Shannon, is it REALLY snowing there? good grief, the city must be terrified!
Kim- I need some to to go hunt down your blog. I occasionally see other women in the power racks, but they are rarely lifting anywhere near the amount of weight that I am. Or doing Oly lifts- no one else does that at my regular gym.
Pat- Glad your headache is better, but it seems to have floated across the continent and landed in my head
Alena- How are your feet doing these days?
Denver- Good job on the lack of soda and poundage :clap:
I did an all kettlebell WOD and have really sore hands. My calluses almost ripped off 10 snatches each arm, then 10 American swings (to shoulder height). As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes. I did it rx'ed (26 pounder for woen) and my legs are sore. I had horrible foot cramps again driving home. This has happened a few times, and 1) I'm hydrated, 2) I eat a banana just before the workout and 3) I take extra potassium every day. Not sure what causes it other than wearing heels all day that were slightly too big, then doing an intense workout. If I ever have time, I'll do some medical googling.
to all! Cheryl, where are you? Lydia, are you in Columbus blizzard mode? DD said they sent all the paralegals and secretaries home at 3pm.
Kim- I need some to to go hunt down your blog. I occasionally see other women in the power racks, but they are rarely lifting anywhere near the amount of weight that I am. Or doing Oly lifts- no one else does that at my regular gym.
Mel
I find that the younger women, read high school and college athletes, are lifting heavier and practicing lifts. But, it may also have something to do with the type/culture of the gym I'm in too.
I'm kind of fickle about lifting around other women to be honest. I do much better when I'm surrounded by men. I either become frustrated watching them stumble around without much direction or if they do know what they are doing feeling a bit competitive and I'm really uncomfortable with that too.
A couple of days ago I got so freaking ticked at another woman who was in the free weight area. And it still unsettles me a little.
I was in a great mood on the ride over: the intrusion of the holidays are over, I passed my cert, I'm on the "otherside" of this planning for our move in the spring thing and I've got fitness goals set for this spring. All this is running through my head on the twenty minute drive over. I'm happy.
I had worked out in my head my goals for the morning workout and the activation exercises that would best complement the lifts (leg day..) Spent ten/fifteen minutes on the mats, walked over to the squat rack and found it loaded with a ten pound plate on each side and a 16oz water bottle all alone beside the cage. No one around. (cue the chirping crickets)
There's only one squat rack.... I'll just wait a few minutes and do unloaded split squats off a bench. Then I notice a woman about my size and maybe six to ten years younger than me on a bench doing upper body work...light I might add... but no matter. She finishes up and walks over the squat rack and does lunges. She doing super sets, maybe some version of peripheral heart circuit, who knows. Does she even know...sigh.
When she finishes she doesn't unload the plates or move the water bottle. She disappears to the other side of the gym to do machine work... then she returns to do three more sets of different upper body exercises ignoring the squat rack.
By this time I've done just about all the body weight leg work I want to do without fatiguing for my own heavy back squats. I walk up to her while she is in a bent over one handed row position and in a "kind" but very direct way ask if she is finished with the squat rack. (Uhm, yeah. I interrupted her set but at this point I'm fuming and my heart is racing faster than anything I could get from two quick sprints around the track.)
You know there are just some people who have a vacant look in their eyes. Like the lights are one but no one is home...Yep. She was one of them. AND she had a squeaky voice to match it. ARRRGGGG. Totally in her own world. UNACCEPTABLE.
I zone out when I'm lifting but at the same time I am keenly aware of who is where, what is being done and how long I may be using a piece of equipment. Here's the deal...if you need it use it, be there and freakin' use it! Don't let the rest of us try to figure out your little routine clipped out of "Woman's Day" magazine...I've worked out around high school boys who had better manners in the gym than this.
Here's the thing, she looked like she knew what she was doing with her exercises. Her form was decent. She was in good shape but not what I would call great...skinny fat. It was the fact that she appeared to know how to use the weights (form) but had total disregard for anyone else around her as she went about her routine that really ticked me off. Gym etiquette girlfriend!
This kind of thing occasionally happens with men too. They will clutter their things around a bench/rack and walk away and come strolling back. Yep it ticks me off then too but once it's over it's over. They move on and and so do I...but with her I kept feeling like she was in my space and competing with me the whole time I was there. Even with the freaking dumb bells. Ridiculous really and yet every time I turned around I was tripping over her.
