Preposterous Statements: why I can't go to the gym

As many of you know, I have given my notice of cancellation at LTF. I just can't justify the cost of their monthly membership, when I don't currently use the services (group fitness & the pool) that would make that worth it. So I have the month of October to figure out what I'm going to do instead. One of my options is the gym in my building. This isn't a long-term solution - - it only has about 5 pieces of cardio equipment, and very few weights - - but would work just fine for a month or two, to get me back on track. So last night I hatched a plan. I was going to get up this morning and go check it out. I was working the late shift today, so had an extra half-hour to work with this morning - so as you can see, the stars were aligning for success! I set my alarm, and drifted off to sleep...visualizing myself workin' it on the elliptical...

How things can change in 8 hours. My excitement over this new option went from red hot at 10pm, to non-existent at 6am. While I was sitting on the can trying to talk myself into it, Remus kept arguing with me! Here's a little of how it went -

Me: just do it.
Remus: but what if people are in there
Me: who gives a shit - you aren't shy, and you'll feel so much better if you go.
Remus: yeah - but is it really worth going through all the work of getting ready to possibly get down there and have people using all of the equipment?
Me: whatever - how likely is that, really?
Remus: well, do what you want - but wouldn't you be better-served by 45 more minutes of sleep?
Me: (silence)

Remus won. I didn't go. I laid in bed, feeling like a lazy pile. I really didn't go because I though all of the equipment might be in use? Really? I can really come up with some absurd shit. And that got me thinking....this isn't the first time I've talked myself out of a workout using this flimsy crap.

But...I can't watch what I want...

So I decided to make a list of my most frequent, toxic, mind-thoughts. A list of crazed confessions, if you will. And let me state for the record: if I heard anyone else using these as excuses, I'd slap them....or at least really want to slap them....but like waxing my eyebrows - I just can't do it to myself. So I thought maybe by sharing them, I might be compelled to stop using them? It's a crap-shoot, but worth a shot! So here are a few more:

• (typically thought on Sunday night)..."I have to go back to a full week of work tomorrow. I better just take it easy, so I'm ready"....because sitting on my ass at a desk is something I couldn't do if I burned a couple hundred calories the night before. And why isn't this the rationale during the week, when I still have to go to work the next day? No damn idea.
• "The gym is going to be soooooo busy". Yes - until you hit the jackpot and can install a home gym (to probably just avoid, also), you are going to have to deal with other people there as well. The good news? Some of them might be hot. So just get your ass there.
• "My shoes are worn out, and I need new ones". Maybe if I was a distance runner. Maybe if I was partaking in some sort of specialized training. Maybe...oh forget it! There is no probable instance in my foreseeable lifetime where my tennis shoes should hinder me from a workout. Short of the soles literally coming off - there is nothing. I could make it through a typical workout in my socks with very little issue - so the fact that I want to blame my laziness on my shoes is asinine.
• "There probably won't be any good parking spots at the gym, and I'll have to park far away". Ummm - HELLO!! Why the hell are you going to the gym? Heaven forbid you walk an extra 100 feet on actual ground, instead of a treadmill. Idiot.
• "The channel I want to watch isn't in front of the equipment I like to use". This is what people on twitter would call a #FirstWorldProblem. Basically meaning - there are people in this world with real issues, so quit your damn bitching about something so damn insignificant, and get your ass to the gym - but that hash-tag would be too long.
• "My comfortable gym clothes are all dirty" to appreciate this one, you have to understand that I don't wear cute things to the gym. I wear some variation of sweatpants and old booze t-shirts. So it isn't like all of my matching separates are dirty. And I could go to the gym twice a day for two weeks, and not run out of t-shirts. Basically, my nice loose stuff - - you know what I'm talking about - the stuff that doesn't make you feel like you're wearing a sausage casing - - is dirty. And it's probably dirty from sitting on my ass around the house. If only my mind could comprehend that all of those slightly tight shirts would fit a whole lot better if I just went to the gym...but alas, my mind is dumb sometimes.

