I belong to three gyms. I joined the first in 2011 because membership was cheaper than paying by the class for Zumba. Aside from all the beef on display, the weight room didn’t interest me.

I opted for a pricey membership that included regular sessions with a personal trainer. The guy who worked with me for the next eighteen months was smart, very kind, and always extremely professional. His encouragement and support kept me coming back. Didn’t hurt that he was super hot.

Outside of grueling sessions with him, my workouts have never been particularly strenuous. Better too little than to overdo it and hurt myself. The main goal has been at least thirty minutes of strength training two or three times a week.

The results after ninety days of Zumba, running, and working out were a HUGE disappointment. My body was essentially unchanged. Before and after pictures for fitness programs and products had me expecting to be transformed.

Still, thanks to that first trainer, I stuck with it.  Consistently working out two or three times a week for more than five years made a difference. Somewhere along the way, I came to enjoy it too.

In May 2017, the gym offered me a great deal: pay for a year upfront and get six months free. Days after taking my money, the dirty rotten bastards announced my gym was closing. Access to “nearby” facilities I’d never use prevented me from getting my money back.

I didn’t workout again until last October when I joined the YWCO. It’s close to my house and no contract is required. The tiny weight room has maybe a tenth of the equipment available at my old gym, but I thought it was enough for my modest fitness goals.

Working around one person (sometimes two) is doable. More than that severely limits access to what little equipment there is. Before long, the lack of variety got boring. Making myself go grew harder by the week until I barely went at all.

With muscle, it’s use it or lose it. What amounted to a year-long hiatus has set me back. What little tone I had is fading fast. I’ve come too far to let myself go (again).

Anytime Fitness recently opened in a nearby shopping center. Round-the-clock access very much appeals to me. I was often frustrated by the limited hours at my other gyms  — especially on weekends and holidays.

A spacious weight room with plenty of equipment sold me. QR codes on every apparatus link to videos demonstrating proper use. Live group classes are available with a variety of video-led classes available on-demand. I can do Zumba whenever I want!

So I joined a third gym. What can I say? Membership at the one I never use is paid up through October. The YWCO membership is good through the end of July.

My first two workouts at Anytime Fitness were the best since my first gym closed. I get an introductory hour with a trainer today. Encouraging me to buy group and/or individual training sessions will likely be the focus of our time together. We shall see. I just might say yes.