The Tool Box

Last Christmas two of my favorite gifts were my pink Ipod from my husband and my cute black, white and pink gym bag from my Momma.   At the time I had reached ninety days into my new lifestyle change and I guess I had proved to those around me that I was legit so to speak, that the changes in me were here to stay.   These gifts weren't just some nice things to have...to me they signaled a change in myself in that I wanted things for the gym more than I wanted any other gift.

When I proudly showed my new gym bag to one of my trainers last year, she called it my "tool box".  I thought that was a great analogy because (for a high maintenance girl like me) it takes a lot of tools: sprays, lotions, make up, hairspray (to make me presentable after all that sweat at lunch); the Ipod; tiger balm, band aids, and a an ace bandage (because sometimes hurts happen); workout clothes and various pairs of socks that may or may not match; the fourth pair of tennis shoes that I've burned through; and a P90X Kenpo DVD that I keep meaning to return to my brother.

Well, last year's "tool box" has seen better days. It's been thrown in and out of the trunk of my car five to six days a week, it's bounced around on my shoulder over countless miles to and from work and the gym, it's been pawed through and zipped and unzipped, its been skidded across the locker room floor as I've arrived to the gym either late or just in the nick of time, and its been flung on the floor of my desk and living room hundreds of times.  

Today while shopping for a new "tool box" I told the salesman at a local sports goods store that I needed a new gym bag because my old one was worn out.  "That's exactly as it should be!" he said with a genuine smile. "Congrats!  Keep it up."  Being that he was decked out as the obvious triathlete that he was, I took this as a compliment and left with a cute new flamingo pink gym bag (even tool boxes can be cute).

After being off for Christmas and the parade of food temptations of the holidays, I'm looking forward to getting back into my gym routine tomorrow.  My new "tool box" is already packed and ready to go.