Leisure Activity
PRLS 317
31 March 2009
I thought of all the possibilities of leisure activities that I could do, but I had trouble because I have had trouble with determining an activity that I have not participated in or was unfamiliar to me. I finally settled on something that I had never gone out to do. I joined a gym. I have never joined a gym and have never worked out appropriately and extensivley.
I went into the gym on a V.I.P. guest pass, and joined. From the outset, the gym itself was beyond what I thought my personality would be able to handle. Firstly, there are alot of people, and in my own personality, I like to be with limited people. I like to be with family or close friends during leisure activities. I was able to go to the gym with my girlfriend. It did alleviate the uneasiness I had with the amount of people at the gym and the total lack of familiarity with the code or conduct in the gym.
The gym culture is completely different from anything I had experienced before. I have always thought that the people who came to the gym are fitness nuts, but I was surprised to find out that ordinary people of all shapes and weights come to the gym.
There are elements of the gym that do cater to my personality. These elements create solitude among the many in the gym. I know it may seem difficult to comprehend, but this solitude is created by the use of headphones. The headphones could be connected to iPODs, MP3 Players, or the headphone connection for the headphones. The headphones create solitude because one becomes immersed in either the music or the television. The very exercises and fitness activities themselves create an illusion of solitude.
It can be quite awkward while working out because I tend to think about the amount of people that could possibly stare at you. Sometimes I got self-conscious about the technique or stretching that I was doing. I have never had full training on anything I have done, and I only know stretching from basketball practice. I do have limited knowledge about working out, but it does not really help with working the machines. The first time on each machine is trial and error. It was truly hard for me to break down to just try to operate the machines correctly.
The gym experience was unique and eye-opening because I realized that I was able to accomplish some things that I did not think was entirely possible with my personality.