Have Never Been to Gym Before

If you're new, some gyms have a complimentary tour/workout session with a trainer. If not, many gyms have personal trainers you can hire by the session. Maybe pay for a few sessions and have the trainer give you pointers on how to use the equipment and proper form.

 

To make this as condensed as possible:

You have three options, really.

You can get active at home. You may not have all the equipment, but you can still get in shape like that.

You can find some friends and go together. This can really help, but you may not all be able to go together.

You can just go to the gym and use what you do know. Treadmills are pretty easy to use, and maybe start with those. Weights are pretty self-explanatory.

If you're really concerned about not knowing how to use the equipment, there's two things I can suggest.

You either ask somebody who works there, or you can keep an eye on others setting up the equipment, making mental notes of how it works.

Keep two things in mind. It is hard to get into shape, especially if you haven't done it before or in a while, so any little excuse is going to keep you from doing this. Don't fall into that trap. Secondly, 70% of the people in a gym have no idea what they're doing, they just hide it better or stick to what they do know.

 

Okay, so you're 20, that's a plus here. I never went to the gym until this summer at a summer program and had absolutely no idea what all the bells and whistles did. The hardest two parts about going to the gym are getting the guts to go there, and finishing the first workout. If you have any friends that go, ask them if you can tag along because you've never been before. Also, some of the equipment is pretty straightforward to use (benchpress, etc.). Whatever you do, don't overstrain yourself. I made the mistake of doing 10 sets of 20 reps of 40 pound bicep curls...I was sore for the next week. Go easy on yourself, this is your first time doing this, yeah? Try doing 20 reps of no bar on the benchpress, 20 reps of arms, and 20 reps of abs. If you start feeling sore, then don't do anymore, as it's gonna hurt the next day.

 

ok, you've got a situation that most people who don't hire a trainer from the start would like to be able to do over.

i have but one word for you, my friend. and that word is (dramatic music) FORM!

i know that your just now considering if your gonna start going to the gym, but if you do, than focus on form first. don't just walk up to the bench and throw 180 on the bench press (like my dumb self did) on the first day and expect not to hurt yourself. i would recommend starting where you know you can get a few reps, and if that doesn't satisfy you, than go up in weight.

this goes for most workouts. but if you dont want to hurt yourself, than get the form down before you go for heavy weights. any bad affects will only be compounded as the weight goes up.

if you know someone who works out and at least somewhat knows what theyre doing, than start going with them. that way you can learn how to do things with somewhat good form, and you'll have a spotter so you don't hurt yourself with the weight your repeatedly pushing above your head.

thats one other thing. always have a spotter to catch the weight if it falls. an example: you might know how to walk just fine, but you'll still twist your ankle on flat ground for absolutely no reason from time to time.


lastly, (and people are gonna judge me for this) youtube is a good resource for learning how to do stuff at the gym... IF you get the right channel. two channels that i've found are good are strengthcamp and athleanx. they seem to know how to keep you intact during all the gym stuff (dat unpaid advertising tho lol)


that rambled on forever lol.

be safe with it, and do the exercises right. its good to push yourself, but don't go hurting your wrist or crushing a toe because you want to get in shape. i dont know about you, but mashed toe is a very unappealing shape if you ask me.

 

I'd look in the internet for workouts catered to the results you want, such as lower body fat, specific muscle group tone, strength training, or whatever. You can usually find a list of particular exercises in a number of reps/sets that can be adjusted for how fit you are starting out. You can familiarize yourself with many of them without leaving home (most free weight exercises can be practiced without heavy or any weights) and for anything else, just bring a list of what you want to do.

^That's also good for motivation. I find that if I just try to wing it working out, I'll slack off. A list means I owe it to myself to do at least what I've written down.

Things to think about.

 

I have been to a gym, and even joined one because a mate said that I really needed to go because of my size.
I enjoyed it not one bit.

I didn't like the atmosphere in there. It was full of guys who openly spoke to eachother about what "supplements" they were taking etc.
My physical strength was non existent to be honest.
I couldn't see the point of lifting all that weight, just to put it down again?
Leave it on the floor.

 

The only thing you need to worry about is not hitting yourself in the head with the locker door cuz you are so nervous with the two hot guys that are naked around you in the locker room.

Yes that happened.

 

Remember that those muscular guys where once skinnier guys with no muscle when they walked in. Don't push yourself to do something to heavy or you'll hurt yourself. Just do what you can, you'll get there when you get there. Plus, not knowing any of the machines is fine. Some may have instructions on them and if you're still confused, ask about getting some help.

 

There're a lot of gym tutorials on the internet. Or you can sit on a stationary bike and watch what other people do. And don't worry about muscular guys, in my experience people usually mind their own business.

 

In my experience, gyms are populated by the kind of people that have a natural, unabashed desire to coach and (psychologically) father fellow rookie gym-goers, specially if you look like a boyish wimp. I think it's a consequence of the pervasive "hustle" mentality in gym environments that somehow compels them to stick together in a weird impersonal yet helpful way, which is great for people like you looking for guidance (horrible for people like me that just wanna be left alone but are too nice to say so bluntly).

Not all gym-goers are like this, but I have no doubt every gym has at least a handful of these guys (most gyms have them in spades). You don't even have to look for them, the moment they notice you struggling with... Anything really, they will come to your aid.

Alternatively, you could save yourself the embarrassment and just outright ask for help from the beginning. They are easy to spot, just look for someone like this:



And you will be in good, overly-helpful-to-the-point-of being-suffocating hands.​

Warning: Beware the crossfitters tho. They will do their darnest to convince you to sign up to their overpriced cult. Do not listen; hide in your locker, cover your face with your hands and quietly murmur (but loud enough for them to hear you) "oh no, oh no, oh nooo" until they leave.

 

Here's some inspiration

[YOUTUBE]IlJI-GqB-6Y[/YOUTUBE]

 

I've never been to the gym, though I might go to run on the track one of these days.

 

Don't worry about the muscular guys! I'm in my school's weight-lifting class and I see everybody's progress. More often than not, the toned and muscular guys were pretty thin back then, including me!

You can start off on the treadmill like most people who tend to be clueless. Also, look up weight-lifting exercises online to have some knowledge on lifting weights. I recommend a combination of weight-lifting and cardio to get in shape.

Make minimal conversation with the other gym members who seem very egotistical. Basically, only speak when you're spoken to. This way, you can filter out the ones who are genuinely being nice and trying to help, and the ones who are only interested in how much you can lift or how fast you can run to compare themselves to you.

How about bringing a friend who goes to the gym once in a while so he/she can help? I found my way around the weight room with friends who have gym memberships. Also, having a friend that will give you some advice would help a lot. They can help monitor your form when you do things like squats and deadlifts because they can give you urgent advice to keep you from hurting yourself since improperly doing these exercises can damage your back.

Also, have a spotter that can help you when you really need it. When you do the bench press, squats, and heavy tricep extensions, a spotter can help you out because sometimes when you want to expand your limits, it can literally mean a trip to the hospital without a spotter.

Good luck with getting fit!