Why the Gym Locker Room is Basically a Spa Day for a New Mom

For years after having the kiddos ( you know, those years spent getting your groove / body back to were it once was .... which, let's face it, it's not .... but that's another post ...) I became a gym rat.  It was my place of refuge - it's "what we did" during the day in addition to the typical new-mom circuit of Target and Panera Bread.

Two-three hours of babysitting with the YMCA employees who grew to be more like family than anything else ... that was something I looked forward to daily.  They would feed, change, soothe.... hell yes.  And I was only - at max - 100 feet away in the building somewhere.  Needless to say, I was counting down the 6 week "off" period with each baby waiting for my small, but meaningful reprieve from baby duty .... even if it meant sweating my ass off on the treadmill.

As a former employee of Starbucks (I still to this day consider that the absolute best job I ever had ... like I was actually the lucky one to have been able to work there .... again, another post! ;) we received some of the best training available - in my opinion.  In my 4 years of employment, we received training on customer service that I've carried with me to this day - including creating what we called the "Third Place" within the store.  The third place is not your home or work, but it's that "other" place you feel comfortable and look forward to coming to.  It should be easy and nice and enjoyable .... your "third place" .... In the 12-24 months following a new child, the YMCA gym was most certainly my "third place".

Hell, sometimes I was tired!  Like, "no one slept last night and we can't find shoes so we wear our Crocs in the middle of winter" kind of tired.

We still headed to the gym.  Why?  Well, there's this magical place where no children are allowed.  Where the showers are cleaned by someone else and there's no little fist knocking at the door asking for Goldfish and milk while you're trying to rinse shampoo from your hair for the first time in 6 days.  Where there are other adults, dressing themselves without asking for help, and the mirrors are clear of grimy handprints and the floor free from baby toys and markers without lids.  Ah... the magical heavenly haven known as the "Women's Locker Room".

On tired, non-workout days, I'd literally pack a lunch - like a grade school field trip - and a shower bag- drop the kiddos off at the playroom, and make a bee-line to the women's locker room.

Here I would enjoy a luxurious 2 hour spa day including:

~ Shower for one  (20-25 minute treatment) includes shampoo, conditioner, liquid soap on washcloth exfoliating and cleansing, underarm shave, leg shave (above the knee is extra), and towel dry.
~ Blowout (10-15 minute treatment) includes quick dry with low-power-motor dryer and one try-to-do-it-all hair product application.
~ Lunch (30 minutes) a delightful blend of last nights' dinner and children snacks deemed healthy but yummy enough to serve as a 'lunch' type food

So yes, some days the gym was about the physical well-being .. other days, about the mental.  Both equally important - some more enjoyable than others.  And the kiddos? Um, super happy!  Other children and non-parental figures stimulating their little minds... invoking discovery, independence and socialization.   Boom - like free pre-preschool!  I'd pick them up feeling like a new mommy ... ready to take on the rest of our day (yeah, probably Target - maybe Starbucks ... you know the drill) and all the while being extremely happy to pay that monthly gym membership - which for our family was so much MORE than just that!

PS: Be sure to follow my blog ... I'm back!  All kinds of fun stuff coming like FitBit Charge HR vs Apple Watch, why your butt gets fat when you're pregnant (and why it's a good thing) and how yoga pants changed everything. ;-)

Weekly Weigh-In: Week 6

This week started off really well... but I've had some mild to moderate stomach issues since about Thursday that have yet to subside (NO IDEA what's going on.... I'll keep you posted if I ever find out!) BUT, I had an awesome workout on Saturday, attending 2 of the best classes at my gym that morning! I burned 850 calories in that workout alone! I've also been trying to incorporate more of the Hoopnotica workout into my home routines ... I am so over crunches right now!

So here are the stats:

Accomplishments

Calories Burned: 2538

Total Workouts: 8

Total Workout Time: 7:28

One more week until we leave for Huntington Beach for 2 weeks... which basically means living in a bathing suit! Ahh!

Seriously??

