"Honey, I really need to start working out again." Jess says to me as she pulls her pants up past her hips.
"Baby, you still look amazing. Yeah, we've both kind of fallen off the work-out wagon since moving across country, but you still look great." I tell Jess with honesty.
"Well I don't like how I look." Jess continues. "I'm going to take advantage of some of the classes at the base gym. Maybe take a spin class after I get off work."
"Sure." I tell her. "Whatever you need to do to feel good about yourself."
Since we moved across country six months ago we've both let ourselves go a bit. Nothing serious. By all accounts, for being 42 Jess looks amazing. She's regularly confused for being in her late 20's or early 30's. It always comes as a shock to people when they find out she's in her early 40s and has two kids that are out of the house. She could maybe use to loose five pounds, but that is just being nitpicky. She's always been about 110 pounds. When she gets to 115 or 120 she gets self-conscious. Silly girl.
The next evening Jess tells me that after work she is going to catch an 11 A.M. High Intensity Interval Class. She works a very early shift at a coffee shop and is usually off by 10 A.M.
"Good for you baby." I tell her. "I'll probably go for a run after work." I'm not much into weight lifting. I've always been lean. At 5'9" 165 pounds I don't have a lot of muscle, but at the same time I don't have to worry much about a spare-tire like many men my age. Jess on the other hand could easily pass for a fitness nut. At 5'5" and around 120 pounds she has gained a little bit of cushion over the past few months, but she still looks fit. Several years ago she got breast augmentation that she had wanted for years. I never cared whether or not she got the work done. At 34A her breasts were kind of small, but it worked with her tiny frame. Now she had 34DD breasts. They looked pretty much like porn star tits. While I didn't think she needed them, I certainly wasn't going to complain about the new porn star ones.
She had intended to only go up to 34C, but at the last minute had made the decision that if she was going to get work done, she might as well make it count. I was indifferent, but I must say that after she got the new boobs I was loving them. They certainly stood out on her tiny body and garnered more than a few long stares and second looks from other guys. While she acted like she was uncomfortable with the looks I started to get the feeling that she liked it. After the surgery she initially dressed modestly, not wanting to flaunt her breasts, but over time she started wearing slightly more revealing clothes. The change was slow enough so as to be almost unnoticeable. I'm not even sure she realized she had changed the way she was dressing.
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I was totally self-conscious showing up for the first fitness class. I didn't know anybody in the class, and I have always been kind of socially awkward in these types of situations. I tried to dress modestly. I was here to work out, and get fit, not to socialize or try and show off my body. There were eight of us in the 11 A.M. class. This was the first class of the eight week beginners program. The rest of the students were all female. That would make it easier, no guys as a distraction. Several of the other ladies seemed to know each other. None of them were especially fit. I'd go as far as to say that a few of them were a bit frumpy. That made me feel simultaneously happy with my body and self-conscious.
I had to be the oldest girl in the class by at least five to ten years. But I was definitely the most fit. A few of the girls that seemed to know each other were on the far side of the room chatting. Three of them were looking over at me and talking to each other under their breath. I caught several glances that were certainly not friendly. I've seen this judgemental look before.
Great, what a way to start the class. I was wearing yoga pants, a sports bra, and a t-shirt. I couldn't be much more conservative. Still, the way my breasts popped out did tend to draw attention. Sometimes good, and sometimes bad I guess.
"Don't worry about them." A masculine voice says to me.
I look over and see a tall, muscular black man standing just inside the room entrance. He looks at me and smiles. "Are you supposed to be in the beginner class?" He asks me.
"Yes." I respond.
"Good." He tells me. Moments later he walks to the front of the room. "Hello ladies. I'm your instructor Dante."
That first class went well. It was quite a shock to the body, I hadn't done a high intensity workout like that for almost a year. Despite being a little out of shape I was able to keep up and finish out all of the exercises. It felt good to push myself, and as the class ended I looked forward to the upcoming Wednesday and Friday classes.
The rest of the week went pretty well. I felt like I was able to get through the exercises well. The Instructor, Dante was excellent. He did a great job of motivating all of us. He had an excellent approach and seemed to recognize when each of us needed a break, and when we needed to be pushed harder.
After several weeks of classes I even made some headway with some of the other girls. The group that had initially been giving me the cold stares warmed up to me when, after a little group discussion I revealed to them that I had a 20 year old son and an 18 year old daughter. They all seemed shocked.
"How old are you?' One of them asked.
"Forty two" I responded.
"Get the fuck out of here!" She replied. "I thought you were our age."
"How old are you guys? I asked them.
"I'm twenty eight, Jennifer is twenty nine, and Kara is twenty seven." She said. " Well, you sure look great for forty two."
I blushed a little and thanked her for the compliment.
Monday's workout on the third week was an ass-kicker. Dante said we were all doing well and pushed us hard. When the class was over and as the other girls were packing up, Dante called me over.
"Hey Jess, I've got a question for you?"
"Sure." I responded, "What's up?"
"I've been paying attention to the progress of everyone in the class. You are well ahead of the others. I think this class is too basic for you." Dante continued.
"Well what do you suggest?" I asked Dante.
"The classes at the base gym are really catered to beginners." Dante went on. "I work part-time at Everyday Fitness just down the road. I could sign you up for some of the intermediate classes there. I teach one of them and could squeeze you into a few classes for free. After the first few classes, if you like it I can get you a pretty good discount."
I was totally stoked that he thought I was doing so well in the class. I definitely wanted to push myself, so I thought this was a great idea.
"Sure." I told him. "When do classes start?"
"You could start on Thursday if you're ready. Classes are Tuesday and Thursday at noon. I split my time between the base gym and there. Over there I also do personal classes for those that want more catered training."
"That sounds fantastic Dante." I told him. "Should I skip the Wednesday class here?" I asked.