Old habits die hard, although they probably shouldn't

More than anything else I'm a creature of habit. I need the things I need to do the things I do. I just do. And one of those things I need to do the things I do is the treadmill at my gym.

I've been a member at my gym since before it was even open. Over 4 years ago a little storefront gym opened up with a few treadmills, elliptical machines and weight machines at a run down shopping center with the promise of a big, luxurious gym opening in months at another shopping center up the road a piece.

When that new building opened they took the equipment from the storefront there and added a lot more of the same types of cardio machines. So for over 4 years now I've been using the same treadmills.

At my gym each piece of cardio equipment has its own "cardio theater." It's a TV with a few music channels and a few regular and cable TV channels that you can plug your ear buds into and control just for yourself. There is a sign off to the side of the cardio area on a wall that states the cardio theaters are in use for up to 18 hours a day, and while they're serviced daily they could break down, so if they do let the staff know immediately and the cardio theater will be fixed. Ironically, there is no sign that states the same about the cardio machines themselves.

I bring this up because the treadmills I've been using in my gym for 4+ years now are slipping down the useful scale at an alarmingly fast pace, and no one seems to mind as long as the TVs work.

Maybe I set the speed on them a little higher than most people, but once you get to a certain speed it feels like the tread is slipping when you take a step and it feels uncomfortable, dangerous, and maybe a little scary. I just don't get how so much care can be taken of the TVs but seemingly not nearly as much to the exercise equipment.

The gym did, several months ago, install a group of 4 or 5 new treadmills in the front of the cardio area. They are different than the ones I've been using for years so I've been leery of trying them out. But after feeling the tread slip on virtually every 'mill I tried out the other day I finally did something different for once and tried that different treadmill.


Guess I won't have you to sweat all over anymore, fake track.
It was just a short little 5K run, but that had to be my best treadmill run in a year. The machine felt sturdy and strong and able to withstand the punishment I gave it. After all this time I tried something new and now I may have a new treadmill to make a part of my predictable routine.

The best part of these treadmills is that, because of where they're situated on the floor, they don't each have their own cardio theater attached to them. And that means that even when all the old, dying treadmills are filled these nice new ones are almost always available.

Win/win!