When at the Gym, Do As the Italians Do

We joined a gym last week. Remember when I told you that Italians have certain rules that must be followed? That particular instance was in pertinence to food, but turns out, there are other rules outside of the kitchen too.

When heading to the gym, you don’t dress in gym clothes. You dress in normal clothes.

“Okay,” you might say, “But I’m sure this is just a suggested guideline”. That's what I thought at least. We were persuaded into joining a different (dinkier) gym last May, paid for a three month contract and then one day, I decided to rebel by wearing my sneakers to the gym.

What?! Oh no you didn’t! Unheard of!

Upon entering, I was immediately asked to “Please, next time, wear different shoes,” by the man with the fake smile plastered across his face. Call me stubborn, but I didn’t go back again. (Don’t judge, there were other reasons as well).

I work from home. Most of the time I sit at my computer in a t-shirt and yoga pants, which means when it’s time to get ready for the gym, I’m just about ready to go. This new rule means that I have to change into regular clothes just so that I can go to the gym to change back into clothes I was already wearing. Yeah, OKAY.

You don’t shower at your home that is 5 minutes away. You shower at the gym.

In high school, I used to go to the gym after school and immediately head to work after that. I’d pack my school bag, gym bag and work bag the night before and that was that. Nowadays, when I just plan on heading home after working out, I tend to be more of a shower-at-home type of girl. Except, that’s not the Italian way and so I’m now a shower-at-the-gym-with-all-the-other-nakey-women type of girl.

My main problem with this is really just that I’m forgetful. The first day I forgot flip flops so I had to wear awkward blue baggies on my feet. Another day I forgot my brush, which made blow drying difficult and thus I ventured into the frigid outdoors with wet hair. I’m learning to remember.

Other than that, I’m obsessed with this place and I legitimately look forward to going every day. It’s got the regular ol’ gym equipment, tons of classes, a pool and multiple saunas! There are TVs on the cardio machines so I watch some music videos while I run and pretend I’m Beyonce. No better motivation than that. In all seriousness though, it’s my dream to be in a music video. I think the only thing standing in my way is that I’ve never taken a dance class in my life. Minor details.

In terms of fitness, do you go to a gym or workout on your own? Do you schedule your workouts or wing it? What gets you going?? Do you stretch? Corey doesn’t. Yell at her.

Mangs in Florida

A couple years ago my best friend, Michele, moved from the house down the street all the way to Florida with her family. As heartbroken as I was to see her go, a part of me was a bit excited to have a friend living in Florida! And finally, a few weeks ago, I made the trek down with my other mang, Lindsay!

Despite some minor setbacks (i.e. Lindsay and I not realizing that our flight down there was changed and we were put on two seperate flights, 5 hours apart) we were all reunited at last! And what a glorious reunion it was...

Our first gorgeous, 70-degree day started off with beautifully crafted lattes from Black Gold Coffee Roasters. As hipster as it was to take these photos, you just can't deny how pretty the foam designs were.

After the last drops of the coffees were savored, we decided that a venture down to the beach was absolutely necessary.

The classic "love" shadow shot.

What would a weekend with your girlfriends be without a crazy night out??

The next day the sun was out once again, and it was warm enough for us to catch some rays. Back to the beach we went! 

Eventually, our little tummies started grumbling. And there was only one thing that would satisfy our needs ... daiquiris! If you're ever near a Daiquiri Deck, I highly recommend it. An endless variety of flavors and combinations, there is a daiquiri on the menu for everyone! Just a warning - sip slowly! No one likes brain freeze.

From there we did some daiquiri induced shopping...

Don't worry, no shorteralls were purchased in the making of this blog post.

One of my favorite meals that we had in Florida was at an Italian restaurant called Made In Italy. We all split a bottle of chianti, and I ordered the carbonara. It was delicious and took all of my willpower not to lick my bowl clean.

It goes without saying that I had an amazing time with my besties in Florida. It has been decided that this is going to be an (at least!!) annual trip.