This is one of my closest friends, Sarah. She is a senior graduating this spring, loves fashion and is starting a new hobby of working out. She doesn't know a whole lot about working out but she has just started her wellness journey and is super excited to learn more about herself. We met up for a gym session and I was able to get an image of what she carries in her gym bag! As pictured above she has her fitness log book to track her progress and plan workouts. Along with a pen, she also has her AirPods for listening to music during her workouts and she has a barbell pad to help her barbell workouts and finally she has a pink resistance band that she also uses during workouts. Sarah feels these are all important for her when she is working out so that is why these times are in her gym bag.
When talking to Sarah about this assignment and what the items pictured above means to her we started to talk in depth about her connection to these items. We spoke on how these items help on her fitness and wellness journey but we also talked about why she is finding more interest in fitness compared to previously.
In her gym bag there is:
Fitness Log Book- This item is to help her track her progress and help her plan her workouts. Sarah said she is the type of person that likes to plan out what she is doing in the gym, she is a very organized person and does not like to walk into the gym without a plan. She said the gym can be quite intimidating for her so walking in with a planned workout makes her feel better. She also likes to see how much progress she has made since she started working out. She likes to see that she is getting stronger because sometimes when you are hard on yourself it is hard to see your own progress.
Pen: this item is important because it helps her keep track of what she is doing especially during her workout when she is working out so hard she forgets a times what rep she is on. In a way this pen is most important because it helps Sarah express herself. It gives her peace of mind that her planning was not for nothing and just like when you are learning in school, you use a pen. Sarah is currently learning about herself and her abilities so writing information down is important.
Airpods: When it comes to this item, it is probably one of the most essential items while working out because it helps you get into your zone, Sarah told me. She said she loves the fact she can just put her headphones in and tune the world out for however long her workout is. We forgot to picture her phone in the image but it also goes with the Airpods. Music is a way that Sarah expresses herself. It makes her feel better on bad days and it even sometimes gives her more energy during her workout. Music is really a form of therapy and it helps people connect with their emotions so when it is paired with working out it can be very therapeutic. Sarah said that she doesn't think her workouts would be as fulfilling or great without her music.
Barbell Pad: Now looking at this item, this Sarah said is not as much as essential as some of the other items but it does help her when she works out. Since she is just starting out this barbell pad does help when she is doing squats. Most barbells weigh about 45lbs so when you are first beginning to use them they can hurt your shoulders. Barbell pads are made to be a buffer to protect your shoulders from the bar. For Sarah she said this item does make her feel better when she is working out but as she progresses in her journey, she does not need to use it as much.
Pink Resistance Band: This last item is one that helps assist Sarah when she is doing leg workouts. She originally got it when quarantine for Covid-19 first began. At that time she said that she started looking up easy to do home workouts when all the gyms were closed. She really enjoyed doing workouts then but as time went on, school was in person and she had more of a homework load, she stopped thinking about her fitness. Now that she is about to graduate she is thinking more about her health and fitness. This item mostly represents where she first began a couple years ago, she has learned more about fitness but she still likes to incorporate this item at times. She said sometimes going back to what you know how to do in the gym can be comforting when like she said the gym can be intimidating for her. She said she thinks it is important to still have things that bring you comfort when you are doing uncomfortable things for the first time.
To conclude, all of these items help Sarah, they are mobile to her because they help her in her journey and they are easy to bring with her. These items make her journey easier as she is trying to become more mobile herself. She did tell me at the end of our conversation that she could potentially not use some of these items but without them, how she chooses to operate and workout everyday would be a lot harder
By: Julie Essex
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