Hurt me good baby!

Three weeks ago I started a gym membership. It had been ten years since I had set foot in a gym. I worked out all my major muscle groups every other day during that first week. After workout day two, I woke up nearly locked up. It took me five minutes of stretching just to be able to move like a robot. I was a pathetic little geek for a couple days after my leg workout. I secretly laughed at myself when I saw my reflection in windows and mirrors as I walked around. I was walking like an eighty year old man and stairs scared the hell out of me for a whole day. After the first week of shock, my muscles awoke from their atrophy and now I feel that good pain after my workouts. That little pain that tells you the muscle is there and getting healthier.

I'm a lucky guy. The only time I've ever been in a hospital, I was either getting stitches or a cast. Now that I'm getting up there in years, my biggest concern is my heart. My dad had a heart attack. My grandfather died of a heart attack. And my dad suspects that my uncle, who supposedly fell asleep behind the wheel, died of one as well. One of my goals with my new membership is to get the old ticker pumping strong again. The best way I know to do this is to run. Sadly, after two years of running two miles a day and ten on Friday in the Army, my left knee is probably going to have to be replaced before I die. Now I don't run anymore unless it's after something or from something. Actual running for any more than a sprint kills me. I did, thanks to my not so cheap gym, find a great alternative. Let me say thank you to the dude/chick that invented the elliptical machine. I love that thing. It's the closest I can come to actually running with zero impact to my knee. The first time I got on the thing, I went for about ten minutes before I damn near fell off. Ten years of smoking and couch potato brought my stamina to near zero. What really scared me was my heart rate. There is a chart on the machine that says my heart rate should be around 130-140 while I'm rolling. On that first day, after thirteen whole minutes, my heart rate was 178!?! Lets just say that it worried me just a tiny little bit. I gave myself some time to work before I panicked and this last Thursday I ran on the the elliptical for fifty five minutes and my heart rate never went over 156.

I feel stronger, more alert, and more alive than I have in years. I don't think keeping up with my exercise is going to be a problem.