Itching to Run or How I'm Kind of a Pain When I Can't Work Out

Yesterday, I was feeling aggressive.  Irritable.  Moody.  Sort of down.  In trying to ponder what was wrong with me, I forgot that running and cardio in general is my personal brand of therapy.  Getting my heart pounding, becoming drenched in sweat, running, cycling, power yoga, whatever; anything that makes my muscles warm and requires me to focus and sweat and live in my head is helpful.  Running and riding mean I have time to mull over whatever is in my head, if anything is bothering me, if I have any thing on my mind I need to work through.  Power yoga is great because I can't think of anything else; all of me is focused on my body and how it feels and how it is aligned and maintaining my form and my balance.  In short, exercise really helps to balance me out. 
My leg injury is much better.  I can walk again as of this past Saturday, though it still feels fatigued.  E, in his role as my faux personal trainer (and he's usually dead on about my training) thinks I should wait until Thursday before trying an easy run, which is probably the best call.  Last night we did some basic strength training at home.  Push-ups, tricep dips, pull ups and leg lifts.  It was tough, and a great reminder that building up my upper body and overall muscle strength will really do wonders for my training.  I woke up very aware of my shoulders, but am enjoying that fatigued-muscle feeling of a job well done.

Joining the Gym

I've known for a while that a hole in all of my training has been the lack of strength work.  I have about zero muscle tone that doesn't come strictly from running and cycling and a bit of yoga.  In high school, to get out of gym that required lots of running or being outside, I was one of three girls that elected to take Weight Training.  Honestly, I really liked it.  I liked that by semester's end I could see a change in my posture, in my arms, in my overall fitness.  But I didn't stick with it.
Then, a few years ago, I started again.  I decided I wanted to get in shape again, so I started going to the gym in the apartment complex I lived in at the time.  No one was ever there, so I went 3-5 days a week, and it worked. I found my muscle tone again, and along with adjusting my diet, I lost weight and got in shape.  I loved it.  I'll admit, I even started wearing tank tops when I worked out for the sole reason of being able to see my newly toned arms in the mirror while I worked out.  Michelle Obama, eat your heart out.  Then I moved, and the strength training stopped, and I've been talking about starting again for a while now, but haven't quite made it (this includes a brief stint where I belonged to my local Y for a year but only managed to go a grand total of three times).
So today I went and joined a gym about three blocks from my job.  I really have no reason not to go, and if I run near work in the mornings, I can shower and get cleaned up there.  So, I'm telling myself, that if I have a great view of the river while I work out, and I have a place that's so close I can go on my lunch break that it will work.  I also get a complimentary personal training session as part of joining.  I go next Tuesday.  I'm curious to see what all my measurements, body fat, etc. are, but I'm also a little terrified of what I'll find out.  Fingers crossed!