Saturday, February 06, 2010

Random gym observations

Just a few random things from the gym (Salt Lake City Sports Complex). I am actually growing to like it...of course, I vastly prefer RW, but the gym does offer a lot of variety and is better than I thought it would be at the outset.

*Master's swimming classes are full of very good swimmers and fit people. I'm not a bad swimmer, but I am definitely among the slowest in the class.
*There are more overweight people at the gym than I thought there would be. I am encouraged that they are there and are trying to lose weight.
*The water aerobics classes are a big contrast to the master's swimming classes. The women (all of them are women) are generally very large. I find myself rooting strongly for them to keep going and keep working for fitness. I do wonder, though, if any of them have success. I wish I could help.
*I'm starting to learn that there are certain people to avoid. There is one guy who always smells terrible. I was bummed the other day because he was on the elliptical right next to the video bike; I didn't do the bike just because I could not stomach the odor. I know that sounds mean, but I don't mean it to be cruel - it's just the reality of the situation.
*Some people intrigue me. There is one woman who is there every day really early, doing the elliptical and the treadmill. She appears very fit. She usually runs, but I have seen her walking at 5 mph with bent arms. I'm tempted to ask her if she's ever considered RW - I bet she'd be good.
*Other people surprise me. One woman regularly reads and STUDIES her Book of Mormon while on the elliptical. I kid you not, she actually sits there and underlines things in red pen while doing the elliptical. Now that's some serious multitasking.
*I like this gym because it's really not a meat market at all, that I can tell. I appreciate this.
*I like running into friends at the gym. I have made some friends there, and I also see a few people I know from other parts of life (work, church, etc.) and it's nice to see familiar faces.

People are interesting, and so the gym is interesting. I guess if I'm stuck there for a while, I might as well enjoy the people-watching.

2 comments:

Harriet said...

"There are more overweight people at the gym than I thought there would be. "

That is certainly true at our public gym, but not so true at the University gym. Here is what is very interesting: you rarely see a fat hiker (once in a great while you do) Yes, when I was at my fattest I still hiked a bit.

Hunca Munca said...

In my gymgoing days, I never ever saw anyone reading a Book of Mormon on an elliptical, let alone underlining in it. That is dedication!