I'm sure there are, and will be more...but this is what I could remember off the top of my head. Now if only I could use this mind for good, instead of evil....

Do you have a favorite go-to excuse for skipping a workout?

A Budget: The New Motivation?

I am still struggling to make the time to get on here and blog! I apologize that they're so spread out. I think about things I want to share, constantly - but I'm just not making the time to get on there and do it. That will change. It has to. I miss it. I am learning that I do not adapt quickly to the circumstances around me. I've been working for 2+ months not, and I've been moved for 1+ month, and I'm still not getting it fully together.

I am horrific at time management outside of work - which let's be honest, is probably a direct reflection of the fact that I haven't needed any in well over a year. I am also determined to be more financially responsible than I've been in....ever - so I don't dig myself back into the hole I was in around April of this year. Adjusting to only 2 pay periods a month is much more challenging than I would have thought it would be.

But I'm doing it. And I'll be fine. And I'll get my shit together. And I'll be a frickin' rock-star. It might just take a little longer than I had anticipated - but doesn't everything?

So I have found one major perk to my current $$ situation. It has forced me, now that I actually give a shit about going in debt, to devise a budget. I guess I should be more clear - I've devised many budgets in my life, but I have stuck to exactly zero of them. This time I'm doing, and will do, better. (about damn time....I'm 36) So that perk....you know what you can't do if you're on a budget? Eat out all the time. Specifically - you can't eat fast food all the time. What is one of my major weaknesses? Fast food. TA-DA!!! Problem solves itself! It is magical!

Last weekend, for what may have been the first time in my life, I actually prepared meals for the week. Again - I've hit the planning stage of this many, many, many times...but seemed to always fall short in the execution phase. And as much as it amazed me - it did actually make this week super-easy, because all of my lunches were made. Who would have thought that all of those nutritionists/health-professionals, hell - even Rachel Ray - would have been right!?!? Maybe I should start listening to these guys a little more often. I'm almost a believer! Almost.

Slimming Down to Sexy Food Review: My favorite trial: turkey tacos using the 40% less sodium seasoning + greek yogurt instead of sour cream + a little bit of cheese + sauteed red and green peppers = deliciousness. A couple of notes: I don't know why the hell they put that extra 40% sodium in the regular seasoning. It is completely superfluous. I, and I'm willing to bet you, don't need it! And the issue I've had with even the fruity flavored greek yogurts in the past - the fact that they taste like sour cream - can actually be a huge benefit when you love sour cream, but don't want the completely empty/useless calories. Greek yogurt is proteiny, so the "people in the know" (see also: nutritionist/health people above) say it is a much better option for us.

I also wanted to share a couple of other food-related finds with you. Let me preface this by admitting once again that I am a person who craves immediate gratification. In almost every aspect of my life - food being one of the larger problem areas. Why else would a person live on primarily fast food? You feel like shit when you eat it, and it isn't particularly cheap (don't buy into that dollar menu bullshit - - it's a hoax to get you hooked). Wow - I get easily sidetracked. Anywho...playing in to this, I like to keep a few frozen meals on hand for those times when I need food within 3 minutes, or I'm going to lose it. I have found one that is delicious, and vegetarian, and contains two of my favorite veggies, and it pasta. And its only like 240 calories. VICTORY!!

And because it's fall, I am obsessed with this yogurt. Target's Archer Farms brand is one of my favorite lines. They cover all sorts of crap I don't, and shouldn't, need - but still want. They also have Pumpkin Pie yogurt. It's do damn delicious! I don't think they have it in the fat free variety, and this "low fat" is 170 calories. Kind of a lot for yogurt, but this is like a legit dessert. And if you couple it with the meal above, you still have a reasonable lunch! =)

OK. I think I've rambled on about food enough for a while. I'm going to take a break, but I'll be back to blog about some real shit soon. I promise. I'll cover exercise on the next one. If only a budget helped that one solve itself....

Do you have any ideas for cheap crap that's still somewhat good for you? Please share....