I learned a valuable lesson at the gym last week and that is to not put all your gym crush eggs in one basket. Gymger, my (usually) trusty ginger gym crush, was MIA for several days and it set off a panic of epic proportions as I feared I’d lost my favorite fitness motivator forever. Sure, it’s summertime, and the likely explanation is that he went on vacation. Or he was away on business. Two things that take me out of town fairly often, but still… he’s not watching me so it’s not a big deal when I’m out of town.

So there I was, showing up every day and not seeing that beautiful red hair, those Wreck-It Ralph arms (when did I start liking muscles?) or his intense, mysterious gaze that every so often drifts in my general direction. I was lost. I felt like a ship with no captain. A woman with no gym crush. And for that long, miserable week, my heart just wasn’t in it. But then something unexpected happened.

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. You know what else it does? It allows you to notice other cute guys around you. That’s right. Without my Gymger blinders on I noticed a man who, in my book, was very gym crush-worthy. He’s tall-ish and fit with dark curly hair and reminds me of British hottie, Rufus Sewell. And with one look there it was – my back-up gym crush. Or, as my gym BFF likes to call him, “SHIFT CHANGE!”

This adorable new man got me through some tough times and has earned a special place in my heart. It doesn’t mean I’m crushing any less on Gymger, it just means he doesn’t have to shoulder the responsibility (of which he is completely unaware) of keeping me motivated all by himself when he returns from wherever it is he disappeared to.

And return he did. I was over the moon to see he was back at it when I walked in yesterday. But now, with Shift Change in the rotation, I got to experience a whole new level of joyous gym crush-dom. As I made my way up the stairs to the workout room, Gymger was the first person I saw (Eeeeeeeeee!) before I realized that Shift Change was standing right behind me. Oh my lucky stars! Talk about thrilling. High atop my stair master perch, my attention was wonderfully diverted between the two of them and then my head nearly exploded as they passed each other on their way to various equipment.

It was a true feast for the eyes and I didn’t notice all the minutes ticking away on my own machine and felt zero pain as I burned a million calories. So I say to all you gym-goers out there, “Stack the deck.” You never know when you’ll need a backup or two to help you maintain that gym high. It’s not all endorphins you know. Sometimes the scenery is just as intoxicating.