My expected long run with friends did not happen yesterday, but I managed to score a ride with one of them to the Nanaimo Aquatic Centre for my swimming cross-training. I’m fairly new to the Centre and not familiar with all of its services, so I asked at the reception area about the weight room facility. I figured that I might as well get acquainted with some of the equipment therein, since I had some extra time on my hands. I was informed that my 10 pass card included both the swimming pool and the weight room (or gym as I prefer to call it) with the single check-in. Alright… Look out gym here I come.
I should check my enthusiasm and confess right now that I’m not a fitness gym fan. I find all those machines rather intimidating, not to mention rather unnatural. I would much rather be outside or work out without equipment. I mean why run on a treadmill when one could run on a trail? Why ride a spin machine when one could ride a bike outside? Why use the weight machines when would could do a yoga class with lots of body strengthening poses, such as planks, chatarungas, side planks, boat poses, and handstands. And don’t get me started on all the other benefits of yoga that seem to be noticeably absent in gyms, e.g. meditation, peacefulness, and balancing.
Despite all that I decided to check out the gym and chose to use the treadmill as I really did want to get in a run before my swim. I have used treadmills in the past in hotels where I did not know the city well and only had a short time to exercise, but I have never had a good experience with them. For example, the first time I used one, I fell off the back twice. Embarrassing and slightly painful. I also find watching TV, which most hotel gyms provide, while running so antithetical. It was probably during the TV watching, that I became momentarily distracted and slowed down my pace enough to fall off the back.
So it was with some apprehension that I approached the only person with a “staff” vest in the gym to ask about the treadmills. Perhaps because she was also wielding a broom I might have suspected that she was not the best person to ask. However, she cheerfully took me over to the treadmills and gave me a brief rundown on their usage, which was to show me the start button, the speed buttons, the incline buttons and perhaps most importantly the large stop button. Humm, all things that I could have figured out myself. I asked her if the machine indicated the total distance run and she said that she thought so. Ummm, I thanked her, climbed on and pushed start. Now you are probably thinking, why did I bother asking anyone about such an obvious machine. Well, I was seriously hoping for some tips that would possibly help me like these machines. Nope, did not get that.
As the treadmill slowly kicked into gear, I pushed the speed increase button to start my 3-5 minutes of warm-up. Within 2 minutes I was warm enough to take my long sleeve layer off. Did I mention that I’d dressed in multiple layers expecting to run outside in snowy -6 degree weather? I slowed the machine down and did a jumping jack leap to the runner boards on the side of the treadmill, removed said shirt and leapt back on to the moving tread. (Note to self, bring shorts for inside workout, rather than long running tights.) Up went the speed again and I was doing just fine running at 8:00 minutes per something. There was no indication that the pace was in kilometres or miles. There was a distance recorded, but again no indication of which system it was measuring. I decided that the pace was good and carried on, really only caring about the duration.
At about the 10 minute mark, I increased the pace and watched as a car pulled into the parking space right in front of the window where I looked out. Oh, I should mention that the treadmills all face outside perhaps giving some perverse illusion that you are actually running outside. However, they all overlook a parking lot, which offers no level of beauty. Meanwhile back to the fellow parking his car right in the handicapped parking space while I watched. I noted that there was no handicapped parking pass hanging off his mirror, so I awaited with some indignation to see what he would do about that. He stayed in the car for quite some time, perhaps listening as I often do to the end of a good story on the radio. Just prior to disembarking his car, he swung down the sun visor above the driver side and there it was, the handicapped parking pass. What a relief… And as I watched him open his door, shuttle to the back of his car and pull out a sports bag, I was cheering him on for coming to the Centre for exercise. I was also very pleased that he gave me something to watch and to think about for about 5 minutes while I mindlessly ran on the treadmill.
Nothing else was happening in the parking lot so my gaze wandered to the treadmill walkers to either side of me. At that moment of inattention I apparently sped up faster than the treadmill pace and managed to inadvertently push the stop button in my effort to rebalance. While relieved that I did not fall off the back of the treadmill, I was annoyed that I had to start again at the beginning of my “run.” I pushed the go button again and it was at that point that I decided to pay attention to the machine itself. There were all sorts of numbers and images on the console and the touch screen offered a few more choices. For example, I learned that I could have selected some pre-programmed 30 minute runs, with up hills and down hills. That would have been more fun than pushing the speed and incline buttons myself. Given that a large font message on the machine indicated that there was a 30 minute time limit, I didn’t chose one of these runs for the second half of my run. Perhaps next time.
I became very bored with the treadmill after about another 10 minutes and decided it was time to hit the pool for a few laps. In looking back at this event, I might try it again, if…
- the weather was much colder, e.g. sub -10 degrees and not so sunny
- it was snowing hard and/or there was lots of snow on the paths
- I had my ear buds so I could listen to my upbeat running music (apparently this is one of the best motivating factors for keeping people going the distance on the treadmill).
- I knew more about how the machines work and knew some treadmill running techniques
- I had a workout program to follow
- there were something interesting to look at (i.e. not a TV, nor a parking lot; perhaps a swimming pool)
- I was more motivated to use these machines
Despite my abject failure with the treadmill, my swim was great and I managed to get in a 1k run from the Nanaimo Aquatic Centre to downtown Nanaimo. The path beside a fairly busy city street was a bit icy in places, which makes me want to encourage everyone to clear their sidewalks and be considerate of walkers, runners, wheelchairers, and stroller pushers ; it is after all the law in Nanaimo as it is in most cities.
I am a runner.
hee hee–I can relate. Weight rooms have always left me uninspired. Fortunately we usually persevere and get out most weathers don’t we? Of course, the footnote here is that, later in the day you DID get out (and so did I, thanks to you) for a real run, in the snow and ice!
Yes, running with a friend outside in the cold and snow and ice is a thousand times better than running on a treadmill in a gym.