I've found myself with some extra time on my hands, like a little vacation. Oh, I'm still hunting around for a full-time job, but my phone isn't exactly ringing off the hook with offers. In the meantime, the house is strangely clean, and on nice-weather days, I have taken bike rides to nowhere in particular, which strangely, is not perceived as strange at all...
And y'know we have that gym membership, which we actually do use with some regularity. A couple of times a week, I get emails from them with "exclusive" offers for fancy things like complementary personal training sessions or couple's massage or a mani-pedi - none of which I take them up on.
Last week I got a similar email and decided to take them up on the free exclusive offer. I thought, "What else I got to do?" Plus, it sounded downright tasty. Oops
Today I went in and had an hour's worth of free pilates - NOT pie and lattes.
It was advertised as a one-on-one session, but when I arrived at my appointed time, the instructor told me she'd overbooked and there would actually be three of us. This was fine with me, and in hindsight, it would've been kinda weird to be just me and the instructor, so yay for overbooking!
I've never done pilates and knew absolutely nothing. There's an area at the gym with these weird contraptions that I think are for pilates. The instructor took us back to this cave-like room with several large contraptions called Reformers. In no time, we were Pilate-ing away and looking darn good doing it!
Okay, I lied. It was much more this
ANYWAY... it was a pretty good time. I was a total kindergartner in the Pilates school, but so were my two companions - a man and woman, both around their late 30s I'd guess. The guy actually was rehabing a pretty intense back injury. I was curious as to what happened to him, but didn't ask.
I thought it similar to yoga, in that form is very important. Also, the machinery isn't necessary, there are a lot of pilates moves just done on a mat, like yoga, or that incorporate those big exercise balls. We did some things with a ring that looks like a steering wheel, and made me feel like a total weakling.
Also, similar to yoga, the instructor told us to do confusing things like "knit your ribs together", "open your collarbone", "maintain a neutral pelvis"... wha?
Other times, she'd use more simple universal terms like, "tighten just below the boobies"...
As far as what it felt like?
Yeah, it burned. She'd get us doing some Pilates-thing, and then go over to help one of use while we others were burning. Were we supposed to keep doing the thing?
We were all little obedient newbies, and just did whatever she told us to do, despite the burn, until she told us to stop.
Thank God for stop.
So that was my little staycation adventure today. What'd you do with your spare time?
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Linking up with Mama Kat this week for the prompt:
4. Write a blog post inspired by the word: staycation.
12 comments:
You're so brave to try something new at the gym. I go regularly, but always to the same area where I feel very comfortable. I just recently started going to the gym here in Joplin. That was a big enough stretch for me.
I have just finished my 9th day in a row of 12+ hour days, and I am beat. Heading black to St. Louis this weekend to watch Mario graduate. I am SO ready for a staycation. Sign me up for the massage.....
I wish there was a way to swap out some of my lull for some of your 12+ hour days. Enjoy graduation!
Your graphics are hilarious. =)
My business slows down around this time too- it's also pretty school-centered. Unfortunately most of my down time isn't alone and free. If it was, I'd probably go to the gym or paint.
For the most part, it's usually by boys, my dogs, and myself all on a geocaching adventure. It's a fun and free way to keep my kids active and we've seen a lot of great sight's we'd have otherwise missed.
That gym picture of the person is flipping over is hysterical. Wow, that's a fancy gym offering mani-pedi's as a freebie. Our fitness is just plain ol' classes or equipment. No freebies. I do Zumba & Yoga 1 (which is a gentle stretching yoga). If they offer a free Zumba, I recommend that. Fun stuff. (I forgot half a sentence so I had to delete the original comment.)
A fellow geocacher! We only discovered it recently. Wish we'd have done it when the kids were younger. Great way to explore new places. Good activity for either a stay- or a vay-cay!
Actually, I think the mani-pedis and massages are offered at discounts, not free. I usually don't read the entire email :). But it is a pretty posh club, especially for folks like Magnum and me (our son chose it).
They do offer free initial personal training or yoga or pilates and probably other stuff too. Of course, then you're expected to sign up for paid $e$$ions...
I am impressed with you trying something new like this, I'm not too sure about knitting ribs together, opening my collar bone, or maintaining a neutral pelvis, this doesn't sound like yoga terms more like something that would happen in an accident, but I also thought a mani pedi had something to do with a man getting his nails done.....
I remember a guy I knew thinking that manicures were for people and pedicures were for dogs. He was joking, right?
Fun post! I have done pilates sporadically --- it definitely has a very specific approach and form is key. Good for you for taking on something different!
I just wanted to check it out. I don't think I'll be doing any classes, but it was interesting - something to keep in my back pocket.
Oh interesting! I've always wanted to try pilates because I want to look like that picture of perfection you posted above...but I definitely think I'd end up destroying equipment and hurting myself somehow in the process instead. ;)
Well, if it's free, where's the harm?
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