I go to Barre3 at 8:00 am because I’m Lazy

Short Story about waking up, working out, and everything in between

It’s 7:44 am as I’m running out the door to my car, water bottle in one hand, a cup of green tea in the other, backpack on, and extra clothes piled on top of me for changing after class.

It’s just another morning on my way to Barre3 class.

It’d be easier to just sign up for the 10:00 am class or noon class or just do it from home so how did we get here?

Well, it’s because I’m lazy.

When COVID lockdowns began, I was working from home. And by working, it was often 70-hour weeks, 7 days a week. I didn’t have much time for anything save a few walks outside to stay sane.

But then, after a couple of months, my schedule calmed down and I needed to add some structure to my life.

I started exercising from home again and then soon enough, well, not soon enough, but you get it… studios started opening again, albeit with restrictions (class sizes from 30 to 10 and everyone masked up… the whole class).

I started going to 10:00 am classes. It was early enough to get done before the afternoon and late enough to be lazy in bed. I was enjoying the added structure of my life after having an empty calendar for 3 months.

I was talking to Maddi at the Barre3 front desk one day when I walked in and briefly mentioned how the structure was helping get me going in the morning. She gave me that friendly side-eye at the mention of a 10:00 am morning. She’s the kind of girl who has already completed a second workout by then.

It got me thinking, maybe 10:00 am isn’t the morning.

And also, I was getting a little tired of taking 10:00 am classes. By the time I am out of class, have gotten a smoothie, taken a walk, showered, and changed… it’s already noon and I still have to get my work done for the day.

And I noticed myself getting lazier and lazier in the morning. My body doesn’t sleep in so it would just wake up and I would lay there counting my blessings, no, not really… more like, counting the COVID, riots, long-distance relationship, Twitter feuds, and all the other entanglements of life until I HAD to get out of bed.

I knew I needed a change, a re-boot, a jump-start to my days so I decided I would start signing up for the 8:00 am classes. Not necessarily for the class, but simply to get myself out of bed. Well, not even to get myself out of bed, but to get myself to sleep the night before.

You see, I’m a night owl. I’m not lazy in a sense of getting work done. I’ll easily work till 3:00 am or 4:00 am. But I can just as easily flip through Instagram, TikTok, and FaceBook till 3:00 am or 4:00 am. (My people said Amen!)

But if I have to wake up, I know, I’ve got a better chance at convincing myself to go to sleep.

I bought a new house a few months ago. I love it. It was a welcome change to my life. A new season. And with that, I could create a ‘new’ life, a new way of doing things.

I have dreams of waking up, opening my blinds to let the sunlight in, turning on some Gospel music, breathing in the lavender from my oil diffuser as I roll out of bed and turn the tea kettle on to sip on some green tea while journaling, meditating, and reading a book.

Oh, and there’s a yoga mat and an acupressure mat on the floor as well. What a glorious morning!! God bless.

The alarm goes off. My phone is located across the room because… lazy. If it’s next to me, it’s too easy to hit snooze.

So I go across the room and then hit snooze. Okay, so I haven’t mastered it yet, but the slight movement at least gets me going.

I need to get up, take a shower, change, make a smoothie, tea, and get to class.

But instead, when I finally get my eyes open, I check Instagram, Medium, Facebook, and then play a game on my phone. Time is ticking away. Don’t I know I need to get to class! Haven’t I watched The Social Dilemma! Don’t I know that they’ve designed these apps to control me!… and they’re succeeding!

Yes, I do know that. And yet… click, click, click. Oh no, it’s getting late, I gotta get going!

Once I get out of bed, I’m in go-mode. Rush to the shower, turn it on cold, yes, I’m a cold shower guy! Gets you going, health benefits, etc. I head downstairs, I make my smoothie. Almond milk, macadamia milk, veggie protein power, collagen peptides, turmeric, wheatgrass, and maybe a little coffee.

I grab my tea and I’m out the door at 7:44 am which gives me just enough time to be in a complete rush to the Barre3 studio, hoping that the lights stay green along the way.

I go straight into class and begin stretching and trying to breathe through my mask.

I’m not gonna lie, I’m giving the class about 60–80% effort, not because I don’t want to workout, but because the goal of going to the class was to simply get up in the morning, or to actually go to bed the night before. So by arriving, I’ve already reached my goal. In the mornings, in that time I’m laying in bed hitting snooze, my mind goes, ‘You should stay in bed. You need the rest. Just call in, let them know you’re not going to make it.’ But then the other side of my mind goes, ‘You owe them $15 if you don’t show up for class.’ And then I go, ‘You’re right! I’m not paying $15 for a class I didn’t go to,’ and that’s what eventually gets me out of bed.

The class whizzes by as I spend most of it trying to think of where I’m going to get a cold brew when I get out.

Insomnia: it’s close to my house, nice selection of coffees and milk, slightly overpriced, no punch card, great ambiance… hmmm

Symposium: nice ambiance, roomie, slightly overpriced, great milk options, frequently bump into people I knew… hmmm

Starbucks: impossible breakfast sandwich, pumpkin cream cold brew, too basic, good price, Starbucks stars, reliable internet… hmmm

Two Sweet Cakes: cozy, great prices, friendly baristas, amazing treats, poor internet, dan works next door… hmmm

JoLa: we have history, the best food, far away, great neighborhood… hmmm

And that doesn’t even include whether I should go to Nektar Juice or Jamba Juice to get a smoothie after class.

Like I said, there’s a lot to think about during class.

Alas, it’s 9:00 am, I finish class. I inevitably sit in my car for 15 minutes, because I still haven’t decided where to go next. But eventually I do. And it’s not even 10:00 am and I’m already started with my work day.

I know, that’s not super early but when you’re working evenings and weekends too, there’s no need to crack the dawn.

All I know is, I go to 8:00 am Barre3 class because I’m lazy.

But I’m also self-aware. I know my weaknesses. They include going to bed, getting up, and where to get cold brew.