Dry run

Last night I ran to the gym in the rain to run in the dry.

I have been spending most of my training time in the gym lately, with one outside run last Sunday morning, which really felt like hard work. Something I have noticed about being in the company of others whilst exercising is how damn distracting they are. Now this can be a good thing, something to take your mind off it all, but it can also drive you almost crazy. I was charging along on the treadmill the other day with a chap next to me getting quite sweaty, working hard, going quite fast and all of a sudden he started hitting and clutching his left arm. ‘Oh shit!’ I thought ‘he’s having a heart attack’. I was all set to pause my Garmin when he started bashing his right arm too. I was still a bit concerned, but soon realised he was doing a sort of self-congratulatory bicep apreciation move. Last night I was next to crazy lady who had the treadmill set to steep hill and was marching upwards with her head held right back, as if she was looking at the sky. No, I have no idea either. Spinning offers up the most annoyances. On Sunday I was next to Rag Dolly Anna, flopping around from side to side, up and down with each turn of the pedal, while all the time the instructor was shouting: ‘Try and keep your upper bodies still!’. Poor fella, he is really good and teaches in a challenging and well structured way, but half of the muppets in there choose to ignore him and just do their own thing. As we ease towards the cool-down, people start dismounting mid-sprint and leaving the studio; one day one of them will end up flat on the floor when their heart rate plummets too quickly and they pass out.

Yes, this is the sort of thing I have going through my head as I try and exercise.

So, that’s a few treadmill runs of around 3.5 miles, numerous Spinning classes and some Swiss Ball balancinf acts near the grunting zone.