I'm sure we've all heard someone (or ourselves) use the phrase "I could screw up a toaster waffle" to illustrate how bad we are at cooking. It's supposed to be a funny 'dig' on ourselves, but for the most part, I think we all know that it's nearly impossible to screw up a toaster product besides just burning it! NOT TRUE! My morning started out as any other ... Connor gets me up, I drink coffee and he drinks juice, he eats a banana and I have cereal, then he wants "mo" (which means 'more' for those of you who don't speak toddler) and I throw in an Eggo. SO, I grab the waffle from the box in the freezer and throw it in the toaster while simultaneously pushing the lever down. Big mistake! Somehow the waffle got lodged between the wall of the toaster and the little metal basket piece!! I tried to get it out with my fingers, but couldn't! Meanwhile, the waffle is smoking and charring onto the inside of the toaster!! I quickly unplugged the toaster and began trying to dig the waffle out of the toaster with no luck. I'm looking at the stupid thing right now and I'm not doing anything more with it. This is going to be Jamie's little project when he gets home tonight! You now officially know someone who screwed up making a toaster waffle. Wow. I guess I should have read the directions:

"1.)Place the waffle in the toaster. 2.) Press arm down. 3.) Wait for it to pop up. WARNING: Do not perform steps one and two simultaneously. Possible disaster could occur!"

On a different note, I am freezing and it's not even cold outside. After consistently getting HUGE LG&E bills this winter, I've decided that I am no longer going to have a warm home. It used to not be a big deal, but with the crappy economy and pressure to spend less, quick frankly, the LG&E bill is really cutting into my spending money. So, I turned both our thermostats down 3 degrees for the Morning, Afternoon, Evening, and Night settings! Even Jamie has been cold lately and I keep Connor in layers. Hopefully this will buy us at least a tank of gas! We'll see... I'll report back!

To stay out of the cold house more (and to get in swimsuit shape for Jamaica in a few weeks!) we've been going to the gym a lot! (well, a lot more than usual... which was once per week!) I even bought a heart rate monitor watch that calculates your calories burned and target heart rate during workouts! Awesome! It's really cute and pink (see picture... isn't she cute?) which is an added bonus! I've actually already noticed a difference in how I feel and how clothes fit from working out more... which is motivating on top of the fancy watch!

Well, I'm off to go walking OUTSIDE! That's right! The weather is finally shaping up! I wonder how long it will be until we can safely dry-clean and store all heavy sweaters and coats!! Vote on it at the top right side of the page!

Busy Busy Week!!

As usual, getting back to the hustle and bustle after the holidays is hard. After a devastating loss to U of Smell in basketball, I wasn't much in the mood to hop on the happy train and take down Christmas decorations in the house .... therefore, they are still mostly up and it's a little bit embarrassing ... especially since I've had to DT parties at my house this week... so people notice!!

This week (and last!) has been a real booger as far as my schedule! OMG we have had so much to do! Now, reality is setting in that we are going to be taking a 9-hour mini-van trek to New York in less than a week and MAYBE I need to start planning for that a little bit!!

SO far, I have stocked up on Gerber Puffs and Crunchies (moms, if you have not tried these Crunchies yet .... get in the car now and go buy them!! Connor LOVES them... they are my new favorite thing to bring to the mall as a 'happy maker'! They are like puffy Cheetos for babies... amazing!) and we bought a portable DVD player for the car (this is our third one since our honeymoon.... I suggest getting an extended warranty on these puppies! What a load of crap!). These things might be the only way we have even a chance of making it up to New York without me jumping out of a moving car or resorting to heavy drinking.
side-thought: Lisa just had her tonsils taken out and has some great meds .... too bad I'm not a pill head!! (haha) - actually, I guess that's really not funny....
moving on...

So right now I'm waiting on Connor to awaken and we are headed to the gym. Unfortunately, my laziness over the holidays and not going to the gym for OVER a month has caused Connor to regress back into crying while in the kid's area at the gym. We went through this before and then got over it ... so we'll see if it's any better today!