Back to the Gym: Week 1 Report

It's January, traditional month of doing stuff that you have been putting off. Here in England it's freezing cold, with dark mornings and early nights... what worse time could there be to exert yourself? Anyway...

I started back at the gym this week. 18 months (or so) ago I had knee surgery performed, it's taken me this long to finally get back into action. That is my actual excuse by the way; that it takes roughly 18 months for your body to fully recover from surgery. I personally already know that that is just an excuse, as I was secretly back at the karate dojo a mere 3 weeks after having my ACL reconstructed, against doctor's advice and wishes. I even told the surgeon at the time, he was not impressed with my plans. But you know how it is, you have got to do what you have got to do. Hmm, didn't John Wayne say something along those lines? Wise words from The Duke there.

The gym I joined is a brand new place, it opened at the start of 2012. It used to be a bingo hall (and I know that because my brother used to work there as security). Never stepped foot in the place until this week though, as "two fat ladies" and all that "clickety-click" stuff isn't my bag. But lifting heavy objects in a controlled manner and running on the spot courtesy of high-tech machinery is my bag, so the fact that this new gymnasium facility is a 5 minute drive from where I live was all the reason I needed to get back on the horse, so to speak. (Clearly I am still thinking of how great John Wayne is.)

The "sign up" process was the hard part. A 6 month contract, £38 a month. The last gym I was a member of was £25 a month, but it was also only a quarter of the size of this new place. More about that in a moment though. I didn't need any persuading about joining up, so I signed all of the paperwork -- and by the way there was not physical paperwork to sign, it was all done online via a website, and the "signing up" part of the process was completed via one of those digital signature strip devices that you see now and then. So with all that done, time to get acquainted with the equipment.

I need to get back into the gym habit as I am going to Japan later this year for training. Been there a few times now, both to Tokyo and to Okinawa. In fact my instructor (Sensei Roy Flatt) is over in Okinawa right now, training with Higaonna Sensei. As you can see, we are heavily into the Eastern influence at the dojo! I already know that I am not in full fighting shape at the moment, and it's going to take a lot of effort to get myself back in condition before I step onto the JAL aircraft bound for Narita Airport on July 6th. Coincidentally I joined back at the gym on January 6th, exactly 6 months before heading to the Far East. 6 months should be plenty of time to get my fitness levels back up, right? Right.

The main thing that I want to work on is my cardiovascular condition. Last time that I used a gymnasium properly was when I was preparing for my last karate grading, when I took my 4th degree black belt. That involved going on a diet (which I confess I never really stuck to very well) and a daily ritual of running, stretching and weight lifting. I did all of these things at a gym. The running part was maintained via a machine called an elliptical treadmill (or a cross-trainer if you like). This was partly because of knee problems, partly because I am not very good at running. I also discovered that you can run much easier to music on an elliptical stepper -- but again, let's go into that in greater detail in a moment. So that is my number one "go to" machine for getting my heart-rate pumping. Other stuff that I plan on using to get my in form are: Rowing machine, cycles, the runner and also the swimming pool.

So this new gymnasium - it is huge! Well, it's certainly the biggest gym that I have ever had access to. Seriously, it's the size of a small aircraft hangar (and I say that from personal experience as I used to work at an airport). I was given the guided tour by one of the young ladies who works there when I first signed up, and it offers so much more than the older place that I used to visit. This new gym has been cut into sections (as most modern gymnasiums are) with an area for cardio-related activity, an area for stretching activity (think kettle bells and medicine ball type-stuff), then there's all of the weight lifting machinery, and then an area with racks upon racks of free weights. There is also a wall of swinging bags for boxing and a matted area at the very back of the main hall with a range of strange looking log-shaped implements... they put me in mind of karate-style Kongoken (iron ring) equipment. Very nice! A new gym with all of the little extras is always a nice sight... let's see if it still looks so polished and impressive this time next year, huh?

So I used the changing room, got a hand towel and a bottle of water, then heading in there for my 1st work out. Nothing too strenuous to start with, yes? Haha, don't be silly. I had been thinking about this moment for months and months, and I had it all planned out in my head that I was going to start back up exactly where I had left off back in 2010 before my knee surgery. I took my trusty mp3 player in there with me, of course, as I cannot stand that terrible music that they play in public gyms... all of that soft sounding chart music is enough to send me crazy. I have to have 2 particular albums ready to listen to when I am at the gym: 1 album - "Advance & Vanquish" by the charmingly named "3 Inches Of Blood" - is especially for during a cardiovascular workout, the other album - "Friendship, Loyalty, Commitment" by the hardcore punk band "25 Ta Life" - is for during weight lifting activity. That is all I have listened to whilst at the gym for about 4 years now. The 3IOB album is very fast-paced and the idea is to keep your step in time with the beat. The 25TL album is aggressive and full of anger, perfect for lifting up heavy objects and then putting them down again. Okay, time to get on with some cardio.

I hopped onto a stepper and pedalled a little in order to get the machine to start up. Then I popped my headphones on and pressed the play button. The music sprang into life and I started the machine, effort level 5. It was then that I realised, I hadn't listened to this record for at least 18 months now. And suddenly I was not a fan of this music anymore. Doh! Never mind, I wasn't really listening to this album because of the music content, I was using it for the energy levels and as a marker for the speed that I should be moving at. "Advance & Vanquish" by 3 Inches Of Blood is a heavy metal record (I assume you already guessed that though) and it has lots of screaming vocals (think of Rob Halford from Judas Priest and you're on the right track). The album is 45 minutes long, which I would say is perfect for a long bout of cardio, especially if you are using a cross-trainer machine - you can keep your step in time with the beat of the music to great effect. I think that the average beat of this album is about 180 beats per minute. I used to be able to run at full pace to this album, from start to finish, with no problem at all. 45 minutes would just disappear in no time, as I loved the music and (I realise this now) I was in great shape. This week I got onto a stepper and attempted to keep up with the beat as I ran along... I think that I lasted 3 minutes before I was totally out of breath. Oh no, what has happened to all of that energy that I used to have??

Okay, so I now know. I have a lot of work to do if I want to get myself back up to the same level of fitness that I was at when I took my 4th dan. Man, what has happened? Actually, I can answer that question straight away -- I quit the gym for almost 2 years, that's what happened! I have kept up my karate training, that part has never really gone away. But I have neglected my fitness and so, inevitably, my lung capacity has dropped considerably. Dammit. I don't like using phrases that begin with "I cannot believe" but in this instance maybe that is quite apt... I cannot believe I let my cardiovascular activity slip to this extent. So now at least I know that I have 6 months or so to get that sorted out. Thank you, 3 Inches Of Blood. You will be helping me out a lot for the next few months I think.

Right, that will be all for this edition of "SJW gets back to the gym". Let's call this "part 1", as there's plenty more activity to talk about when one finally gets back to the gym after a long lay-off. Stretching exercises, weight lifting, swimming, post work-out activity, etc. For now let me finish this section by saying that it's great to be back in the saddle (so to speak), and it is also good to have a target to aim for.

Look out for another instalment of this story on this blog shortly. :-)