partly out of pride, partly out of my unexplainable faith in myself, and partly out of a desire to have a spanking new body by the time i hit thirty, i made a bet with a friend.

well, it didn't exactly start out that way. it started out like every other conversation i had about my weight:

other person: you're pretty.
me: thanks.
other person: you'd be
prettier though if you lost weight.
me: i know.
other person: so why
don't you?
me: i will.

now, on any other other day, the conversation would end with that and i'd go on my merry way and the other person would go his/her merry way and we'd never discuss the weight issue again until, well, probably until the next time i wear something unflattering and the weight becomes painfully obvious.

this time though, it was different. my friend made a bet with me. a two thousand peso bet. two thousand bucks for twenty pounds to be lost before i hit thirty. that means in the next four months, i ought to lose at least five pounds a month.

i really should've thought about it more, after all, two thousand bucks, if you think about it, isn't that big an amount these days anymore. but then it might have been one of those days when my knees were painful from walking around in heels (you don't really realize how much you've gained until you wear your sky high heels and your knees groan from the pressure) or it could've been the fact that i haven't worn this pair of pretty slacks for the longest time. it could've also been the fact that i'm supposed to emcee yet another event for my boss by the end of december. i don't know. what i do know is that at the end of that day, i had made a bet, and i planned on winning it.

so today, i made my first move towards winning that two grand: i finally went with a friend to elorde. now, as far as gyms go, the elorde sports center at sucat leaves much (a lot!) to be desired. considering however that i am, and have never been, a gym person, the testosterone-filled room didn't scare me. it simply told me that if i really wanted to lose those 20 lbs. (and who knows, 30?), i was in the right place.

i wasn't wrong. by the time i finished the warm-up (yes, just the warm-up) i was close to panting like a lost dog. by the time i finished the laps around the room, i was like one of those horses foaming at the mouth from sheer exhaustion. and 45 minutes into the basics of boxing, i was ready to box the trainer himself. i was THAT tired.

probably sensing that, the trainer said "we're done" and took off the gloves and the bandages and let me go. finally.

or so i thought. after making small talk, including the promise that 20 lbs. shouldn't be a problem if i did this thrice a week, he then made me stand again.

wha-----

abdominal exercises.

f*cker. this guy was hitler, only he didn't speak german.

i made it through my a little over an hour trial session. and all the torture to my body aside, i loved it.

i loved it so much i am actually looking forward to going back there. i loved how the exercises made me feel that i actually went to atc afterwards (achy muscles and all) and bought my own hand wrap and boxing gloves.

now, whether i do lose the 20 lbs. or not, i wouldn't know until i've done more sessions. but whether i do or not, well, i'll probably learn enough of boxing to punch the hell out of any person in the future who'd have the guts to open up any topic concerning my weight.