Personal training 101

Five things I have learned from my first "real" personal training session:

1. If I'm ever in a rowboat on the ocean by myself, I'm screwed. I suck at rowing.

2. I have a powerful butt. (No seriously, I do - I can press like 80 lbs or something with my butt - how awesome is that?)

3. "Core exercises" - two words I'm pretty sure I will always hate hearing, even if I will love the results.

4. There will be a point in our training session, no matter how brief, when I'm pretty sure I hate my trainer. Breathe through it, it'll pass.

5. At the end of every training session, I'll remember why I hired my trainer. This is why you breathe through #4.

So, I'm a little sore, and a lot tired, but very pumped about this whole personal training thing. Shawn has a great sense of humour and is very upbeat and enthusiastic. It's hard not to be enthusiastic when the person you're with is so enthusiastic.

It's fun being introduced to all these new pieces of equipment; a little scary at times, but fun. The assisted chin/dip thing still looks like a device from the Spanish Inquisition, but I managed it. That's one of those things I never would have gone near on my own. Stability balls, too, are one of those things I never would have ventured near, and yet I find I rather like them.

Working with a trainer is also making me a little more comfortable just working in the gym on my own; I'm not so wedded to the classes or scared to venture close the machines, both of which are good, since the classes don't work very well with my work schedule, and looking at the machines wasn't an especially good workout.

So yeah.... I think I can do this.

We'll see how I feel Friday.