Since I quit using drugs, I have always belonged to a gym.
A decade ago, I belonged to Paramount Fitness w/ my x. This gym gave discounts to city employees so there were tons of cops there. Cops and criminals both. It was just a big building, one large space, with tons and tons of weight equipment. Upstairs there was a tiny room where the cop's wives would take step aerobics and kickboxing. The kickboxing teacher was also a black belt in karate and she taught to the police academy.
After Paramount, I joined Bally Total Fitness. It's a "pretty" gym. Tons of pretty boys and girls, perfectly manicured and muscly. Tons of mirrors. Big space for step aerobics, kickboxing, and later, yoga. A track you could run around 12 times to make a mile. A weight room with all the latest equipment. Row after row of every kind of cardio machine you can imagine. Downstairs there was a pool, whirlpool, steam room, and dry heat sauna. Last year Dominic got kicked out of Bally's. He went off on the manager when the whirlpool was closed for 4 weeks in a row, and
my hair was fried from the nasty pool.
So we joined the YMCA.
The Y is....different. The Y by my house is convenient. It has everything I need. A weight room, a pool, both indoor and out, whirlpool, steam room, sauna...but it's not "pretty". There are no perfectly manicured girls chatting on their cell phones on the treadmill. There isn't a lot of mirror space. The cardio machines and weight room are all in the same room, and at night, the windows get all steamed up from the sweat.
But I love the Y. And I have 15 locations to pick from in Cincinnati. So when I found out my Y's pool was going to be shut down for 12 days, I decided to try the downtown Y.
And what an adventure that was!!
I knew it was located about 4 blocks from where I used to buy dope downtown in the ghetto. That doesn't make me nervous, cuz
I run through there on occasion. There is no parking lot, so you can either pay to park, or find a spot on the street. I found one on the street. In an alley. Where a few drunks were hanging out, sharing a bottle.
It was a 9 story building, beyond ancient. I walked up the steps and entered the lobby and the lady behind the desk swiped my card. I asked her where the pool was, and then the locker room. The place was massive! She came around from behind the desk and walked with me up the steps.
The women's locker room had a coded lock! She gave me the code and said "we lock the women up here, just in case". I was like "oh, wow". Just in case some guy were to come in and rape you. The women's locker room had a whirlpool, showers, and old TV, mats to do ab work, and a steam room.
So I decide not to fuck with the locker room, or the coded lock. I headed back downstairs to explore some. The lower level had a weight room. Well, there were like 4 different rooms with various weight equipment. All of it old. One room had a punching bag. Another room had free weights. Another room had machines.
I did 35 minutes of back, tri-ceps and shoulders. Some of the machines were missing the pin that goes into the weight blocks. Most of the benches were taped down with duct tape. It was gritty and grimy and I loved it.
I decided I better lock up my purse before I headed down another level to the pool. So back up the steps I go to the locker room. I stopped at the desk and asked if there was a back way to the pool, since the pool was 3 floors below the locker room. Nope. That meant I either came down through the lobby in my suit, or wear my sweats to the pool with me. So I did the latter. I locked up my purse and dragged my gym bag down to the pool with me.
The lifeguard was sitting in the corner, talking on the phone. He was an older guy, I doubt he could swim 10 laps. I grabbed a kickboard and started my 1st swim workout on my IMKY schedule.
Warm up:
1x400 (50 free, 50 kick)
8x100 (25e, 25f, 25e, 25f). The schedule didn't mention how long to rest so I gave myself 10 seconds.
6x25 cool down.
1350y. Not long enough of a workout to get wet, but whatever. I have a fucking schedule now.
After my short swim, I headed back upstairs. Since I had to walk through the lobby, I put my sweatshirt on over my wet suit and wrapped my towel around my waist, and headed back up the 3 flights of steps.
Upstairs, I saw a sign that said "track". I was like "cool", let's go see. Man, I wish I had known about this track this winter when the snow and ice were around! It looks like a 200m and it's above the basketball court.
I LOVE the downtown Y! It was definitely an experience. That place is so cool. SO unlike any "pretty" gym but MUCH MORE of a gym. You know what I mean?
After I got home, I had one final workout on the schedule.
45 minutes on the bike. 15 minutes in the little ring and 30 minutes in the big ring. Not enough time to get geared up and ride outside. So I did it on
d's-motion rollers. I crashed once and scared the shit out of the dogs.
