Exercise in China is a relatively new concept. I mean, these people bike everywhere so it’s not like they need to be overly concerned with burning calories, although there’s a growing trend in scooters and motorized bikes taking over the old-fashioned pedal-pushing types. Still, there are lots of gyms and fitness clubs around Nanjing, maybe around China. Lucky for me, there’s a gym almost across the street from where I live.
I think it must be a chain, because the brochure the girl gave me when I signed up had all these different addresses... In Chinese, of course. And it’s not cheap (not like going to the DVD store and buying all four seasons of Lost, 30 Rock, and four movies for $10) and is about $30 a month. But considering all my other bills are getting cheaper and cheaper, I think I can afford it. It’s decent and better than the joke-of-gym at UF (how I miss those meatheads at Southwest). Best of all, this past week the gym upgraded to all brand new equipment! As you walk in, there are pictures of about 20 different trainers with their English names (King was my favorite). And there are probably 8 people at the reception desk to greet you... Got to love cheap labor in China.
Now what Chinese people actually do at the gym varies. They all LOVE swimming, especially the women. In fact, the majority of the women in the locker room are all either getting ready to go swimming or have just finished. My membership doesn’t include use of the pool, but if I wanted to use the pool, it would only cost me about $2 for the day. I don’t think I’m that brave yet... I’ll just stick to dry activities. My favorite is the ping pong tables. Yes, the Chinese do consider ping pong a work out, and they get really into it. There’s also an aerobics studio, hot yoga room (women are also big on yoga) and a spinning room. Of all the exercise fads out there, I think Chinese have the hardest time grasping the idea of “spinning.” They probably came to the gym riding their bike, so why are they going to sit on a bike for the next 45 minutes? And the “spin” classes in China are a far cry from the intense and challenging workouts back home. After every song, there’s like a 3-minute recovery period, so any increased heart rate lasts a short 2 - 4 minutes. But I don’t think the Chinese are into intense workouts anyway.
When I go to the gym, I usually stick to cardio. I keep telling myself that I’m going to try out a class, but I’m a little scared. I think the instructor would probably be scared too with the laowai who probably looks incredibly clueless trying to keep up in her class. So for now, I’m ok sticking to the basics.
There are somethings about the gym that really bother me. For instance, they are perfectly content to keep the gym temperature at a cool 80 degrees. I guess Chinese people don’t really sweat or get hot, but for someone who already “glistens” more than the average person, I leave the gym smelly and gross (maybe this is why the Chinese avoid intense work outs). And most women shower at the gym before they leave, and I guess I don’t blame them for not wanting to look unpresentable when leaving the gym. But until I see the love of my life on my 5-minute walk back to my apartment where I can shower in the comfort of my own home, I’m not about to spend any more time than I have to in the locker room.
Oh the ladies locker room. There was a scarring and defining moment in my childhood when I was having lunch at Coca Cola with my dad and we went to go see the new gym at his offices. I walked in the ladies locker room to use the bathroom or something, and there, in front of my 9-year-old eyes, was some 50-something woman completely naked. It was embarrassing and awful. Now, times that by about 30, and this is the scene in the ladies locker room at my Chinese gym. Women of all ages and sizes are walking around stark naked and are completely unbothered by it. And it’s not like they’re in any rush to put clothes on. They sit in the sauna naked, dry their hair naked, chat on the phone naked and practically just hang out in the locker room completely naked. I guess I envy their confidence in their bodies and that they’re comfortable with walking around clothe-less in front of complete strangers, but I’m not about to join them in their naked freedom. As if I don’t already get enough stares, I don’t know how these women would react to the laowai walking around naked in the locker room. Maybe that would be the encouragement they need to put some clothes on in there.
It’s nice to have a place to go keep in shape. And despite how hot I get in there and how weird they think I am for running on a treadmill for 45 minutes at a time, it’s a great release from work (not that my job is all that stressful) and a good time for me to feel better about me. And maybe one day of joining the naked women in the locker room would make me feel even better about myself. Doubtful.
1 comment:
You've brought back memories of when I was a child and all of the naked women I saw when my mother would take me to the YWCA to swim. I think I was practically in shock the first time. They had a rule that you had to take a nude-soap-shower before you were allowed to enter the pool. Being a child, my own nudity wasn't a big deal to me, but seeing a locker room packed with nude women and girls showering and walking around came as a bit of a shock at first.
I kind of envy the women, too, who are able to walk around the locker room buck naked without a care in the world. I've noticed at my gym that most Asian women are comfortable being nude in the locker room. Just for the sake of facing my fear I think some day soon I will force myself to shower in the communal group showers at my gym. Just to prove to myself that I have the maturity to be able to shower at the gym like most of the other ladies at the gym.
Mandy H
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