Treadmill Trepidations

Part of my weekly routine involves three different days each week where I go for a run. My local gym has a good batch of treadmills, and so Monday, Wednesday, and Friday typically find me down there, running away on a treadmill.

Now, usually my runs aren't all that exciting. I plug my iPod into my ears, listen to my music, and then run. My short runs are 6 miles long, with my Friday run being my long run.

Today, though, was one of those runs where the unusual happened. I had my iPod tucked into the iPod pocket of my shorts, and started off running. However, at one point, I bumped up against the front bar of the machine. The cord of my iPod came into contact with the metal, and I got a shock! Not a really powerful one, but enough to catch my attention. I proceeded to turn off the component which allows you to plug into the TVs, thinking that there might be a short in it. After my run, I would then go and tell the attendant about the problem. So I thought that was the end of it.

That is, until I touched one of the side metal bars. Another shock! Again, not real powerful, but enough to get my attention. So then, I started to experiment. About every minute, I would reach over and touch the bar, and sure enough, a shock. I realized that it was the kind of shock that you get when you wear wool socks over carpet and then touch a light switch. That's when it hit me. I had worn a pair of microfiber pants, which tend to build up static electricity, and that was what caused my shocks. So for the rest of the run, I just had fun reaching up and touching the bar every minute or so to see if I could get rid of the static.

Now, if that were the only adventure, that might have been enough. But no, there's more! About 20 minutes into my run, I noticed a very distinct odor coming around the machine. It was the serious smell of someone who had not bathed for a while, and then was building up a sweat on top of it. Usually when I run, I do quite a bit of breathing through my nose. But today, the smell was starting to get so strong, I had to resort to breathing through my mouth. Someone around me had some serious B.O. Now, running in a gym, you get used to a certain lingering odor of sweat. I'm not sure who it was, but there was definitely someone who was exuding a smell that went far beyond what is socially acceptable.

Crazy adventures at the gym. They don't happen often, but when they do, it sometimes is a shocking, smelly event.