Weights

I finally got to the gym today to do weights.  I say 'finally' because I looked at the paper where I write down my weights information and apparently I have done weights twice in the past two months.  This was, in part, due to traveling and the fact that it can be hard to find a place to do weights when you are an international jet-setter like me.   Or rather, when you are an international jet-setter who frequently crashes at friends' places because your budget does not match your jet-setting tastes.

The other part is that I tried to do weights last week at my hotel and it completely backfired.  My hotel claimed that it had a complete gym, but I beg to differ.  The website states that there is a 'Universal Weight Machine,' but I'm not quite sure what that means.  There was no machine for working out legs or really any good way of setting up so that you could do that.  Trust me, I tried and was convinced that I was going to give myself some remarkably dumb injury.  They did have free weights, but that was about the extent of it.

Also, the rowing machine was broken, but that's a whole other topic.  I have a love/hate relationship with rowing machines.  My gym here does not have one, so I don't often get to rekindle my love/hate relationship with one and I was looking forward to it the minute I lay eyes on it.  Then I sat down and there was no power.  Boooooooooooooooo.  Big hate, but for once I don't blame the machine.

Anyway, like most runners, I have pretty good leg strength but basically no upper body strength (that, and I have virtually no flexibility whatsoever).  Years and years ago -- like, over 10 years ago -- I spent a summer going pretty regularly to the gym and doing weights, then I got bored out of my mind and quit.  The last time I really did weights was probably early 2007; after that I just switched to running.  Now I am aware that runners should still do weight training, especially since Runner's World makes it a point of reminding their readership of this fact at least once per issue.  I'm also aware that doing weights helps my posture, metabolism, prevents osteoporosis, and God only knows what else.  But I don't know.  I feel like I never kicked that 'It's pretty boring' feeling from all those years ago.

I was better when World Cup was on.  It was simple to get motivated to go to the gym and as an added bonus, keep track of soccer. 

Another training decision that I made recently: more yoga/tai chi.  Being at home all day (which I often am since I work from home) can make a person very listless.  So I am going to try and do yoga or tai chi every day if possible.  However, I know that probably I won't actually accomplish this goal, so I'm going to aim for every day and see what actually winds up happening.  I have a 'PM Tai Chi' workout (there is also an AM, but I am more interested in the PM for now) and yesterday ordered three yoga DVDs from Gaiam.  It was the 'Live Balanced' collection and none of them looks too strenuous.  One is even Qigong, so maybe I will turn into a Jedi!

I'm not really big on the 'Yoga as Cardio' idea myself.  Titles that have 'Power' and 'Yoga' together are just not my deal.  I tried that P90X Yoga and did not care for it, mostly because I was pretty sure I was going to die within the first 1/2 hour.  Or pass out.  Plus I was dog-sitting and the dogs were looking at me funny.  And it was hot.  One of the dogs even licked me while I was trying to hold poses.  No good at all.

Incidentally, Gaiam is having a sale, in case you want to stock up yourself.  Once actual yoga resumes, I will just add the classes to the schedule.

...from reading this blog entry, you can probably see that today was not so exciting.  But it sure did wander all over the place, now didn't it?