It started 7 months ago. My gym for the last 13 years finally gave up on a full COVID recovery and closed its doors.
The next closest Crunch was not close at all, so I went back to my old gym – 24 Hour Fitness.
It was so familiar it felt comforting.
All the equipment was in the same place it was 14 years ago. I recognized a lot of faces I hadn’t seen in a long time. And memories of workouts past were around every corner.
3 months in and I remembered all the reasons I left.
Men doing questionable things in the open showers. Mostly broken cardio equipment. And never-ending broken showers and toilets.
I justified putting up with it because $30/mo is tough to beat.
Then two weeks ago, I walked in with these warnings posted on the locker room walls.
That’s when it dawned on me that the twisted metal and stripped wood on the lockers were from people breaking into them.
On my way to 24 Hour on Monday, I impulsively decided to swing by Equinox for a tour.
I never thought in a million years I’d ever consider paying that much for a gym. That’s just not me.
But after seeing the clientele and the staff and the cleanest locker room I’ve ever seen, I signed up on the spot.
It’s only been a few days, but I’ve noticed I don’t get a cortisol spike on my way to the gym… or at the gym… or leaving the gym.
It’s a wonderfully cortisol-free experience.
At the time I hadn’t thought about it, but these days I solve for reducing cortisol.
That’s what took me from upgrading from Muni to Uber to Waymo for my morning commute.
And that’s why I pay extra to avoid Safeway and order groceries through Amazon Fresh.
And that’s why – someday – I hope I can fly private and skip all airports everywhere.
So where are your micro-doses of cortisol spiking and can you pay a little extra to eliminate them?
Cuz I’m willing to bet you’ve got enough already coursing through your body just from being a human in 2024.
(BTW even when I fly private, I’ll still be washing out and reusing Ziploc bags. Pick your battles. Just saying…)
