day no. 2 @ ballys

this morning i got up at 6:30 to make tim coffee (big history of christianity test today) and read while i drank my coffee. i left at 7:30 to make it for an 8am *free* session with a personal trainer named bridget.

the session went pretty well. we didn't do any training, really. i didn't even use up the allotted half hour of time i had with her because to be honest, i can't afford her and didn't think it was fair to take up a lot of her time. i know what those free sessions mean for personal trainers looking to make a living. she was super helpful. we didn't spend time at every machine but we did sort of go over the basics of how to adjust the machines and such. at the end of the session she asked me what i was going to be doing today for my workout. i confessed that i was probably just going to spend 20 minutes on the elliptical because i had only slept for 3 hours the night before. (true story... i never have a hard time getting to sleep but last night was like the 2nd or 3rd time in my life i can remember not sleeping well) she knew that i wouldn't be pursuing a training package (we covered the "my husband is in school" basics) but pleaded with me to make sure i did weight training 3 times a week.

she said: "you really need to be doing weight training 3 times a week... especially since you've already been to physical therapy twice. it shows that you're pretty weak and you're too young for that."

dang it she's right.

i am so tired of being such a weakling.

for whatever reason (genetics, i know), i am just not naturally sturdy or muscular. i think i'm in okay shape mostly because of the activity level required at my job and the fact that most of the time, i eat a lot of healthy foods. but i'm not strong.

i'll never be ms. muscles but i definitely want to be able to do more weight on those machines. after i got out of the practice of weight training, i was always been intimidated by the crazy looking machines and hated looking at the instructions because i don't like to look like i don't know what i'm doing and i don't want to be bothered by a trainer trying to show me how to do things right just so they can get a client.

well that's just pride! and by assuming that's all trainers want to do when they help you with a machine is just judgmental. i'm so over that.

i hope to go to the gym at least three times a week. i might keep updates on here to hold myself accountable and i know i need to keep a little notebook of what i'm doing so i can stay consistent. it's imperative that i strengthen my body at this point. aches & pain are one thing but having chronic pain so bad you're in a perpetual bad mood is another.

and speaking of bad moods, what a difference exercise can have on your mind! i know i sometimes struggle with depression and i know what when the sun goes away it's going to be even harder. i have the answer right in front of me.

the following are just a few pictures from our honeymoon. i wasn't working out or super active when we went on this trip, but being in sedona, arizona was exhilirating. and not just because i was a newlywed (although that helped! ;D) tim and i took several hikes while we were there. there was a lot of hard work involved and time spent as we made our way up various mountains.

once you get to the top the rewards make it all worthwhile, right?

and then some!