Is This Going To Hurt?
Gigi convinced me (after much persuasion) that I may benefit from joining her in the gym – 9am Tuesday 20th February (my daughter’s birthday). Gigi and I arrive at the gym – Fernwood, Haberfield NSW to the chirpy, greetings of the happy and smiling receptionist. We are immediately introduced to a female instructor who offers us questionnaires to complete. Various health related issues and general lifestyle, dietary etc. are covered, including a section for me to list my expectations and what I hope to achieve through exercise. I answer – toning, weight reduction, fitness and general well-being, (I don’t go overboard, as I don’t have the motivation to work out too hard just yet and I don't want the trainer to have a high expectation of me).
We are treated to a full tour of the facilities (very impressive). I notice that this being a “woman’s only” gym, the mood is light and friendly. No testosterone here! I also notice that I am not really dressed in the right gym attire (very easy to pick me as a “newbee”). Better put gym clothes on the shopping list.
Our belongings are placed in our personal lockers before being introduced to Katie our assessor and personal trainer. After a brief chat to get to know one another, she weighs and measures us. Katie is thorough and notices that my hips are somewhat lopsided, although I have not noticed that myself before. She explains that this may be the cause of my lower back pain (I’m wondering at this point if friends and family have noticed my lopsidedness before and just haven’t said anything!)
We discuss our current diets and exercise régimes and Katie provides us with sensible and realistic advice to improve both.
It’s now on to the cardio! Katie assesses our performance on the treadmill (or in my case, lack of performance!).
I’m pretty impressed by these machines as they come complete with personal televisions.
I notice that Gigi is walking much faster than me and even performs some sprints. I try to keep up at first then notice on the display monitor that her heart rate is much lower than mine so I ease back in the knowledge that she is obviously much more fit than I and I have absolutely no chance of competing with her…..yet!
5 minutes on the treadmill, 5 more on the bicycles and a further 5 minutes on the stepper. I’m starting to feel that my legs belong to someone else. Walking on the floor now seems difficult, or, is it because I now know that I’m lopsided.
We move into the weights room. I really enjoy resistance training and the various machines prove to be…..fun, probably because we are using very light weights.
Lana & Katie my Trainer at Fernwood Haberfield NSW (above). I look quite terrified, don't I?
Our next challenge is floor exercises. I have been so grateful that Katie has taken my age and lack of fitness into consideration in each activity she has prescribed. She is ever mindful of the effects on joints etc. – a true professional.
More than 2 hours have gone by and I must say I’m feeling a lot more motivated than when I first arrived. Gigi and I are given a program that meets out level of fitness and we are asked to commit to at least 2 sessions per week.
I leave the centre with a glow, perspiration and a feeling of personal satisfaction.
PS I am happy to report …… I jumped out of bed the following day and the next - with no pain! Thank you Fernwood!
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Well, here I am – one stone heavier…oh no!!!!
It only took six months, six miserable months of not attending gym regularly for the weight to slyly creep back on, darn it! How dare it! And it has made a bee line to my stomach in particular, and I am on a mission to shift that bulge. I want a flatter tummy and to rediscover my ‘exercise sparkle’.
Do you know what ‘exercise sparkle” is? It’s that wonderful vibrancy you get when you have endurance, your skin is sweating, breathing, stretching and functioning like it should, and that wonderful feeling of confidence when your body is as good as it can be. “Exercise sparkle” is borne out of effort and hard work. But, hey it’s worth it!
I arrived at Fernwood Women’s Health Club at Haberfield with a great deal of apprehension that only a lapsed exercise person would understand. You know! You feel older, stiffer and your joints ache. It’s been a while, and getting back on the “bike” will certainly test out my stammer and my dedication. Can I jump on board the exercise machines without making a fool of myself? Will I be able to make it through an exercise classes without humiliation?
Well, I have made a decision and I am very determined. I have decided to check out an all women’s exercise venue that ‘totally’ understands women, so I should be alright! What does an all women’s gym provide? I can’t wait to discover all the benefits. I am going to hand myself over to the staff at Fernwood and we’ll see if they can help me achieve my goals. They say their aim is to “empower women to shine” and I want my “exercise sparkle” back, so if I can ‘shine and sparkle’, I will be one happy woman.
I am absolutely ready for this.
So here I am, with Lana by my side, we make our way into the Club. At reception a string of smiling faces await us and what’s this, flowers on the desk! Already I feel at home.
Our details are taken down in the very welcoming kitchen/meeting room by one of the club assistants, Debbie. Once the necessary information is gathered, it’s up for a tour of the Health Club. I glance in a mirror as we glide by – why did I buy this ridiculous pink t-shirt (mental note – always wear black, much more slimming) We visit the exercise class room and the aerobic room which is filled with walking machines, exercise bikes and x-trainers. And there’s music and TV’s everywhere. And it is pleasing to see there are a lot of women pounding away – and surprise, surprise, they look like they are enjoying themselves!
