Preparing to Work Out IS the Workout

So I'm trying to be smart and go to the gym, but I'm telling you, it goes against everything my body tells me it wants to do. It makes the most sense for me to go before work because 1) the gym is very crowded after work and I don't like crowds; 2) something always comes up after work; and 3) it's very easy for me to be "too tired" at the end of the workday to then go work out. So yesterday I spent practically half the day trying to think of all the things I need to consider in order to work out before work, and I still got it wrong! 

Let's see, I have to consider what I'm going to wear TO the gym (after all, if I'm swimming, like I was this morning, I'm certainly not going to wear my swimsuit to the club!), I have to remember to bring everything I need FOR the gym (swim days: suit, goggles, cap, water bottle, flip-flops; jog days: clothes, shoes, iPod, water bottle, etc.), and then there's what I'm going to wear AFTER the gym (shower items, makeup, hairbrush, work clothes, etc.). If I forget just one crucial item, I'm in for the worst day ever. Forget my bra? Forget it, I'm going home. Forget my makeup? While I'm no cosmetic tramp, I do wear just enough that if I don't, I spend the day fielding concerned questions from coworkers like, "Have you not slept for days?" or "Are you ill?" Nice to know my "natural" look is so sickly. Forget a hairbrush? Everyone who has to look at me throughout the day suffers. And then there's the food. I have to eat something before I work out, then there's breakfast afterwards, lunch, and snacks for the day. And on days when I'm not going home straight away from work, dinner might need to be worked in there. That's a lot to consider and pack the night before, especially when added to all the other details. This is definitely going to be an adjustment.

Today was my first try. I went to bed at a normal hour last night and set my alarm clock for 5:30am, but then I spent the majority of the night wide awake, thinking about how early the alarm was going to go off and wondering if I had packed everything. By the time 3:00am rolled around, I decided I couldn't possibly get up in two and a half hours and reset the alarm for 7:00am. Then I woke up at 5:00am anyway and decided to just get up and go swim. And so I did. I ate a banana on my way to the club, remembered all of my swimming gear, and enjoyed the soothing warmth of the salt water on my not-so-toned limbs. Because of the eight hundredth foot of snow we received today, I was wearing my mukluks and didn't realize till I got to the office that I had forgotten to pack work shoes. Fortunately, I was prepared and had packed my running shoes in my gym bag so I wore those all day. I looked like our Creative Director, Gerry, who wears his running shoes even with a suit, but it could have been worse. It could have been the bra.