Quiet please!!

Shhh, you're disturbing my quiet time!

Last night at the gym during my laps in the pool the girl in the next lane over from me started to make idle chit chat with me during one of my quick "breathers."  During these breathers I stop for maybe a minute before I continue on.  It's by no means time for a chat.  But I answered her politely and continued swimming.  From that point on, she kept talking to me whenever I would stop.  Whether it be to adjust my goggles (which were giving me more problems than usual last night) or to adjust my swimcap, swimsuit, take a breath, whatever!  I hated to be rude, but I really didn't want to talk to her because for me it takes my focus away from what I'm there to do. I am just now to the point where I'm finding my groove with my swimming (swam more than the triathlon distance without stopping!  woohoo!) and every time she talked to me I would then have to regroup and refocus.  Finally to avoid talking to her, I just kept swimming.  My arms were burning, my goggles needed adjusting and I probably had a swimsuit wedgie but I just kept going.  Passive aggressive of me?  Sure, but I just didn't want to be the uber-bitch at the gym that told the woman to basically shut up.

Is that horribly mean of me?  Since the time I began this weight loss journey back in September, I've mostly been exercising alone.  At the very beginning when I was just walking I would go with Stacia and it would be our "girl time" and that was great!  But as I started to push myself harder and I started venturing into unknown territory, I needed my mind to be focused on the task at hand.  I need to really concentrate on my breathing and also I found that I really loved to just zone out during my runs and use it as my time to recharge mentally.  I would bop along to my music and before I knew it, the runs were done!

With swimming I don't have my music to hum along to.  It's purely the sounds of the water lapping, my breathing and my thoughts.  Being around water to me has always equaled a zen like state, and to take me out of that is kind of jarring!

Maybe other people need that interaction with other people at the gym.  I guess I'm just really not one of them.  I see girl friends going to the gym and chatting to each other while they are on the treadmills.  I much prefer to sit on my stationary bike and pedal away to the music blaring in my ears.  I even tried to watch TV while I was on the bike and I found I can't do that anymore.  That used to be the only way I could get through a half hour at the gym, was to schedule it with something on TV I knew I would want to watch, but not now!  I've reach a point that I never before thought I would reach in my life...where going to the gym is enjoyable to me, and its part of my "me" time.  I used to always envy those people.  Exercising used to be torturous.  Maybe for those people who are trying to strike up idle conversation with me, it still is... (And before anyone says it, I don't think they are trying to pick me up... I think they are just bored.)

This all kind of goes with the advice I give...  Whenever anybody asks me what my secret has been to my success, one of my answers is always to say "Find something you love doing and do it."  Because if its torture?  You won't do it.