-18F This Morniing

By the looks of things, winter is really here. This morning, the temperature dropped to -24°F at a low point in the drive in and was up to -18°F near the building I work in. It is cold enough for an inversion i.e. when the temperature goes up the higher up you are. Fortunately, the University is located up on a hill so it is a bit warmer. This is the view from the Butrovich building today at about 11:30 am and as you can see, the sun doesn't get up very high in the sky and I don't think it adds any heat. At least you really don't feel anything when the sun shines on you. Yesterday, I did a bit of walking (my normal walk to church and back) and the walk back didn't feel any warmer than the walk down. This afternoon, I have a meeting on lower campus at 3:30 so I should get a little bit of walking in before heading for the Alaska Club.

After going to the Alaska Club for a couple of weeks, I think I am actually ready to join. I dreaded strength training for years and just couldn't get myself to do any in spite of the fact that it was recommended by just about everyone I talked to. Now, I find that I actually enjoy using the machines at the facility though I don't feel at all motivated to try out the free weights. I have also found that I am a little more motivated to try running on the treadmill. I do try running on the treadmill at home but for some reason, I feel that it isn't as easy to slow down. Maybe it is just vanity since there are other people around. I don't know. Anyway, I think I will continue to go after my free month is up. Actually, on December 7th, I will be getting another card from the WIN program. Maybe I can have another free month before having to actually sign up. Of course, the benefit to signing up is that I can use the facility even when it isn't staffed which would be a lot more convenient. Right now, about the only time I can get there is in the late afternoon after work and try and get home by 6. This is, unfortunately, about their busiest time.

Monday, 6:00 PM - It never really warmed up. It is still only -18°F. I walked/jogged for 3 miles on the treadmill this afternoon and used all 12 of the weight machines increasing the weight a little on about half of them. Keeping track on the card really helps me. I should also keep track of the seat position since that really seems to make a difference on the difficulty. I was reading (on the Internet) yesterday that the machines are really made for someone like me, a rank beginner. They force you to maintain the correct position.