Friday, June 21, 2013

Operation Beast Mode, Minus One Foot

Ugly Truth Moment: I have been gym-stalking someone.  There is a lady at my local gym that has what I consider to be an ideal lean fit body.  She is a mother about my age, looks strong, obviously follows a strict diet and remains completely focused during her workout sessions.  How do I know this?  Like I said, I've paid close attention.  This woman and I have never met, never spoken to each other, nor have we ever exchanged a polite salutation.  Yet, somehow she always seems to be at the gym at the same time I show up (no, that was not planned) and she always kicks ass in her workouts.  Sometimes I think she looks good just to piss me off.  For months, I have used her as my visual motivation for getting to my own fitness goals.  Don't judge...we all do this but don't admit it.  We all have someone we admire from afar.  We think that if we followed their methods and discipline, then maybe we could get to their level of fitness.  She does not know me from Adam, but one day I will walk right up to her and tell her how much she has inspired me on many occasions to get my butt in gear.  Lets hope she does not run away screaming "stranger danger"!

Today's workout started like many others.  I hopped onto my cardio machine of choice and then moved on to the weights area.  I was dragging and not feeling especially peppy when I spotted her.  She was in her own world with a singular focus of perfectly executing her reps.  She was not fussing with her music player like I was. She was not tugging at her ill-fitting clothes like I was.  Her only interest appeared to be the free weight in front of her at that moment.  So simple, yet when I am at the gym working out I let my mind wonder to so many other counterproductive thoughts.  Why is it so crowded?  What playlist should I choose?  How much longer before I can leave?  If I blocked out those thoughts, maybe my head would have more room to consider ways to get me to my dream physique.

One of the things distracting me during my workout today is my impending foot surgery.  It's not by any means glamorous and I don't like admitting it, but the bunion on my right foot cannot be ignored any longer.  Believe me, I have tried.  That stubborn issue is more annoying than it is painful.  You just can't run away from foot pain.  It gets in the way of every freakin' thing I want to do.  I do not want to have surgery and I am open to hearing about any other nonsurgical options that will allow me to keep running.  This is happening at such an inopportune time because racing season is coming up.  My podiatrist is a marathoner, so he understands the need to get my training started for the upcoming season.  Normally we start with basic mileage in mid to late July and add on a little each week until we are battling 20-milers by the time the temps cool down in late fall.  But six to eight weeks of post-surgery recovery is a scary thing for someone needing to ramp up their mileage during that time.  Eight weeks off would set me back tremendously.  If I have my foot surgery now, it will be late September before am I back out on the running trails.  This means any fall races are out of the question, forcing me to chose races in January or later.

The so-so good news my doctor gave me was that I could swim to my heart's content during the recovery period.  At least my cardio health can remain in tact.  As my foot gets better, I also plan to ease my way back into the weight room and do whatever strength training I can.  Running will be out of the question, but I plan to squeeze in anything else he tells me I can do.  There is no way I am going to let Miss Ideal-Gym-Body-Chic get even further ahead of me in the fitness department.  Even if I have to follow the cleanest eating I have ever done, I do not intend to just lay around and lose the little bit of strength I do have.  If nothing else, my internal organs will be in super shape no matter what my outer self looks like.  I am going to need something to make me feel better while icky stitches are holding my foot together.  Boy, I sure hope orthopedic shoes become stylish sometime soon.  Looks like they might become a staple for my outfits in the near future.

2 comments:

  1. There was a woman who used to run down my street every day, super slow, in wind, rain, heat, whatever. Every. Freakin'. Day. When I started to think about running, I thought..."That lady does it, YOU can do it!", so I joined Champions Fit. You know what happened after that. After the marathon, I jumped in with her on her run one day and told her she was my motivation, and how much she had encouraged me with her dedication. She was very happy to hear it...you could tell it made her day. I hope you'll talk to Wonder Woman some day. Spread the love!

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  2. I am one who sees a man with what some see as an ideal stature in the gym. But because I know what I want my body to look like, I too observe from a distance, not to look at them and see exactly how to get where they are but to get what I can from their workout to get closer to where I want to be. I love the post and really appreciate your candor. Praying for you my friend and I wish you the best. Thanks for sharing.

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