Maybe it was because of all that "Kendall's-birthday" cheesecake I ate this week...or maybe because my friend Liane popped in this morning after her workout at the new Snap Fitness in town, sharing some tips and motivation...whatever the reason, I felt it was time to pump up my workout today. I usually listen to either U2 or the Dixie Chicks when I hit the treadmill on Saturdays, if I've missed "Rick Steves' Europe" (during the week I just watch the news), but I think all of them are too easy on me. I need someone to motivate me, yell at me, get my heart and legs moving. Who better for that job than Ted Nugent?
Yes, I like Ted Nugent - his music anyway. Specifically the first two or three albums he released in the late '70's. I realize Ted is a controversial character...and he can be incredibly crude and chauvinistic. And his lyrics...well, I can't understand half of them and the other half I just try to tune out (although I think they're pretty mild compared to some of the songs I hear playing these days - before I change stations!)
But he can play that guitar...I'm swept away just listening to the way he makes it dance with the pulsing beat of the drums ...by the end of "Stranglehold", I'm breathless! After 30 years, it's still one of my favorite songs. To see a video of him playing it on You Tube from one of his 1977 concerts, click here. Talk about a flashback! But I think I prefer just listening to the CD. Guess that means I'm old!
(A random, unrelated side note, because I hear it playing on Kendall's radio right now - my all time favorite song is "Last Kiss" - both versions...first by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers in 1964 and then the version I hear right now, by Pearl Jam in 2006. It's such a haunting, sad song - I have no idea why I've always loved it so much, even as a 5-year-old!)
Anyway...back to my work-out this morning. Ted started me out on "Stranglehold" - a great warm-up song. Next, he turned it up a notch with "Stormtroopin'" but then really got me moving me with "Just What the Doctor Ordered," making me keep up the pace all the way through "Queen of the Forest."
I haven't pushed myself that hard in months! Thank you, Ted. You're hired! (U2 and the Dixie Chicks...I'm afraid it's back to the van with you.)
