Tag: fitness

Still, No Gym, But…

Our building gym which was flooded in September looks pretty much the same. It is completely dry, but the carpet is torn, and the lower parts of the walls, the electric outlets, and the heating elements are removed. We were informed that the Association is waiting for the insurance to approve the repairs.

Meanwhile, some of the equipment is moved to the adjacent part of the basement, including the stationary bike. For the first several days, I felt guilty going down to the basement and using the stationary bike in the dark corner surrounded by some random stuff, as if I am committing a crime (or at a minimum, some violation :)). Then, full of guilt, I also started to use some equipment (and I bought two 10 lb weights to use in my apartment, so I can exercise there as well).

Then one day when I mounted on a stationary bike, I noticed that it was set to a different intensity level than I set it . That meant that somebody else was also using it in the dark corner!

And finally, this week, I noticed that the equipment was in use by somebody else as well – I saw different weights and different attachments than the ones I used. That made me smile, because officially everybody is waiting for the gym to be reopen and nobody is using it.

To be honest, I have no idea why we all are so shy of admitting that we use it they way we can :). For me, there is no other exercising option at the moment, and it is too dark in the morning to bike.

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished, Or How I Donated a Mirror

I had a small gym in my Palatine home, and in it, I had a wall mirror from IKEA, which consisted of twelve separate pieces. You might remember my previous pictures from there.

Since I already knew I would have a gym in the new building, I gave away a lot of equipment, but there were several pieces I wanted to bring with me to the new building. Among these items, there were a wall clock and a mirror. You won’t usually think of them as gym equipment, but you notice when they are not present.

I asked the association whether I can install both on them on the gym wall (I was not sure whether I am allowed to make holes in the walls :)). They replied that they would ask a maintenance person who was in charge of these things. The wall clock was easy to install, and also I needed it, so I installed it myself. As for the mirror, it required multiple holes, and I thought that it should be installed by a professional.

A very long email chain followed. Periodically, I asked “where we are” and when the morrow will be installed. I placed the parts and the hardware by the TV so that they would be visible. Twice, I was told “the next week,” and I had to ask again in a week. Finally, I was told that the mirror was installed and that the maintenance person” won’t charge for it.” I went to the gym to check it out.

You won’t believe what I found out!!!

There was a small mirror that somebody brought in a long time before I moved in, and this mirror was standing by a wall. And that was the mirror he installed!!!

I laughed, took the pictures, and emailed the board :).

Finally, ten days later, the correct mirror was installed!

Did I Mention There Is A Gym?

Right there, on the ground level! Since I already knew about that I gave Anna most of my home gym equipment. However, I also knew that there are some things missing, so I brought them in – the TRX, my weighted yoga ball and the yoga ball pumps (and I pumped all of them). Also, an ab wheel. And a couple of rollers.

I also brought my wall mirror, and and talked to the association about the installation.

I can even describe how nice is it to have such a nice gym in your house!

“Be The Change”

I acted according to this statement multiple times in the past couple of weeks. I posted this photo on the instagram today and steered some discussion. Luckily, i have enough supporters 🙂 I am so tired of all this “but it is impossible to wear mask all the time!”

Yes, it is possible to workout in a mask! I purposely chose the hardest on your breath machine for this photo – the stair-climber.

Masks One More Time

I just finished watching this video about ethical questions and COVID vaccine One of the things which were discussed was a fact that not wearing a mask is a disrespect to everybody around you. I agree with this statement entirely, and that being said – back to masks in the gym. After I published that post, I went to the gym on Sunday and discovered the sign requiring to wear masks on the gym door:

I thought that having this sign is out there I will feel comfortable calling out the maskless people. But when the situation presented itself, I didn’t say a world. That kind of behavior does not make me look good, but it is what it is. I quite literally felt scared around these big guys!

Now, I need to decide whether I will be ready “to say something,” or I should just stop going to the gym till the end of March!

Masks During Workouts

This morning, I went to the gym for the first time in a while. I stopped going due to a number of reasons: first, the cases were up, then I was traveling, then there was too cold and/or too much snow. Then Anna and her family were visiting.   

There were quite a bit of people even at 5-30 AM, and once again, there were people without masks (masks in the gyms are mandated only in the city). Previously, I would leave the gym in such a situation, but today, since there were more masked people than unmasked, I thought that rather than they make me uncomfortable, I would make them uncomfortable 🙂 And I succeeded, at least partially. 

I saw on their Instagram that they are planning a Member’s Appreciation Day on Saturday. I do not get how in the world they came up with this idea! Prizes! Free food! Free haircuts! Free workouts from 9 AM to 3 PM!

I will stop now and will paste here the text from today’s Tribune – see below (I know that sometimes Tribune does not show the content to non-subscribers).

From Chicago Tribune:

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A Lonely Gym Goer

I thought it was a really funny picture. Since there is no mask mandate in our gym, and although some people wear masks, not everybody does, I only go there very early in the morning, wear a mask and leave when the first person after me arrives. I took this picture when I was leaving the gym last week, and this first person just came in.

New Year’s Motivations

This year might be not exactly a year to have a resolution about going to the gym, because… well, everybody knows why. Still, trying to keep my tradition of motivating people to exercise, I am posting the pictures I took in my home gym with minimal equipment On December 31 and January 1. I am not saying, you can do it no matter what, but I am saying, you can definitely do something :).

Now I am back to maintaining this balance on both left and right side for 40 sec
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