A layer of clouds cover the island this morning. Not dark clouds, just white peaceful clouds. A little bit of light blue peeking through but not enough to guarantee a beach day.
I am planning my day. Editing, marketing, a sunset photoshoot tonight, Sean hosting open mic at Tybee Social club this evening. It’ll be a full day of work and play.
Going to the gym is definitely on the list. Over the winter I made working out a priority. But it doesn’t take long to get busy with spring weddings and photoshoots that my fitness priority slips from its top position.
Until earlier this week, I was trying on new shorts at Target. They have these evil mirrors in their changing rooms that are angled opposite each other so you can see everything that everyone else sees. Ewww… I did not like what I saw. That was enough motivation to get me back to the gym, and put my fitness goals back at the top of the list.
On Tybee there is only one gym. It is the part of the Tybee YMCA. There is a cardio room with treadmills, ellipticals, and stair steppers. And then there is the weight room, wall to wall filled with machines and free weights. It’s small, but has everything needed for any fitness routine you choose. On and off for years I have incorporated weight training and I preferred it over any form of cardio. I really just hated to sweat. Something happened to me last fall as I was committed to a routine to get in shape and feel healthy again. All of the sudden, for the first time in my life, I began to enjoy cardio. I started logging 3-5 miles a day a few times a week. I found the time pushing my limits, personally exhilarating. I enjoyed having earbuds shoved in my ears and having one hour to myself not having to talk to or answer anyone. Within a few weeks, I found a new level of energy. Finding more than just my body restored, my mind was too. I guess there must be something to this exercise thing that people have been talking about for years.
Being together for 26 years, Sean and I have our own inside jokes and way of talking without speaking. In one glance we both know what the other is saying. When we are at the gym together we communicate from across the room. Everything from, “hmm, you look hot today” to “did you see who just walked in?” to “the ‘hens’ are back”
Being a small town community like Tybee is, we encounter a little bit of every personality and demographic at the Y. There are those committed to pushing themselves daily, training for their next marathon or competition. There are those who just go regularly to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Some put in the daily minimum so they can still drink as much beer as they want. Local police officers come in to keep up with their daily PT.
And then there’s the group we affectionately call “the hens”.
This is the group of men that know everything about everything. They use their three mornings a week to catch up on the latest political issues and island gossip. They move about the gym sitting on each piece of equipment, long enough to argue the last statement and switch when it’s time to change topics from island issues to national headlines. They run through their circuit across the weight room piece by piece, covering the important earth shattering news and solving the world’s problems from plastic bags to retirement funds.
The sun is now starting to separate the clouds making beach day status look more positive. It’s time to hop on our bikes, pedal to the Y and find out what’s going on in the world today.