Remember when you were a kid and you had to decide whether to tell your Mom that you had an argument with a friend? Because, you learned, early on, that if you told her, and you and your friend made up,, it would be hard to tell her so.
I recently broke up with my long term gym and I told my Mom why and now I can’t change my mind (not that I want to and this is a good thing).
I have been going to the same gym for years. I went because of the great workout/space/community. Over the years, it became clear that I didn’t go because of the owner, who had terrible business-running skills and it became more and more obvious that she didn’t treat her staff great. I was able to continue going to the gym because of the other benefits and because she was rarely around.
Recently, I have been made aware of more disturbing events between the gym owner and staff and I couldn’t ignore them anymore. I have been trying out different gyms and looking for that certain je ne sais quoi that is not easy to find for my steady gym. Maybe I’ll write about that search soon.
In the meantime, I explained to my Mom recently why I couldn’t look the other way anymore. The next day, my Mom said, unprompted, “You can’t support her anymore.”
It doesn’t matter if you are 13 or 52, once you tell your Mom, the choice becomes clear with these things. So, even if I am, occasionally, longing for the familiarity of my old gym (for the workout vibe and community), my choice is clear and onward I go!
Nicole is on the search for a new regular gym.
