La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
THE STAFF AT MY GYM (Coliseo) tell me that gyms in general do not have to require face masks, which is not true. A gym is one of the places where Covid is most easily spread. I wear my mask and have always been the only person to do so. However, I hadn’t been back to the gym since I had my cold. It’s a very small space with only a few inches between the equipment. Members have to sidle by each other to move from one machine or area to another. Even the stairways aren’t wide enough for two people. It has always concerned me.
With new Covid safety guidelines in place, I took the 10-minute walk Thursday morning and learned that they still don’t require masks. So Coliseo is no longer my gym. I used to belong to another gym (Altafit) about an 18-minute walk from home. It’s spacious (enormous) and has a lot more equipment. But I preferred the shorter walk. Thursday, after my annoyance at the continued no-mask policy at Coliseo, I hoofed it (another 18 minutes) and learned that Altafit requires masks and has installed plexiglass dividers between every piece of equipment, including all the cardio machines. So, I signed up again and went back Friday for the best (and least stressed) workout I’ve had in a long time. There are even spaces for me to do my stretches. I’ll just count the 3-km/2-mile walk as a workout bonus.
I’m glad New Year’s Eve is behind us. I only hope this year is better for so many people in so many ways. We welcomed 2022 with our traditional 12 grapes — one grape for each chime of the clock — to bring us good luck. Unfortunately, I wasn’t tuned to the correct TV broadcast, so we missed the chimes and had late grapes (not so late that they had become raisins). We toasted with a split of champagne — that we split. We’re a couple of party animals.
In three months, I expect to be in Brooklyn having breakfast with The Kid Brother. When I told him Tuesday that I had my Covid booster, he said he had his, too. I wondered if we had had them the same day, which I thought would be a fun thing. I said, “Wow, Chuck! When did you have yours?” He responded (typically), “Don’t worry! Don’t worry!” So, I guess it will remain a mystery. And I won’t worry.
Oh, the perky pecs:
My Friday workout was chest and back. I came home feeling strong and pumped, and I told San Geraldo I wanted perky pecs. I meant the kind that stand firm and don’t succumb to gravity, the kind that start at my collar bone. He thought I meant the kind I can control and make dance (bounce). I told him I can already do that (I can). When I tried to show him, I could only get one to work. Performance anxiety. And, no, I’m not going to show you.
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EL PERSONAL DE MI GIMNASIO (Coliseo) me dice que los gimnasios en general no tienen que exigir máscaras faciales, lo cual no es cierto. Los gimnasios son uno de los lugares donde Covid se transmite con mayor facilidad. Llevo mi máscara y siempre he sido la única persona en hacerlo. Sin embargo, no había vuelto al gimnasio desde que tuve mi resfriado. Es un espacio muy pequeño con solo unos centímetros entre el equipo. Los miembros tienen que desplazarse unos junto a otros para moverse de una máquina o área a otra. Incluso las escaleras no son lo suficientemente anchas para dos personas. Siempre me ha preocupado.
Con las nuevas pautas de seguridad de Covid implementadas, tomé la caminata de 10 minutos el jueves por la mañana y descubrí que todavía no requieren máscaras. Entonces Coliseo ya no es mi gimnasio. Solía pertenecer a otro gimnasio (Altafit) a unos 18 minutos a pie de casa. Es espacioso (enorme) y tiene mucho más equipamiento. Pero preferí la caminata más corta. El jueves, después de mi molestia por la continua política de no usar máscaras en el Coliseo, me puse a caminar (otros 18 minutos) y me enteré de que Altafit requiere máscaras y ha instalado divisores de plexiglás entre todos los equipos, incluidas todas las máquinas de cardio. Entonces, me inscribí nuevamente y volví el viernes para el mejor (y menos estresado) entrenamiento que he tenido en mucho tiempo. Incluso hay espacios para que pueda hacer mis estiramientos. Solo contaré la caminata de 3 km / 2 millas como un bono de entrenamiento.
Me alegro de que la víspera de Año Nuevo haya quedado atrás. Solo espero que este año sea mejor para tanta gente de muchas maneras. Dimos la bienvenida al 2022 con nuestras tradicionales 12 uvas, una uva por cada campanada del reloj, para traernos buena suerte. Desafortunadamente, no estaba sintonizado con la transmisión de televisión correcta, así que perdimos las campanadas y tuvimos uvas tardías (no tan tarde como para que se hubieran convertido en pasas). Brindamos con una copa de champán, que partimos. Somos un par de fiesteros.
