Back to the gym again

So I've had a gym membership since January and I only just started using it a couple months ago. Actually now that I mention it I was very annoyed about the entire ordeal. I was expecting to get one of those "New Years resolution" deals on the membership, but even in January the cost was $60 per month for a subscription to Retro Fitness. That's quite a bit higher than any membership I've paid for a gym. Had "inflation" really gotten that bad? After all the last time I had gone to the gym was right before COVID 2020.

I went online to find that Retro Fitness locations across New Jersey (less than an hour away from my location) were half the price, which was a number that I was expecting in the first place. This was somewhat enraging, knowing that these businesses are just gouging everyone in low population tourist locations (Poconos) just because they can. There are very few options here and they know it.

Even more enraging was the fact that gyms like Retro Fitness are franchises. They're individually owned but part of a greater network of chains. What was to stop me from getting a membership in NJ for half the price and getting access to the one that's a few miles away?

So I drove down to Retro and tried to voice this annoyance, but this grievance was basically ignored as the employee just stuck to the script and reiterated that what they're offering is what they're offering. Gotta love that corporate culture. It's one of the few times in my life where I actually should have asked for the manager, but I was so annoyed at that point that I just walked out and got a membership in Jersey 45 minutes away. We turned it into a Costco trip since there aren't any around here.

---

Nine months later!

Buddy of mine wanted to start hitting the gym as well and I already had a free +1 with my membership. We've only been going twice a week but still making some progress. Unfortunately he's got major back issues (full-on fused vertebrae in the spine) so not every exercise is an option. I'm still considering jumping into the super serious weights like deadlifts once I'm ready for it, but until then I'm just trying to build up some basic strength.

One of the weirdest things about going to the gym these days is going in the morning. Twice a week I'm now at the gym working out, hours before I would have even been waking up ten years ago. I've never gone to the gym right after waking up but it seems to work out just fine. Honestly it might even be ideal because I get it all out of the way before my day even starts.

Gym Goals:

I've lost around 10 pounds over the past 8 weeks or so. I think a lot of people would consider this pretty decent progress but I was honestly expecting to be down more at this point. I can easily lose another 50 pounds, although I'm not really in much of a rush like I was the last time I was engaged in a weight-loss journey. Back in Summer 2019 I was able to lose 30 pounds in a month and then 10 pounds the next month and 10 pounds the month after that. Of course that probably wasn't particularly healthy so maybe a slower grind is more appropriate.

Going forward:

I do feel like I need to add at least one more day a week as there is a very large gap between the two I'm currently doing. I might try to add a yoga day because my stretching has been pretty abysmal and that would force me into it at least once a week. Other than that I just need to make sure to stay consistent and keep at it, which is a lot easier when committing to it with another person around the same level.

T-Rex Arms

The level of soreness I have experienced after some of these gym sessions has been pretty legendary. To be expected after not lifting for 5 years but yeah it's pretty intense. Quite certain I'll never be that sore again if I just stay consistent. No pain no gain... or something.

Recovery

One of the interesting things about fitness is how easily you can throw away all the work you put in with a bad diet. I'm not 100% certain I'm eating enough protein at this juncture and I may need to rework my diet a bit. I will say that now that I'm putting in what I would describe as the bare minimum amount of effort: that I definitely don't just eat whatever's in front of my face like I was doing for the past few years.

Cutting

• desserts
• processed snacks
• liquids that aren't water
• empty carbs
• other forms of ultra processed garbage

It's surprisingly easy for me to regulate the garbage that I was previously consuming when it feels like I'm undermining my time spent at the gym. When I think about the effort I'm putting in it's easy to realize that simply not eating gluttonously is a lot easier than what I'm already doing twice a week. At this point I'm almost wondering if I'll save some money on the food bill at the end of the month because it was getting out of hand.

1 hour sessions

I had also forgotten how fast time can fly by at the gym. I'll look at the clock and it's already been an hour and I realize I still have a couple of things to do before I want to leave. I was legitimately worried I'd be checking the clock every 5 minutes and leaving early, but that has not been the experience thus far. Hopefully this speaks to the long term sustainability of continuing this process over longer periods of time.

Conclusion

NEVER SKIP LEG DAY!
DO YOU EVEN LIFT, BRO?

It's been nice getting the bare minimum amount of exercise after getting none for 5 years in a row. Ultimately my goal here is to extract the maximum amount of value for a moderate amount of effort, same as many other things in life. Of course it's hard to measure the value of such things. If I start sleeping better and thinking better over time... and those benefits turn into other benefits... how much is that worth?