Thoughts at the Y

This afternoon I went to the Y for my workout, and entered the treadmill room, as usual. I walked over to the magazine rack and picked up an issue of Newsweek. Then I selected a treadmill, turned on the portable TV attached to the machine, channel surfed to find a program, found on, and turned the closed captioning on. Finally, I turned on my iPod and programmed a playlist in there. Then, and only then, did I start my workout.

After I finished exercising, I had to wonder, "Why do I need all of this stimulation when I get on the treadmill?" I hardly read the magazine in depth, because I pay too much attention to the closed captioning on TV. I stop paying attention to the TV when a good song comes on my shuffle. And when there's a song I don't feel like hearing, I just look at the picture on the screen.

I guess all of this is due to the fact that I don't want to look at how much time I have left to exercise.

So why do I exercise, when there are some days I dread it? Well, for one, it's good for me, and I feel amazing after a workout, like I can conquer the world. It gives me something to do other than watch TV, read a book, or check E-mail. (Although I can do two of those three things while I'm working out). Finally, it just makes me feel like I've accomplished something. Plus, I sleep better and eat better when I move and groove.

Still, I wonder what it would be like to work out with no music, no magazines, and no TV. Would I focus on my activity better? I'm not sure if this is something I wanna try.