G: Gym

The other day, a friend of mine replied to a photo I’d sent to her on Whatsapp. 

“You have lost even more weight. Is it the top, the mirror or a new diet?”

To which I replied, “Running-behind-A diet.”

And then I added, “Also been gymming.”

And then she replied, “I thought you were anti-gymming.”

That’s when it struck me. Yes, until as recently as last year, I would have said that I find gyms boring and I’d rather work up a sweat through some intense yoga, or a good run. And in a gym, the most boring thing you can possibly do is cycle on that thing that goes nowhere. But now, I quite happily cycle for 10 minutes. 

So am I a convert now?

Well, like I was bragging to S yesterday, I’ve worked-out 6 of the last 7 days, of which 5 were gym sessions and one was a run.  So yes, you could say I am a convert now. (The 6/7 streak is also cos I know I won’t get any workout in for the next three days. And I have a three-week long trip to Bangalore coming up. Which as we all know, is another way to say I’ll be stuffing my face with mom’s cooking and wedding food and not getting any exercise in. So I’m trying to overcompensate.)

When did I become a gym convert? Long story short – two reasons. The first reason is that a Sports physio I consulted with for my running-related knee pain gave me a bunch of stretches to do everyday, and suggested that I join a gym and get stronger, cos, “Verrry weak madam!” So if I want to keep running, I need to work a bit more on strengthening my muscles. 

The second reason – once we moved to Hyerabad we moved into a large apartment complex that is so self-contained, that apart from a good gym, it even has a beauty parlour (as I learnt recently!). The yoga classes that don’t suit my schedule, so gym it is. And when S returns from work each evening, I head off to the gym quite happy to get my me-time for the day, and my fix of endorphins. And Dad and daughter have their time together. 

In fact, I think A is also happy to see my back after spending an entire day with me. After all, the other day as soon as S returned from work and picked her up, she looked at me. And pointed to the door and said, “Mummy, gym-mu”. Ahem.