Weds. Sports Conditioning Class

Monday’s 12 days of Christmas workout really wore me out, so I was forced to take Tuesday off. Wednesday's Sports Conditioning class was better than last week's, but really last week's was just a mess, so the bar was pretty low. I enjoyed the class, but I just felt out of sorts throughout the whole class. The time change has played havoc with my internal clock and mad waking up for the morning class more difficult. This class starts at 6am, and I would normally get up around 4:15, so that I would feel awake by the time class began, but this morning I woke up at 5:25, which was enough time to get there but, made things more rushed than I would have liked. There were no major changes to the class from what we have been doing, so I am not going to bother with the details of the workout, since they can be found in my older posts.

Another reason why I didn't feel good about this class was all of the rep skipping that was going on, which really shouldn't bother me but does. It just sucks to be the very last person to finish what you are doing, but I just hate skipping reps. I understand someone skipping an exercise if it is something that is causing pain or you just can't do, but skipping reps to stay with the pack doesn't help a person get stronger. Personally, I would rather push myself; so that someday I can reach the point where I can do everything the instructor gives us to do. Another reason why I think it bothers me is that it makes for a lonely class. I mean part of the reason that I go to the classes is the social component. I can work out around people anytime at the gym, but I take classes because I want to be part of the group and to socialize, which is difficult thing when you are the only person still working on a task and everyone else is across the gym seeming staring at you. They may even be admiring your tenacity (at least that is what I hope they are doing), but it doesn't really matter because you're still, and now the difficulty of the task is coupled with your natural desire to be part of the group. Personally, I feel that having the internal strength to resist the temptation to skip reps to stay with the group is more important than having the strength in my arms to do twenty pushups. It is this mental strength that will keep me going to the gym when the scales are not being kind, and it is that strength that will keep pushing me to get up at 4am.  However, sometimes this class make me feel like I would just be better off running alone in a desert.