This week Linda has given us hot and cold to use as prompt words for our Stream of Consciousness posts. We get bonus points if we start and finish with one or the other of them.

Hot and cold. That’s how I have been feeling today. This morning it was a little chilly and I had the first appointment at the gym for an assessment. I put on my ‘workout gear’ with a hoodie over the top to keep off the chill. It has been a long time since I have set foot in a gym and I wasn’t sure what I should take, so I packed a bag with the essentials I thought I would need. It ended up being quite heavy but Mr Grump was going to drop me off whilst he did a few bits.

Our sports centre had rather a long and twisty ramp that goes up to it and I was pretty puffed out when I got to the top, plus the weather seemed to have warmed up considerably. Hmmm, that is half a workout just getting into the building!

I met with the very pleasant lady who asked me a few questions about my lifestyle and then weighed me on the special scales that tell you your percentage of body fat, as well as how hydrated you are. I was out on both counts, fat too high water too low, no surprise there, I was bloody thirsty.

Anyway, after my blood pressure was taken (a bit on the high side), my next appointment was booked. I did not even set foot in the gym! The instructor had admired my trainers which she thought were new. I sheepishly admitted that they were in fact over a year old but had not been worn much.

I felt such a clown turning up with my brand new gym clothes (I rushed out yesterday in a panic to buy them as I had nothing suitable to wear), pristine looking trainers and rather large (new and unused) gym bag that Mr Grump had dragged out of the loft for me.

I trotted off with my heavy bag and phoned Grump to pick me up. Meanwhile, I waited for him in the sunshine. I felt a bit conspicuous hanging around, and the sun was boiling, beating down on my head. I didn’t take the hoodie off though as I do not look my best in tight-fitting lycra and it covered me up a bit. So I stood there and sweated, and sweated.

As soon as I got home, I got changed into something cool and comfy as I planned to get down to some studying. Within half an hour the sun had gone down at the back of the house and I felt chilly. On goes the fleece and even the slippers. Then I get all hot and het up trying to cram too much information in my brain. Off goes the fleece and slippers.

And so it went on, hot and cold, hot and cold!