Despite my concerted efforts at the gym, my beach body remains unchanged. Yes, I go consistently, yes, I increase the weight and/or reps and add machines to my strength training. I DO feel better, and the endorphins help a lot with pain management, and I take pride in my hard work. Today I was especially amused watching two younger ladies using much lower weights, way fewer reps, and much faster reps than I did. Sounds shallow, perhaps, but I take my validation where I can.