Spotting At The Gym
As I walk along Regent St in London, I’m constantly being bombarded by commercialism.
It’s not as awe-inspiring as the the tourists around me seem to finding it.
So I choose instead to address you, the blog, in an early rendition of today’s events and thought.
Actually before we get to that.
I just walked past a homeless man on Piccadilly and he’s sitting in front of the brightest store front I’ve seen so far. If I had change, I would’ve passed it on, but alas I digress.
What’s the store might you ask?
It’s a organic supermarket/bakery. It’s closed too.
I can only guess why someone who might be incredibly hungry but is definitely very cold and that is around two reasons:
- To symbolise they are hungry and want something to eat
- To build resilience and instil hope.
I’ll explain the second one in a second.
But the light in that window is used by instagrammers for good shots, but what it means to someone else is something quite thought-provoking.
Back to that second point. Pressuring pain points is an effective way of ridding that pain. If I had to guess though the reason is probably more akin to the first one or the third one.
Correction it’s not a bakery, it’s a restaurant.
There was nowhere else to sit.
Okay now back to the main content.
Why was I scared for someone to spot me in the gym?
It comes back to my first time being in a gym when I was 14.
I was there because I was fat and was trying to get un-fat.
But as with everything, there was an eerie and subverted sense of competition amongst other people there.
I felt puny.
I didn’t lift a free weight till I was 18.
Instead I trained my legs.
Leg day everyday, quite literally.
My calves became quite the unit.
I was scared to be judged.
Although I judge everyone and guess their personality types on a second-by-second basis.
I was scared to be called out for lifting a small weight.
But what I learned today, and I’m sure I’ll forget, is that it’s okay to ask.
Especially in environments where doing it wrong has painful consequences.
It should come from a place of knowing that everyone will judge you and knowing you need to do what you need to do.
Like just now, getting on the tube at Piccadilly Circus. All these people on the train couldn’t arrange themselves to get out the way so no-one on the platform could get on.
As the doors were closing I pushed my way on, I’ve never seen such incompetence and never seen no one get on where people got off.
Anyway the moral of the story, like yesterday is put your middle finger up to judgement and assumptions.
They’re toxic.
Spotting At The Gym