En tres meses, espero estar en Brooklyn desayunando con The Kid Brother. Cuando le dije el martes que tenía mi refuerzo Covid, dijo que él también tenía el suyo. Me pregunté si los habíamos tenido el mismo día, lo cual pensé que sería divertido. Dije: “¡Guau, Chuck! ¿Cuándo tuviste el tuyo? Él respondió (normalmente): “¡No te preocupes! ¡No te preocupes!” Entonces, supongo que seguirá siendo un misterio. Y no me preocuparé.
Oh, los pectorales alegres:
Mi entrenamiento del viernes fue de pecho y espalda. Llegué a casa sintiéndome fuerte y animado, y le dije a San Geraldo que quería pectorales alegres. Me refiero al tipo que se mantiene firme y no sucumbe a la gravedad, del tipo que comienza en la clavícula. Pensó que me refería al tipo que puedo controlar y hacer bailar (rebotar). Le dije que ya puedo hacer eso (puedo). Cuando traté de mostrárselo, solo pude hacer que uno funcionara. Ansiedad por el desempeño. Y no, no te lo voy a mostrar.
• Desde la terraza en un reciente día nublado y ventoso.
• Nuestro carril bici recién remodelado.
• Más regalos para los gatos.
• En el supermercado. Jamón Ibérico de Bellota. Una ganga de Nochevieja a 549 €.
• Este viene con una botella de vino sin cargo adicional.
• Moose: “¿Estás hablando conmigo?”
HAPPY 2022! All the perky best and I love that RED bike trail!!!! Hugs to you both!!
Ron:
Sending warm hugs to you both!
Happy New Year! Back in my gym bunny days, I was perky instead of saggy. Oh well. Sounds like the right choice on the gym. Lunch in New York sounds like fun.
David:
After all these years, nothing is as perky as it used to be.
I look forward to seeing you both!
I’m so very disappointed in you, Scoot. Building up all of that anticipation with the title and then smacking us (well, me anyway) down with not a single picture of your dancing pec 🙁 Woe is me! How will I survive the day!? Don’t mind me. I was awakened this morning by a whistling wheeze. I thought my dog had found her way into my bed. She snores. I reached out to silence her gently and found only blanket. I still heard the whistling. Turns out, it was coming from my nose. I don’t know why I’m sharing this. Have a good day, hon.
Deedles:
Oh, I knew this would annoy you! Sorry to let you down.
I’ve awakened to whistling wheezes, grunts and snorts that turned out to be from me. It always makes me laugh.
Happy New Year, Mitchell! And happy new gym! It sounds like a good one. I’m all for perky pecs myself. Moose is pretty perky with that gnome, too – a real party animal. We had an alcohol-free evening because Dennis has started taking a new med that doesn’t mix well with booze. I was asleep well before midnight.
A good start to the new year with a refreshing morning rain while I was running. I love to run in the rain, for some reason it makes me feel absolutely giddy with joy. Now the sun is shining in a clear blue sky. There is hope . . . .
Wilma:
I used to love to run in the rain, as well. The sciatica makes that impossible (although it’s so much better). Maybe I’ll run on the beach in the rain!
I thought of you two and your grapes, when I opened my iPad this morning…happy new year! I’m glad you found a better gym 😀
Judy C:
Happy new year to you, too! (Please let it be a happier year.)
Can’t say I ever had perky pecs, but muscles that were once (semi)firm have since fallen beneath my arms and now resemble batwings.🦇 Don’t worry. I don’t wear sleeveless garments. Mustn’t scare small children.
Mary:
I have a friend who now has to hold down her boobs on rutted rural roads. She insists one hit her in the face one time.
Ahhh, yes, a 38 Looooonnng.
Mary:
That is so good! I’ll be passing THAT along… especially with my friend who hit herself in the face. (I think she IS a 38.)
Love your gnome! Glad you found a safety-conscious gym too. I used to have perky boobs too, but gravity gets us all eventually. Still, keep a happy thought and keep working on those pecs!
