Ok! I signed up!
It was kind of bizarre really. The gym itself is very nice: clean and tidy, machines and equipment kept in good order (if I knew anything about them, I'd be able to tell you whether they're "modern" or not, but they certainly looked snazzy enough). The staff I talked to seemed a bit distant, really, but people here tend to be like that, so I wasn't expecting huge amounts of friendliness.
The first chap (who I'd spoken on the phone with) chatted to me about my goals and fears about joining a gym. At one point when I had spoken a bit about being a bit paranoid about working out when other people are around, even though I *know* they're likely not paying me any attention at all, he said "I can't say I know how that feels, but I can understand it," which I thought was rather nice.
The second chap showed me round and we talked about my program. Because I already run 3x a week, we sorted a program mainly with weights (x-trainer to warm up and rowing to finish off) and if I need more cardio there's a good classes timetable to pick from too.
Like I promised myself I also signed up for sessions with a personal trainer - I'm going to be called about that on Monday.
I shiver a bit at how much this will cost (even after the discounts). But it's worth it - it's got to be worth it.
The thought I'm using to keep me motivated (at the moment anyway!) is the memory of me and my 15kg rucksack going on holiday earlier this Summer. It killed my shoulders! The thought that I could in a few months be
free of that kind of weight
every single day... at the moment that's what's keeping me going.
ETA: I forgot - I stepped on that fat% machine thing. And because I need to "expose" it (else I'll ignore it), here are the numbers. But I think things like the BMI will be wrong because I guessed my height wrong:
BMI: 36.9
BMR: 1928kcal <- anyone actually know what a BMR is?
Fat %: 44.4%
I guess once I'm able to I'll shove all that info into my sig and confront myself with it every day....