Making the Internet My Accountability Partner

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I have had a Planet Fitness membership since 2022. Part of it has always been wanting to improve my physical health and fitness. But in many ways a large part of it is the impact that exercise has on my mental health. I feel overall better and more energized after I work out. There was quite a while where going to the gym and walking on the treadmill made me feel good.

However, it was so inconsistent. It’s so hard to convince myself to drive the 10 minutes to the gym and deal with the crowds. I have always known during the warmer months that I’d much rather go on a hike or nature walk than go to the gym. A gym membership always felt essential for the winter months because I always thought I hated working out at home.

I think it’s telling that when I created my morning menu, the best time of day for me to workout, everything I listed for exercise was something I could do at home. Because I have the Planet Fitness app I can tell you I went to the gym 4 times in January and 3 times in February. But I have been walking or doing a YouTube video workout at least 3 times a week.

It feels somewhat impulse as I only had the thought this morning, but I am going to cancel my gym membership. I don’t use it enough to warrant the expense, I don’t enjoy it enough to force myself to use it more, and I have better places I can spend the money. I’m excited for the way that this change will broaden my options for workouts in the coming months. I’ll no longer have the option of asking myself ‘do I want to go to the gym’ instead I’m pivoting to ask myself ‘what do I want to do for exercise today’.