Yay, Connie on your gym going self! And yay meara for signing up for trainer sessions.

Since I hate exercise with the heat of a thousand suns, gym memberships merely gather dust with me. The one time it worked for me was when I first got turned on to power yoga, but that was just a perfect storm of great class, great teacher, and convenience.

I love the power yoga studio that's near me, but the classes are just a bit too much for me since the anemia and surgery, so I'm easing back into the working out thing with ballroom dancing. I've been going for about a month and I LOVE it. It's crazy expensive, but I love going because I'm constantly learning something new and challenging myself and it incorporates so many of my interests.

I hate the hamster part of the gym. but if I can get to the point where it starts being additive to my life, I can deal.

Great job Connie, and you too barb. I've enjoied hearing about your dance classes. Good luck meara

For some reason, the only exercise I can sustain is kettlebell. Gym memberships last a few months and then wither from disuse. I'm so monomaniacal about kettlebell I won't do the parts of the class where we have to put the kettlebell down. Not sure why.

Martial arts aren't exercise. That's a whole different vibe. I can (and have) do that for days. I have nothing against physical exertion. I quite like a good endorphin rush or adrenaline high. I'm just picky about the point.

Martial arts aren't exercise. That's a whole different vibe.

This is how I feel about dancing--I might be out of breath and sweaty after a fast dance, but it's not the same at all. Sadly, just dancing does not keep me enough in shape, so trainer it is. Today was the first one, and I felt dead by the end. Oy. Am hoping I am still able to move tomorrow.

When I get home from PDX, I am going to work on getting back in the habit of using the exercise bike every day. My other goal is to start using my little weights to do something about my arms.

Man, this week in PDX with Cass has been wonderfully relaxing. Exactly what I needed.

There might come a point where just dancing won't do it, but in terms of getting myself started and feeling as if I've worked out without feeling completely dead afterward, it's absolutely perfect.

The only kind of gym work that has kept me going back time after time is self-directed free weights. I keep a log to chart progress, and change up my routine every six weeks or so. It keeps things from getting dull.

I need to find a tutorial or something for what free weights involve, and then, oh, start doing them.

I think I used my dumb-bell set more when I had a tv. I'd do exercises during commercials.

Jilli, if you tense your muscles before doing each exercise and do each curl very slowly, you will get much better results. I really need to get a set myself for when I'm too lazy to go to the gym. I could teach you a number of exercises for various muscles if I could teleport.