.  Until some chick who hates sweating, dressed in a push-up bra and a pair of shorts so small they wouldn't go around my ankle turns on a high-octane fan that makes my lips kiss my ears and my tongue pick my nose.  All because she is a little too hot.

and my personal fav.

'Cookie Monster'
Cookie monster was a young guy that I saw nearly killing himself with bars of weights that were bigger than he was.  After my workout as I was walking out, I noticed him later with the largest cookie I had ever seen.  I actually laughed out loud, which probably wasn't nice since I was walking pretty close to him, but honestly why bother?


Yep, gyms, funny places, funny people... but I couldn't win without either.

I did really well and I am pretty pumped about this week.  I officially came in yesterday at 390lbs!  Which means that I hit my 'Hopeful' goal for this week and that I am down a total of 35lbs!  Amy also took my measurements as we endeavor to track my journey with stats and pictures (which I will post when I do my before and afters)  and I had lost a total of 18.5 inches.  If you are traveling this journey as well you need to  measure yourself.  Seeing the inches come off just reconfirms that what you are doing is working ESPECIALLY if you are plateaued at a certain weight.  It will give you that extra push.

Thanks for reading, here's to another great week... feel free to leave comments so I know who's reading and if you like what you are seeing!

Take Care
Blake