Overcoming Apprehensiveness to Your Fitness Journey

You might be reading this because you’ve thought about working out, but you don’t know when, where, or even how to begin. You might want to work on getting healthier, and maybe even stronger, but there’s a little voice telling inside saying you’re not ready. Am I right? Sure, there’s probably a lot more to it.

Maybe you’ve packed on a little extra in the middle and the only thing you know is you want it gone. Maybe you’ve always been in decent shape, but lately you’ve noticed that tying your shoes requires a deep breath before bending over (that was me!). Or, maybe you’re noticing getting up off of the couch takes a little more effort than it used to and you want to feel good enough to play decent game of tag with your kids, or your grandkids!

You don’t know much, but one thing you do know, is that you don’t like the way you look. You don’t like the way you feel. When you pass a mirror, you either look in disgust, or look the other way.

A light bulb goes off... you’ll join a gym! You’re excited for a while, then, the moment passes when you realize you have no business in a gym. You don’t know how any of the machines work. There’s too many people there that will judge you. To top the whole thing off, you don’t know how to work out! So, you scrap the idea, and you convince youreself that you’re just not ready and you’ll approach the idea again at a later date when you’re more “ready,” whatever that means.

The problem with that is, first and foremost, by having this mentality you’ve already failed. Underneath all the mess of emotions and bodily discomforts, the real thing you want is change. It’s not necessarily the fitness portion that you want. You want change! Well, I’ve got news for ya; change is going to happen one way or the other. The type of change that occurs is entirely up to you.

If you put off, and continue to convince yourself now is not the right time to make the change that you ACTUALLY want, the change that will inevitably occur is the continued downward trajection of that which has put you in this situation in the first place.

SO WHEN IS THE TIME RIGHT...

NOW! Having the mentality that you’re not good enough to start your fitness, and quite honestly, your overall health and wellness journey, is contradictory to the journey itself.

The journey of health and fitness is a life changing one. I mean this in two ways:

1). You must change many things about your life in order for the change you want to take place (we’ll leave this for another piece)

2). Those lifestyle changes, will ultimately change your life (quite literally)!

What I’m trying to say is, in order to obtain life changing results, you must make life changing changes to your life!

It would be detrimental to your progress to have the mentality that you’re “not ready” to join a gym, buy stuff to workout at home, or even just workout in general, since the entire point of working out is precedented upon the fact that a.) there’s a problem, and b). ‘X’ (in this case, health & fitness) is the solution.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

I want to offer a few suggestions of ways that you can combat these feelings of self-doubt and apprehensiveness while still moving forward with your goals of getting healthier and fitter. These recommendations are not listed to sway you towards one or the other (though I have my personal feelings about each). I’m listing them because not all will work for everyone, but at least one will work for some!

1). Join a ‘globo’ gym. - A ‘globo gym’ is simply a name used to refer to a larger gym, such as Mountainside Fitness, EOS Fitness, 24 Hr. Fitness, Planet Fitness, Lifetime Fitness, etc. Wherever you are in the world, chances are you have something like this near you. These types of gyms offer two paradoxes to those new to the world of fitness. 1. There’s lots of people so it’s easy to get lost in the crowd and do your own thing. 2. There’s lots of people so it’s easy for everyone to stare at you because you’re new. (Don’t worry about them, they’re jealous!)

My solution to this is quite simple: Show wisdom and humility! If and when you decide to go this route, sit down with a representative from the gym and get hooked up with a personal trainer. Be honest! “Hey, my name is ____, I just joined the gym today, and I don’t know anything about what’s going on here. Can you please teach me?” Humility is not weakness, it’s wise! Personal training will cost you a little bit of money in the beginning, but it’ll be worth it, as you will learn proper technique for using the machines, free weights, and even body weight movements. This will help with preventing injury. Many personal trainers will also walk you through some typical movements and workouts that you can use to kickstart your fitness journey. Most of the time, if you enjoy working out by yourself with your headphones on and get a good pump, the ‘globo gym’ route may be the best option for you.

2). Join a CrossFit gym. - CrossFit is a fitness methodology that began about a decade ago. It can be defined as, ‘constantly varied, functional movements, performed at high intensity.’ CrossFit has grown from a fun community minded fitness methodology, to now being a global sport. However, it still remains as something which is focused on community, and effective training. When you walk into a CrossFit gym, you won’t see machines, as you would in a ‘globo gym.’ You’ll see people doing Olympic lifts, rowing, gymnastics, etc. Basically, these are folks learning to utilize their bodies in incredible ways. You won’t be working out by yourself with your headphones on, because they are centered around group classes that last about an hour. Everyone is there for the same purpose, and they all will be cheering you on as you fight through the WOD (workout of the day), even if they finish before you! This too, can be intimidating for some folks, and my solution is similar to that of the one I offered previously:

Be honest when you walk in. “Hi, my name is ____, and I’m interested in finding out more about CrossFit.” They will most likely sit down with you and discuss any fitness experience you may have (be honest!), they’ll ask about any health conditions or injuries (be honest!), and they will ask about your fitness goals. If you thrive off of high intensity, loud music, the encouragement of community, and regular coaching to ensure your safety and progress, this option may work for you.

3). Finally, work out at home. - This option, believe it or not, is most often the hardest for many people. ‘Why,’ you ask. ‘I would be at home, in my ‘safe’ space, where no one would have to see me fail or look silly.’ Well, I hate to break it to ya, but if you’re new to fitness, this might not be the best option for you, partly for that exact reason. You need solid and effective coaching/training to ensure you don’t hurt yourself.

Another key aspect of working out at home that can drive people either to success or failure, is that working out at home requires a great deal of self-motivation. Now please listen, this is not something that separates successful people from non-successful people. I’m simply stating facts: that if you find it difficult to push yourself, whether it’s in a workout, or even more, to actually start the workout, then this may not be a good option for you. Working out in the same room where your couch and kitchen does not always send subconscious sparks of victory to the brain. However, if you’re the sort of person that thrives in this type of atmosphere, then by all means, give it a go. If you choose to do so, here are some tips:

1). Find some great programming! - there are countless numbers of people out there who are more than qualified in their respective fields who offer weekly, and monthly programming. One of the worst things you can do in your fitness journey is to not have a plan of what you’re going to do that day for your workout. Some excellent programming resources that are incredibly affordable are Dan Bailey (CrossFit), which you can find at https://www.alwaystrain.com/. Another great option is Dana Linn Bailey (Bodybuilding/Physique). You can find her programming at https://danalinnbailey.com/.

2). Buy some equipment! - this one can seem daunting, because a). Maybe you haven’t the slightest clue what to buy, and b). Buying fitness equipment can get expensive. My recommendation, start small, and build as your journey progresses. I always suggest to people who ask me what they should start with for their home gym that they should purchase a couple sets of dumbbells, and even a jump rope. Dumbbells are incredibly universal, and can be used in a plethora of ways.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s been said, “if you don’t have a plan, then you plan to fail.” I don’t recall who originally said this, but it’s always stuck with me. You have to start somewhere, and please remember that ‘somewhere,’ is most often times going to be at the bottom of the mountain. And guess what, that’s okay!

Don’t get discouraged! Surround yourself with like-minded people who will champion you during your journey, always stay humble, and enjoy the journey! Remember, there’s always going to be someone and some point in time that is fitter, stronger, and faster than you. My hope is that you’re mentality would be that today, you are just a tiny bit fitter, stronger, faster, AND healthier than you were yesterday!

Have fun and trust the process! See you next time!