Freedom by Pharrell Williams

You all know about Pavlov’s dog, right?  He rang a bell whenever his dog was eating and eventually the dog would salivate upon simply hearing a bell.  Thanks to Lucy at the YMCA, I now have a sudden urge to do squats whenever I hear the chorus of Freedom.  I joined the YMCA almost 4 years ago and while I wouldn’t quite call it a second home, I would certainly call myself a frequent visitor.  I’ve always been a gym rat as opposed to an athlete.  I don’t play team sports and never have.  The only team I was on was the marching band.  I am however a big fan of individual sports like skiing, swimming, cycling, and ice skating.  I joined the YMCA because of its proximity to the preschool, lots of people I know are members, and you can’t beat the value for the price!  They have a single parent rate, the childcare is included (this is rare in the gym world), a pool, and many, many extra activities like swim lessons, ballet, and cross fit for kids.  I’m a fan.  The kids and I have met several new friends at the Y and it’s a really friendly place. 

Possibly because I was never an athlete, I do much better when I am working out with instructors as opposed to simply working out and developing my own workouts.  Back in the day I was all about step aerobics.  Then came spin which I am grateful is still a thing.  I later started pilates and body pump, then moved into yoga.  The latest and greatest in workouts nowadays is HIIT, which stands for High Intensity Interval Training.  It’s a 25 minute workout which is fantastic for my lifestyle.  I get a head to toe, super challenging workout in under 30 minutes.  All of the instructors at the Y are excellent, but today I’m going to rave about Lucy.  She is creative and challenging, kind and informative, and most of all entertaining.  She also has excellent taste in music, which if we’re being honest, is what makes or breaks a workout for me.  Once in a while she will do a warm up routine that is somewhat choreographed to the music, specifically Freedom.  I say somewhat because really the only choreography is to do squats when he says Freedom.  And thanks to Lucy, I now have a very Pavlovian response to the song.  I resist the temptation almost always because I imagine it would be really odd if I were to start doing squats in the aisle at Safeway.  Freedom!