Still can't believe this made me so agitated. I'm embarrassed that I could feel so territorial. But as I analyze my reaction further it's not so much a territorial issue. I don't want to be the only person lifting...I'm so passionate about it and truly believe that its something most people should experience if not embrace. I'm doing my best to share what I know with as many women who will stand still long enough to listen to me. So my reaction really doesn't fit with how I really feel.
What I don't like is feeling like someone is "ignoring" that I'm there or is trying to one up me in some way. That's just so silly and I really had the feeling that this is what was going on here. It's a vibe and being the intuitive person that I am...I picked it up.
So, after some thought about this I've decided three things:
One. She probably didn't realize how rude she was being in the beginning. After I made my presence she may have been feeling a little defensive/embarrassed and we rarely handle those feelings with grace.
Two. All of my clients will get my version of proper gym etiquette. Proper form and proper manners.Both will keep you from becoming injured.
Three: I really need to get myself back into a yoga studio to be reminded of the humility and humanity of our bodies and minds. (Letting go of my ego...)
So, if you have read this far...thank you. Tell me, do any of you have problems with feeling competitive and or territorial like this. I really want to work on this. It troubles me. I even hesitate to post this, but if anyone is going to "get" this, it's going to be you folks. You know, maybe if people would just make friendly eye contact or say hello, excuse me, thank you or I'm sorry so much negativity could be avoided.
Oh, and yes, Mel. The city pretty much shut down today for five inches of snow.
My village of girlfriends and I are hunkering down at a house about three streets down the block for all morning coffee and letting our little guys have free range of the basement. "Snow day Open House" No school right after winter break and all of us Moms are about to have a nervous break down....Thank god for girlfriends!
Bus stop accomplished. Shoveling accomplished. (Why, oh why did we buy a corner lot?) Second cup of coffee underway.
Lydia. I "hear" you about the territoriality, and I do think it can be more acute with women. This is particularly true when we're in a situation or doing something that is atypical for women. Our right to be there is constantly questioned, in little ways: offhand comments, stares and gestures (often unconscious), how we're treated, and so on. A man's right to be there is just assumed. In this context, mild territoriality, or sometimes outright cattiness, is an understandable response.
(A similar phenomenon happens in the business world, incidentally: senior women managers have to bend over backwards to differentiate themselves from junior women or administrative staff, often to the point of being harsher and more demanding on their female compatriots than male managers. And, for good reason: after the 2nd or 3rd time a male client or colleague assumes you are a secretary and asks you to make copies or get coffee for them, you begin to act in ways that *emphasize* the differences between you and the other women in the office. Otherwise, your male colleagues will see you as a woman first and a manager/professional second.)
Or, maybe she just needs to be smacked upside the head with a list of rules of gym etiquette.
BTW, I love your blog. And it IS very entertaining (but of course not only that). Would you care to elaborate on what you said about the machines: Machines put you in ergonomically incorrect positions, unless you happen to be one of the 10% of the population for whom machines are sized correctly. (Hint: none of the 10% are women).
That is interesting, I didn't know that. I do use some machines although I try to stick to free weights as much as I can.
Alena
Blush!
On the comment about machines not being designed for women. I made up the 10% figure, so don't take that as gospel. It's probably an exaggeration, especially with modern machines manufactured with a broader clientele in mind. (I'd guess there are even machines out there designed for and marketed exclusively to women, much like the new lines of power tools. With pink vinyl seat covers, I'm sure!)
My point, though, was simply that the good folks who design machines start with the assumption of an "average" lifter in height, width, build, musculature, joint function, etc. The "average" lifter they have in mind is, understandably, male. This means that the machines aren't going to be designed for unusually tall or short men, or short or average women. (Tall women might be the same height as "average" men, but probably don't have the same width shoulders, pelvis, etc.)
Granted, many machines are adjustable: you can usually move the seat up or down, and occasionally change the pivot points. But this isn't the same as true customization for a body that differs from the male average. Moving the seat up an inch just raises the person's butt up an inch: it doesn't also change the angle of movement that the machine forces the lifter to track, or the width of the hand positioning, or the angle of the hand bars relative to the body, etc etc. On some machines, you simply may not be able to find a comfortable setting where the movement "feels" right on your joints, whether long-term or short-term. My guess is that this happens more often to women than to men, just because of the starting point for machine design.
