Workout 120402: Inspiration

Today's workout:

20 min Arc Trainer (interval setting level 2)
10 min Treadmill (2.5 mph for 5 min; then cool down)
Hip Abductors (10 reps 3 sets each leg)
Bridges (15 reps with 5 sec hold)
Stretch

There are two people in my gym right now who inspire me.  I'm not sure they even know they are there.  I don't know their names.

One I first took note of about 6 weeks ago.  He's an older man in decent physical shape (from the looks of it).  There are a group of men and women who work out in the mornings and have been for so long that they know each other.  He's part of the gym community. About 4 weeks ago, I overheard him talking with one of the women.  He was going in for major back surgery.  He'd been putting it off for years and finally the time had come.  Today he returned to the gym.  Wearing a back brace and looking a bit more tired than before, he was working out on the elliptical.  People greeted him and welcomed him back.  He smiled and chatted, the whole while continuing his workout.

I want to achieve physical fitness in my life.  I see that in him.  I want to gain control over my physical health and make maintaining it a part of my life.  I think he personifies that for me.  Someone who had made going to the gym and maintaining his health part of his life.  Maybe it isn't even a priority, just something he does everyday.  I don't know, but I like the dedication I see there.

The second person is a woman.  I started seeing her in the gym about 3 weeks ago.  She's heavier than me.  She also appears to be more out of shape than I am.  Each day I'm there I see her working out by herself or with a friend.  It's hard work.  She puts in at least an hour each morning.  I don't know exactly how long, because I only put in 30-45 minutes.  She's there working before and after me.  While that is enough to admire, it isn't what inspires me.  Every time I look her way, she is smiling.  She chats with her friend and laughs.  Though we've never been introduced, she smiles in greeting when we pass in the hall.

I want to appreciate the time that I have at the gym.  I don't know why that woman smiles.  Given the state of my health, on down days, I don't see a lot to smile about.  I struggle to see the positive side of things.  Maybe it is because I've never had it really bad.  Maybe it is just my disposition. But in that woman I see hope.  I don't know if it is real or just what I want to see, but that's what I find when she smiles at me.  And, in turn, that hope in her makes me smile.  I appreciate the time I have to work all this out just a little more.