Debra:
I just keep thinking about my highschool girlfriend who constantly did exercises to the beat of “I must. I must. I must. Improve. My bust.” I saw her a few years ago. The exercises didn’t work.
Good move with the ‘new’ gym!
Weight training is SO important to maintain strength and endurance. I really ought to heed your example.
Sweet Moose.
Jim:
Weight training, when done correctly, improves posture (which can relieve a myriad of other physical problems) AND can help with sciatica I’ve found. I swear by it.
Excellent that you found a better gym! I gave up the gym when we moved to London because they’re all so bloody expensive here. (Or were at the time, anyway. Maybe there are cheaper options now.)
That photo of the sailing vessel looks like a film still from “Master and Commander” or some such movie. Is Russell Crowe on that boat, do you think?
549 EUROS FOR A HAM?!?!
Steve:
We were just talking about how cheap the gym is here. This exceptional gym just cost me less than 30 euros a month for a 3-month membership. 20 years ago, I was paying over $100 a month for a gym in Southern California.
But it’s an Iberian bellota ham. Nothing better. Also, that’s between 13 and 17 pounds of ham.
Happy 2022 — a new year with gorgeous views from your house, a safety-conscious gym and Moose on his best behaviour! As a nod to your Spanish customs, I actually bought grapes to eat at midnight and then completely forgot about them and went to sleep, LOL! The Canadian custom of sleeping is pretty tough to overturn…
Tundra Bunny:
Moose was out there (on his best behavior) after grabbing Dudo’s neck in his jaws.
I would have a difficult time choosing between the Spanish tradition and the Canadian tradition. I slept until 10 today.
Did the gym thing many years ago. Hated every minute of it. Hell: being on treadmill for eternity (10 minutes or more) and seeing the calorie count not even close to that of an Oreo.
Frank:
I LOVE the gym and working out. SG is with you. As for monitoring my progress (like on the treadmill), I find that really boring. And, yeah, one hour, one Oreo.
Sounds like your new gym is a much better one, albeit the longer walk, which is an added exercise bonus! Happy New Year!
mcpersonalspace54:
And it’s not as if the walk is overly long. Plus, I walk alongside the beach, which makes it more pleasant and enables me to avoid crosswalks and cars.
1 Moose is adorable !
2 good news about the gym.
3 Moose is adorable !
4 Happy New Year.
5 Moose is adorable
Anonymous:
And who is saying Moose is adorable. He’s wondering.
Karlie Flamingo. Things that make you go hmmmm…
Walt the Fourth:
Oh, no. You’ve lost me. Things that make me go hmmm hmmm hmmm.
“This one comes with a bottle of wine at no extra charge.”
This one what? Did the wine come with the ham in the previous picture?
Kirk:
The second photo is a ham leg wrapped in a black cloth sack. Next to it in the box (bottom left of photo) is the bottle of wine.
Happy New Year to you both and the cats. I hadn’t heard about the grape tradition in Spain, until our postman, who I follow on Facebook, put a picture up at 11pm on 31st showing him ,and his Spanish partner Deibi ,with a bowl each of grapes….saying ” Spanish New Year”. I subsequently read about it being a tradition yesterday, and now you have mentioned it! They also had a pic of them with champagne at midnight!
Frances:
It’s a fun tradition. See our first experience here: https://movingwithmitchell.com/2012/01/01/feliz-ano-nuevo-welcome-2012/
Sweaty heavily breathing people packed into a building on machines and not wearing masks? I used to go to clubs like that, but not the gym. Glad you found one with good sense.
Love the new bike path; the word schnazzy springs to mind.
Jamón Iberico. Oh yum!
And some Moose poses.
Bob,
Irresponsible of Coliseo. I’m glad to have a better s better option. Ooh, I like schnazzy. Even snazzier than plain old snazzy.
Few if any folks wear a mask at the gym; this bewilders me and drives me crazy.
It supports my hypothesis thems who go to my gym are not ‘health conscious’ but self-centered.
Urspo,
And here it’s required. Even more infuriating. But, I agree. Many gym rats aren’t there for their health. Another example is how many get outside and immediately light up a cigarette.
Re: Perky pecs – the dancing thing didn’t happen unless there is video to prove it!!!! Enquiring minds want proof!
Willym:
Well, then I guess it didn’t happen! (You won’t reel me in that easily.)