SEA DAYS: EXERCISING ON THE REM INSTALLER

With my job I am constantly going on different boats and have yet to be on the same one twice. As a regulation, it’s required for vessels to have some sort of exercising option for the crew on board. A lot of the time this option is ‘gym’ although it’s normally a bit different than what you find on land. Depending on the vessel this ‘gym’ can involve anything from a basketball court with a couple of free weights to a closet with an exercise bike. You basically have to take what you get. I got fairly lucky this hitch by being on a brand new vessel called the REM Installer.

This boat has a fairly large room equipped with two treadmills, two exercise bikes, elliptical, rower and two multi purpose exercise machines. There are also two free weights with a maximum weight of 40 pounds each, which is plenty for what I need but isn’t very useful for the majority of men on board. Along with being well equipped, it’s also clean!!! I’m not ‘germaphobic‘ but I like knowing when I sit on the floor to stretch or use exercise mats that I’m not getting covered with dirt or other people’s sweat. One downside is that there is not a lot of room on the floor to do exercises or stretching. I find myself going back to my room to do anything floor related because I can move things around and have a bit more space.

Since I’m just getting back into going to the gym I’ve been taking it relatively easy and taking a day off when I need it. My workouts have included running/walking on the treadmill for 25 minutes, 10 minutes elliptical followed by tabata exercises such as lunges, squats, sit-ups, etc. On the days I choose to take a break it’s nice to go up to the helideck, weather depending, to walk or lightly run a couple of laps. This gets me outside to enjoy the fresh air and lets me get some movement while still giving my muscles a break.

Jess.

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