[FIPS Works Out] Gym Rat Edition

January is over. Have you already bagged on your New Year's Resolution to work out at least twice a week? Yeah, I thought so. This post is the first in a new series where FIPS writers tell you what they do to stay in shape.

When I walk on by, girls be lookin’ like, “Damn, he fly.” Well…I work out—and I don’t work out just anywhere. I’m a passport member of the cream of the crop. That’s right, New York Sports Club, or NYSC for those of us literally in the club. Not to brag, but I enjoy some pretty sweet members-only amenities, like unlimited ratty-ass towels and tri-coloré shower accouterments. And the equipment—oh the equipment. Don’t even get me started. Would you believe that the benches are re-vinyled at least once every sweaty, oozing ‘roid rage, back-pimpled, ten years? Benefits, my friends. Benefits.

I’m no stranger when it comes to the gym. My workout regimen has been going strong since around 2002, when I couldn’t blame my tired, out of shape ass on baby fat anymore. How did I end up at NYSC, you ask?  It was a marriage of convenience and fear of the other neighborhood offerings. By convenience I mean that it’s a mile walk from home. By fear I mean acquiring scabies and/or Hep B from places like Body Reserve. 

My routine is fairly straightforward. I hit the weights 3 days a week and do cardio and plyometrics another 2-3 days. I’m not against classes, but the offerings at NYSC are fairly limited, meaning the studio is generally stuffed to capacity, yoga mats overlapping. Not my style, so I stick to the heavy lifting, combining opposing body parts for two push/pull days and throwing in some legs and shoulders on the third. I’m no incredible hulk, but I like to think I can hold my own.      

What my gym lacks in cleanliness, it makes up for in…well…nope. It just lacks. NYSC is a corporate machine, which keeps the prices lower than competitors like Equinox or Crunch, but limits the frills or ambiance. For instance I workout at 7:45am every morning.  I know that at 7:52 Macklemore will come over the speakers and grace my workout with “Can’t Hold Us.” Conversely, Crunch has a fucking DJ.  So… 

All in all, I’m comfortable where I am. I have my routine. The gym is minimal, but I’m happy to make do and pay just $39/month—discount! The old dude with huge biceps and leg tats always nods to me. I discuss the weather each day with the guy who wears the backpack vacuum. I stay active and healthy. It may not be much, but it’s home.