Tips for the gym newbie

If you’ve just joined a gym and are looking for tips, look no more! At Pivotal Motion, we’ve compiled a list of tips to make sure you get the best out of your goals!

Gyms can be a wonderful place, motivational posters all over the walls, loud pumping music, and people of all shapes and sizes in active wear. Just being in the gym can change your mindset or your day from poor to good. However, starting out in the gym for the first time can be very daunting. Many people quit within a couple weeks since it’s not what they thought it would be. We’ve made a list of things you can do to keep your goals on track and settle into the life of a gym goer.

1. Take out your calendar and notebook. It’s time to write goals and plan.

Research shows that just by writing down your goals you have a much higher chance of completing those goals. Set yourself a major goal such as a weight target or being able to lift a certain weight. Next, it’s time to set lots of smaller goals which will build up to your main goal. These small goals are absolutely critical to keep you motivated to stay in the gym. Some goals can be as simple as committing to hitting the gym 3-4 days a week. Achieving the smaller goals will help you build towards your main goal while being able to see your progress so far.

Too many people set themselves one big goal with no smaller goals to work towards. This increasing your risk of quitting because you’re unable to measure your progress. If your goal is too big it becomes too much of a task to build towards and motivation will waiver. Take out your calendar and plan out the days each week you’re going to the gym, that way you can plan the rest of your week around it.

2. Make yourself accountable for what you do

If you want to become a gym regular, you need to make yourself accountable for the task you have set. Tell your friends and family about your goal. If you make yourself accountable, you’re less likely to quit because everything that happens is on you, you can’t blame outside factors for anything that happens.

3. Take advantage of the gym personal trainers or Exercise Physiologist.

Most gyms will offer an initial free personal trainer session to a new gym user. It’s wise to take advantage of this as they will show you the ropes of the gym and how to use all the machines. This also gives you the chance to ask questions and get a feel for how each gym session should be designed in the future. If you don’t wish to have any more personal trainer sessions after your free session that’s fine, there is so much information in books or on the internet about exercises, which make it very easy to plan your own program.

4. Sessions

It’s time to plan your own programs. It’s important to take a full body approach to the gym, every body segment should be targeted equally to avoid postural imbalance. There are multiple ways to avoid imbalance. Either you can always do full body sessions which will target all muscles but generally take a lot of time or you can try doing alternate sessions on different days, which allow you to target these muscles more.

For example, targeting legs and abs on Monday, back and biceps on Wednesday, and chest and triceps on Friday. These sessions are used by most gym goers. They enable you to work hard on each specific segment while allowing ample rest between sessions. Have a play around with what you like, the beauty of the gym is that you can do any exercise you want, you’re your own coach, which gives you the opportunity to plan for yourself. Just make sure you don’t go into the gym with the goal of lifting heavy every session, learning the correct movement at a lower weight is important to ensure you don’t get injured when you start to lift heavier.

5. Mix it up

The gym has multiple segments which should all be used; resistance training area, cardio area, mobility area. Having a mix in fitness levels across resistance and cardio training is a good balance for your total health, while mobility work decreases your injury risk and allow you to keep flexible. Each area has its own benefits, and they all should be used to target your goals.

6. Make friends

Nothing motivates you more than having a workout buddy there to push you along. Having training time with a friend is also a safe-guarded way to ensure you get up and go to the gym. Workout buddies are also perfect because they can spot you on the tougher exercises and give assistance if required.

Going to the gym can be an enjoyable experience that can brighten your day. If you follow these tips you’ll settle into the gym life comfortably and keep on track with your gym goals. If you experience any injuries why starting up at a gym, the team at Pivotal Motion can help! Call us on 07 3352 5116 or book an appointment online today!