Preparation H

For the past few months I’ve had the joys of going to the gym during the day where I can wake up at a decent hour (9 or 10am), I don’t need to fight for a machine, space on the track, or bike during spin class. Yes, there are the benefits of a mid-day workout. Although, there are some downsides.

You might think I would say the number of small children. No, they’ve actually helped me work on my quick reflexes – you never know which way they are going to dart.

It’s the number of elderly people. Hey, good for them towards staying active – I hope I have the same amount of energy they do at their age. What bothers me is in the women’s locker room there are more naked women over the age of 65 then all the women combined during high traffic hours. I won’t get into details—because they should never be discussed. I acknowledge these older women had many years of rushing through life and now have the right to take it easy. BUT, I would like to point out, this does NOT mean they need to have a 45 minute casual conversation naked while they do god knows what—since there seems to be no progress in that 45 minutes towards getting ready. The same four words go through my mind everyday: Put some clothes on!

The other thing I’ve noticed is that Preparation H has a very strong and distinctive odor. Either that or my senses are more sensitive while I’m in a high zone hart rate. What I know for sure is at 10:30am if you are on the track you will be punched in the face by the oder every time you go past the aerobic room and when you pass someone.

Quick rundown on what I did since my last positing. Friday: Did my own 1 hour spin class followed by interrupting Kenny’s 1 hour spin class. Then my 40 minute 15 % incline walking (switching every 5 minutes forward or 5 minutes backwards) – you sweat as much as you would during a cardio class. Saturday: Jody skipped class so I skipped working out. Sunday: recovering from the Loon party with a hangover – yeah I know I’m not on the team anymore but racers from other teams crash the party. Monday: Checked out a new spin class at Plymouth—good class so I’ll go again, followed by light elliptical. Tuesday: 20 minute run, spin class that almost killed me, weights.

I recently got the current Runner’s World magazine. A survey was taken (over the course of a year with 17,000 submissions) the Fargo Marathon was ranked #8 for the best overall marathon. The Twin Cities Marathon was ranked #18. I’m feeling pretty good about my choice.