We enter the weights section. I’ve never been a “weights person” so this will be very interesting! There appears to be plenty of equipment in this area and my, oh my, an assistant is cleaning the machinery with disinfectant. I am already impressed. There is a spot for stomach exercises, and spin cycle area and room to work out with the pads. A quick look at the large change room – completed with complimentary toiletries ironing board and lockers (this is obviously a women’s gym), a peep in at the beauty centre (I can’t wait to try all on offer) and a look in the “cellulite buffing room” and the tour is complete.
Sharon greets us. She owns Haberfield Fernwood and she is fresh, bright, and enthusiastic. How she looks so magnificent with a couple of small children under three is truly baffling. Sharon hands us over to the beautiful Katie, the Health Club Manager, who will not only design our personal programs but take us through our very first use of the equipment. We are taken to the ‘program enrolment’ desk, shoes off and we are weighed (I’m not looking) and our height is taken (no problems there).
Then, Katie measures this way and that on almost every part of us. I am not interested in knowing the measurements at this point! We are asked what we hope to achieve. Well, I’m on a mission as I said before – my stomach, that awful podge women over fifty seem to get between the boobs and the hips. We also relay any problems we might have and our questions are answered. We are laughing and chatting and feel very relaxed – what a great way to start.
Katie then takes us into the aerobic room and we climb aboard the huge walking machine. My TV is not on, no distractions today but unfortunately in the glassy surface I can see my strained face the entire workout (mental note number one – TV on at all times). I look across and there is Lana looking totally non-plused as she strides along. She’s fitter than I thought! Katie guides us through a 10 minute work-out, watching how well we are progressing and whether the intensity needs to be cranked up. The bikes and x-trainer follow.
Then it’s into the unknown – the weights room. We take our turn to push and pull while Katie furiously writes down our program. How will I ever remember to change the seat settings? I am told that there is an assistant who is always available for help at any stage so any problems are instantly solved. This knowledge is awesome. We are working up quite a puff and we are not even doing the required repetitions. When we actually complete the entire program I have a feeling I will be sweating profusely. Then over to the mats and we learn how to use the large rubber ball. The importance of the stomach muscle exercises is being rammed home (my special area of attention of course) and we again complete only a quarter of our repetitions. I can see how doing repetitions is really going to kick in the intensity. Some lovely stretches and we are finished. I feel that glow already!
This is really a new way for me to approach exercise. I have always hit the gym and done an hour of intensive aerobic exercise class and gone home (usually nursing an injury from doing an exercise class that is meant for a twenty-four year old). But these days, exercise is all about strengthening core muscles, shaping muscles, building bone density, increasing endurance – all without competition or zealously over extending yourself.
The program that was built for me today was for “me”. I am the owner of my personal exercise regime and it has been designed for my capabilities and goals and the amazing thing is – I don’t need to badly injure myself to get results. Oh, how I am liking this already.
I have been very motivated and been to the Club two days in a row. I have walked, cycled and x-trained. I have completed the weights and done the stretches. You know, I am starting to work out why I like going here. It’s my space. I haven’t opted for the earplugs yet so I only watch the TV only. I’m still busy working out the required program instructions – so I am putting any mental activity towards that. And I like watching the minutes roll by, checking my heart rate and how far I have travelled.
You know, another thing is, I am suddenly more observant about what I put in my mouth. Funny how, even without trying, this happens.
Oh well, I shall continue on and see how I go – this is great.
Well, have I lost weight, the truth will out at the next weigh in. Let me tell you though, I did the spin class. I sat there peddling for 45 minutes wishing the whole time for the end of that class. My goodness! Firstly, the seat is uncomfortable, I will say nothing more except that 45 minutes of having something hard jammed and rubbing between your legs for 45 minutes is not really all that terrific in a bicycle riding sort of a way! Truly though, I must have lost 3 kilos of sweat – it is hugely aerobic and I can see that spin is a winner with the serious and dedicated.
I also had Personal Training session with Katie. What fun that was? I boxed, I ran, I lifted weights, I pushed weights, I peddled, I stomach crunched, and much more, all under the guidance of my personal instructor. This is a really wonderful way to get an input of energy, enthusiasm and you are on the job for the 30 minutes without let up. Not once can you allow yourself to set down tools and rest. It’s your nose to the grind stone and you feel fantastic afterwards. It is a tad expensive to have this personal tuition, but it would be incredibly invaluable if you are a newcomer to exercise and need that one on one input. Also, I think if you had a project to loose a few kilos – then a few weeks of this would certainly allow you to reach your goal.
So apart from that, I have walked steadily along on the walking machine, I have cycled away hours on the bike, I have cross-trained, pushed weighs and done floor exercises as my program instructed.
What has changed – it will be interesting to see.
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