Do you enjoy cross-training?

I'm just wondering if anyone actually enjoys cross-training........I mean, once you've become a runner, there's value in cross-training, but I can't get excited for it and I certainly don't get excited from doing it.  According to my training schedule, Sundays are for cross-training, so off to the gym I went this morning.  Actually, it was more like this afternoon, after spending a nice lazy morning reading the Sunday paper and watching "Sunday Morning" on CBS.

Once at the gym, I thought I'd get in some walking on the dreadmill before climbing aboard the elliptical machine.  16 minutes later, I'd walked a mile and was ready for a 45 minute session ellipting my way to nowhere.  Climbed on and fired it up.....punched in my numbers (age, weight, session time) and got started.   The thing I love about the elliptical.......virtually no impact.........and that lack of impact makes it seem as if I'm not really exercising.  I was keeping the resistance level lower than usual (level 8) so it took a while for me to feel it, but after about 15 minutes, I started to sweat a little.  Not much.....but a little.

Do you ever wonder about people who are reading while exercising?   Seems to me there's NO WAY you can actually be exercising while reading at the same time.  Maybe it's just me, but it always seems to be people who are half-timing it anyway, so are they just pretending to exercise?  I always wonder about this......similar to people using incorrect form while exercising.  What's the point?  The woman to my left on the elliptinator had her Kindle out and was literally barely moving.  I'm not trying to sit here in judgment, but if you're going to exercise, then why not exercise?  It's just like the dudes in the free weight area, standing around a lot, taking HUGE amounts of time between sets....and when they do actually lift, it's mostly 1 or 2 reps of a BIG weight, grunting like mad, using horrible form and then slamming the weights back down.  What's up with that?   Just trying to prove how macho they are and bragging about how much they can lift, even if it's only once?  I've never been able to understand any of these people......I mean, I go to the gym, I do my work, and then leave.   Maybe it's just me......

The girl to my right was flying along....more than matching my cadence on the elliptinizer.......but she was on a resistance setting of 1........ok, so maybe you don't want ANY resistance at all....but why bother with it?  Her iPod Touch was being prominently displayed........as was her cellphone!  Now that's something that genuinely bothers me.  First off, there are signs posted all over the place in the gym telling people to leave their phones in their lockers.  I think they're trying to avoid people taking pictures/videos of gym patrons, but I'm more concerned and bothered by the intrusion of someone carrying on a conversation.  Unless you're a surgeon on call or the jury is about to come back in, is there really anything SOOOOO important that you need to take a call while in the gym????    Anyway, this girl starts receiving and sending texts WHILE still maintaining her cadence on the elliptinator.....I guess I was impressed, but really.....what could possibly be so important that it couldn't wait?

So I put in my hour of cross-training.....more like "active rest" to clear the lactic acid out of my legs, burn some calories, and get ready for another week of training ahead.  Came home to enjoy my family.....Barb is making one of my favorite dishes (jambalaya!!!!) and the Pats-Broncos game is about to start, so I'm in a happy place!