May 4 – A Young’Un at the Senior Center Gym

After 4 requests and 3 weeks, I got my doctor’s official permission to exercise at the local senior center.  And an appointment to be oriented.  People at the senior center often look at me as if I’m not really old enough to belong there.  I wasn’t sure that I wanted this orientation from an officious gatekeeper, but it’s the price of admission, so I set up the appointment.

The officious gatekeeper disapproves of my shoes (Birkenstock “sandals”), but I insist that these are the only shoes I can wear and, thus, they are the safest option for me.  My feet won’t slide around in them.  We review my health history, and he turns friendly & considerate.  Not patronizing, either.  He is much more inquisitive than the younger fitness trainer at the commercial gym about injuries or weaknesses that may need to be worked around.  At both places, I have to sign away my right to complain (or sue) if unsafe conditions result in a personal injury.

We tour the exercise machines, finding a baseline for my performance on each one that he thinks will be good for me.  I’m surprised at how weak some of my muscle groups are, considering how much I’ve done lately with my cycling & upper body muscles.  And I’m very surprised to discover that some machines at this community center offer muscle workouts that none of the machines at the commercial gym provide!  

I’ve gone far beyond wanting an occasional rowing experience to supplement my cycling exercise.  Now I want a full active playtime and lots of variety from day to day.  I’m wondering how many playtime sessions at the two gyms I can work into my week, along with cycling for mileage.  And gardening.  I feel like I’m really on my way!