Back at It

Vasa opened back up Thursday. That’s my gym, Vasa fitness. It might seem silly to be excited about a gym reopening but I enjoy working out, it just feels right. The older I get the more difficult it is to keep weight off. Not that I’m obese or anything but I've added a few pounds recently. 

 I’m an American after all; extra pounds are right next to freedom on the sliding scale of greatness.

I’ve been walking a lot in the afternoons because my heel is still no good for running. 

I won’t complain here anymore because I’ve done that enough, to friends, to co-workers, to anyone who will listen. No more whinging.

The gym’s preparations had me nervous. Were they going to overreact, limit people, limit time on equipment, limit days? The website suggested wearing masks while working out. It didn’t specifically say we “had” to wear one, just that it was “recommended”. Wearing masks in the gym while getting sweaty and breathing hard are a deal breaker for me. I was prepared to re-freeze the billing on the account if they made it mandatory. I’ll keep walking until sanity returns. Thankfully they didn’t and after a quick survey of the room, I noticed just a handful of gym goers sporting them. A few had brought the masks in with them. They must have read the same website info and showed up ready to be hassled about it.

I heard a few kids mentioning how good it was to be back at it. I couldn’t agree more. It feels like some kind of duty or requirement for proper living. When you can’t do it in the same way, suddenly, it’s frustrating. I don’t want to overstate it. We have multiple ways to get exercise at home or with friends, I’ve started carrying a heavy rucksack on my park walks. YouTube has great stretching and full body workouts. I recommend “Madfit” if anyone’s interested. I’ve used it a few times.

Someone I work with told me Vasa insisted its members arranged for time slots before they came in. The website did mention that but I couldn’t log into my account and select a time. That might have been a deal breaker depending on how strictly they adhered to the timelines set up. The website included a waiver of responsibility or liability for Corona if we manage to catch it. I’m sure that’s not exactly right but it sounded straightforward to me so I signed it. I showed up hoping to be let in, with minimum hassle, and that’s what happened.

I went back Friday morning for my usual quick lift and shower. Heading into the locker room I had a shock as the showers and lockers were taped off. I guess this was one of the limits I missed on the website. So I took my bag back to the car and changed at work instead, sweaty and gross with no shower. Sorry co-workers.

Aside from the extra cleaning bottles the workers wear masks and they’ve taped off certain areas of the place for compliance, like the showers. I don’t love that. I hope in a few weeks they can open up the showers again because I’m not going before work until they do. We are all learning to live with the extra hassles but I hope we don’t get too comfortable with them. I don’t want this to happen again for a long time.