The gym has sort of been a bit of a sanctuary for me most of my life.

• I was sort of a fat, uncoordinated kid.

That’s actually not the easiest thing to be. We all sort of laugh and find them adorable. But being that kid is a far different set of circumstances. I tried sports. My parents pushed me into organized team sports thinking that I would find a rhythm and shed the baby fat. Instead, I sucked at sports and was simply an easy target for those cruel jocks on each team I joined. By the time I was 15, I was still fat and hated sports so I gave up. By chance, I got a ride with a neighbor one day who had to stop at the local gym to retrieve an item from their locker. The minute I walked in to that HVAC controlled, sparkling clean and organized gym, I felt like I was home. I didn’t even hit my parents up for the money. My savings got spent that day joining my very first gym. Somehow, I felt so much more comfortable exercising for purely exercise and not to score more points or get more plays. I was just surrounded by helpful, positive people who enjoyed being healthy. There was something so fundamental in this idea that I thrived in that environment immediately. By the time I was a junior in high school, I had shed the weight. Now, if I could just get my gym to upgrade the HVAC system I’d be set.

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