Healthiest day of the year?

I was pondering this question today.  Is this the healthiest day of the year?  With it being the first Monday of the year.  Today is the day that Americans officially act on their New Year's resolutions.  Being that dieting is probably the most popular of these resolutions.  My guess is that most Americans woke up this morning full of enthusiasm packing their lunch with a salad, snacking on veggies, making a trip to Subway, and going to the gym.

The trip to the gym on the first Monday of the year is what I would to talk about today.  This day every year it the worst day to hit the gym for a workout.  It is packed, all the machine are taken, and clueless people high on their resolutions are in your way from the time you start until the end.  The past couple years I have dreaded this day.  With the only salvation being about half the new members will be gone tomorrow and 99% of them will be gone by the end of the week.

In my own disgruntledness, I realized that I was the one who was wrong.  I was THIS person on THIS day just three years ago today.  I remember the work out vividly.  It began with a quick tour of the gym by the manager that resulted in me signing a 1 year contract.  I snaked my way through the gym sheepishly finding a stairclimber in the corner where I could hide.  I went in with the plan to go as long as I could and to slowly build on that time.  I was barely able to survive five minutes that day.  I was sore the next day, but fought through it and continued that same workout the rest of the week.  The next week, I increased it to ten minutes, fifteen in the third and the rest is history.

That brings me to the point of this blog.  I spend this day now, not annoyed with how crowded the gym is or how someone used for poor gym etiquette.  But as a celebration of how far I have come and how much happier I am with my life and the person I have become.  So, going forward on this day.  I suggest that we as people who live a healthy lifestyle.  Reach out to these people, support them in their first trip back to the gym.  Help them learn the proper etiquette of the gym.  Cause if it's just one person who sticks it out this week and becomes a much healthier person.  Isn't it worth the annoyance to welcome one more to the healthy lifestyle?

BEAL