Lydia - Your situation is why I have a home gym Although I do feel nostalgic for some of the old gym days, it was fun but I mostly had to deal with the male issues such as not unloading large amount of plates, hogging dumbbells and not cleaning up sweat!
We got snow last night but everything was shoveled/cleared by this morning. I'm at the end of this sickness, whatever I have (hopefully). I haven't been exercising and it has made me a little crazy.
As for exercise, I decided I'm going to try P90x. It looks pretty solid. I may start tomorrow.
Kaw: Thanks for your insight. I don't have a lot of experience in dealing with these kinds of things. I hope I can draw upon this the next time I'm feeling a little edgy and just remind myself it's only one of a lifetime of workouts yet to come and in the big picture...not such a big deal.
Nelie: You have a beautiful home studio! I have the equipment to do my workouts at home sans squat rack and free bar but for me...I really do need to be surrounded by others and AWAY from my house.
Finding a new gym in Fairfax will also be an interesting experience for me too. I could be very very humbled at a new place. I'll keep you all posted.
(A similar phenomenon happens in the business world, incidentally: senior women managers have to bend over backwards to differentiate themselves from junior women or administrative staff, often to the point of being harsher and more demanding on their female compatriots than male managers. And, for good reason: after the 2nd or 3rd time a male client or colleague assumes you are a secretary and asks you to make copies or get coffee for them, you begin to act in ways that *emphasize* the differences between you and the other women in the office. Otherwise, your male colleagues will see you as a woman first and a manager/professional second.)
Arghhh, yes. I am fortunate in that now on our Executive Management Team (i.e. department directors and City Manager's staff) we are pretty evenly split at 4 men, 6 women, but under the prior city manager, it was 5 men and me!
I don't usually have the problem with other people leaving their stuff around, as I'm the only person in the area. Now that it's the beginning of the year, that's bound to change a bit, but by spring I'll have the place pretty much to myself again I'm sure. I love a lot of things about this space
although you'll see there are still a lot of machines, and not one DB! I lug some in there usually. There are also way way too many mirrors.
Lydia - 5 inches shut you down, 1.5 inches shut down Atlanta yesterday and today...
Mel - everyone was freaking out when the snow started. My employees started dropping like flies. Crazy.
Pat - nice gym space! And, I think you sent me part of your headache as well. I'm thinking I need coffee and more allergy medicine.
Kim - dig your blog.
Nelie - glad you feel better!
Good workout yesterday (day 2 of Pat's PN program, then 10 miles on the stationary bike), going to spend some time on the treadmill today when I'm done with the ''work' part of working from home.
Good day everyone!
January 7: A really tough day at work. I have to report an unfortunate incident that involved a lather large quantity of potato chips and Coke Zero.
I felt completely wiped out in the evening – I didn’t even want to go to Zumba! Can you imagine?
So I “took it easy” and did the Amy Dixon video.
January 8: I got up at 6:00 am to shovel (25 minutes). We were not hit too hard – less than 2” of snow, perhaps only 1.5”. The driveway was covered again by the time I was leaving for work but it has been a nice sunny day so I hope most of it is gone. Lydia, I hope you enjoyed the “snowed in” day in the basement with the kidlets and gallons of coffee.
I don’t have to exercise tonight – I am already done - YAY! I kicked myself out into the cold and went . (45 minutes). For about ½ hour, I had the entire lane to myself. I am now in the sleepy state that swimming induces so well. I think I will spend the rest of today by cuddling with the dogs and watching a new episode of What Not To Wear. Oh yeah, I am making Thai Chicken – have to stop by the grocery store as I ran out of garlic.
Lydia –
I would have been mad at the other lady, too. It is just plain disrespect to other gym users.
