57 weeks and counting

Until my 50th birthday, that is. Which is why Tuesday I went to Bally's and said, "I want to talk to someone about getting some personal training." An hour or so later I was talking to Nick, the fitness director at the Amherst club where I'm a member. I told him upfront:

(1) I want to be in the best shape of my life by the time my 50th birthday rolls around

(2) I want to be able to see my abs

(3) I want to be able to bench my own weight for reps easily

(4) I want to work on balance and coordination (because I've never paid any attention to either)

(5) I want to learn how to fall down without hurting myself

(6) I want a guy trainer who is (a) gay friendly and (b) in really good shape (because I need the inspiration)

Which was fine and dandy as far as Nick was concerned. He set me up with Josh, one of his two newest trainers, and we had our first session Thursday morning at 10 o'clock.

I was quite pleased. Personal training (from what I can tell thus far) at Bally's is very programmed but very professional and very tailored to the individual's needs. Likewise, Josh is probably early 20s and very interactive, very pleasant, very laidback, very focused on achievable goals, very reinforcing in terms of what I was thinking and wanting. We got the vitals (height, weight, measurements, and way, way, way too high bodyfat ratio) and then did a workout that concentrated on balance, flexibility, and pulling in addition muscle groups, e.g.:

-- Bodyweight squats
-- Bodyweight squats plus lifting one leg when coming back up
-- Squats + leg lift + pressing 10 lb. dumbbells at the top of the motion

Then we tried the same on the balance ball -- was NOT gonna happen. Squatting while on a balance ball is NOT something my body wants to do at this point! (At least I think it's the balance ball -- it's really half a ball with a stable, circular base on the floor, but bouncy.) Without missing a beat Josh said, "let's do this instead," and we shifted to shoulder raises (bring the 10 lb. dumbbells from waist to directly in front of the chest, then up to 45 degrees out, and then up to 90 degrees out.) Much better -- I could stay on the ball and do that (most of the time.)

Plus a couple more of with the step thingy and then finishing up with planks, which were hard but felt really good.

All in all, I'm quite pleased with myself. After nearly 30 years of off and on (mostly off) in the gym, I finally decided it was time to get assistance, to make sure I was getting the best bang for my exercise effort. I'm learning new stuff and I can see making lots of progress.

(Whether it's the best bang for the buck is a different story. I figured out this morning that I have to work nearly 8 hours at my job to earn enough to cover the cost of three hours per week of personal training. Zounds! Keep in mind that I only work about 16-18 hours a week on average!)

Regardless, I think it's a worthwhile investment.

Starting point: 197 1/2 lbs. @ 5'10 1/2 inches; 24% (!!) bodyfat; 51 shoulders, 47 chest, 36 waist, 15 biceps, 16 calves.