Mel –
Thanks for asking, my foot is doing great. Of course I still live in the sneakers with the custom orthotics (and I most likely will continue to do so for another year) but the foot doesn’t hurt anymore unless I do something really stupid. I can now do an hour of Zumba and the foot barely notices even though I actually use Zumba shoes, not the sneakers with orthotics). Also the 50 minute stint on the treadmill last week was fine. I cannot walk barefoot – then I feel it right away. It has been almost a year since the plantar fasciitis started – I think it was late February last year – so a huge improvement although I will have to “watch it” for the rest of my life. (My doctor said she believes it is age related – that around this age, all sorts of ugly things start raising their heads and they will go away with time. She thinks it’s related to the fluctuating hormones. Interesting theory.
Yup. My initial episode happened in 2001. I foolishly wore my wonderfully warm felted wool slippers all day for 2 days last weekend - bad idea..... I realized what was happening and quickly changed into my almost-as-warm wool clogs, but my foot was sore for another day. Sigh. It's a nuisance, but the pain is worse.... I can get away with a day or so of not-so-supportive shoes, but then the foot protests.
Good luck with that Nelie! I think Lydia would wipe the floor with me.
Pat: I would certainly NOT wipe the floor with you. Seriously, you do the PN nutrition workouts. I bow down to your awesomeness.
Alena: Glad you are doing better with your foot and thanks for your suggestion as well. Sorry I forgot to mention it from your previous inquiry. It is doing better but like Pat, I knew what it was right away and took measures to keep the inflammation down. I KNOW one of the factors that caused it...I hate to say it but the crazy Crocs shoes I bought this fall. There were SUPPOSED to be designed for post workouts! Geesh. The shoes I wear around the house are my old running shoes or a pair of sketchers with a lot of arch support. So far, that's helping. Haven't run on it for a month either. Miss it. Feel grounded on the elliptical but thank goodness it's getting better.
Shannon: I lived in Birmingham for a year before kids. I remember when it snowed for an inch there too. People were so funny, high tailing it out of downtown because they had to get home back to their "mountain." Seriously though when a city isn't prepared to handle that kind of weather element and when you have to drive STRAIGHT UP or STRAIGHT DOWN to get to your house, the rules change.
I went to grad school in Seattle, and then DH and I lived there Jan-Aug 2000 when he had his bone marrow transplant. Another city not set up to deal with snow - or ice. Every place is on a hill I swear. It rivals San Fransisco! They just do not have the equipment to deal with any as many winters they don't get snow at all. If they go into the mountains to ski, they put on chains. No one has snow tires. They can do rain though.
Another place that cannot do snow here. This is the second week of very cold (-5) weather, and the country is grinding to a halt. We are running out of salt. if this continuous I'm working from home. I dread what my gas bill is going to be. I pay 0.65 euro for a cubic meter of gas...more than half of which is combined energy tax and sales tax on the energy tax.
Silver? Still snowed in? How are the wood stove and the storage heaters coping?
Hmmm, our weather cooled down considerably today, and now at 10pm it's nearly zeroF - supposed to be cold and sunny for the weekend. I'd rather that than more snow though.
10 snatches each arm, then 10 American swings (to shoulder height). As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes. I did it rx'ed (26 pounder for woen) and my legs are sore. I had horrible foot cramps again driving home. This has happened a few times, and 1) I'm hydrated, 2) I eat a banana just before the workout and 3) I take extra potassium every day. Not sure what causes it other than wearing heels all day that were slightly too big, then doing an intense workout. If I ever have time, I'll do some medical googling.
to all! Cheryl, where are you? Lydia, are you in Columbus blizzard mode? DD said they sent all the paralegals and secretaries home at 3pm. 
Proper form and proper manners. Both will keep you from becoming injured.
Although I do feel nostalgic for some of the old gym days, it was fun but I mostly had to deal with the male issues such as not unloading large amount of plates, hogging dumbbells and not cleaning up sweat!
I don't have a lot of experience in dealing with these kinds of things. I hope I can draw upon this the next time I'm feeling a little edgy and just remind myself it's only one of a lifetime of workouts yet to come and in the big picture...not such a big deal.
and Coke Zero.
. (45 minutes). For about ½ hour, I had the entire lane to myself. I am now in the sleepy state that swimming induces so well. I think I will spend the rest of today by cuddling with the dogs and watching a new episode of What Not To Wear. Oh yeah, I am making Thai Chicken – have to stop by the grocery store as I ran out of garlic.
