The Changes to the Gym

Going to the gym is insane, more so than one would think it is, and the working out aspect of it is the least of the worries. It is mainly now the look and feel of going to the gym. From going to the gym consistently for the past five years, there has been a huge change in the feel of it all. There have been positive changes in what the dynamics were before to where they are now, but there are also some negative things that have come about with all the trends and imaging that are being focused on.

The positive changes are great to say the least, because they are moving the gym culture forward in a more accepting atmosphere. More and more women are joining the decision to use the free weights, not just using the cardio machines. This is great to see, because more women are realizing that lifting weights is not going to make them huge, it will actually help tone their bodies faster. It is great to see more women in the gym in general. When I started working out seriously five years ago, there would maybe be about five to ten women in total at the gym for the entire time that I would be there.

The negative things I have started to notice more and more are the girls who are following these celebrity trends. More and more women are using these waist trimmers, participating in fad diets/detoxes, and doing these interesting workout routines to try to enhance their butt. The issue I have with this is not the fact that women want to improve their bodies; whatever someone wants to do to improve their current situation I think is great. The issue I have is that they are not educating themselves on these things. Waist trimmers are great if you want a quick result to your figure. They help you lose water weight, not fat, so the results you get are just temporary. Similar to these diet trends, they help you lose weight quickly, yes, but the results are not easily to keep once you are done with the detox or the diet, and you go back to eating normal food.

I see women coming into the gym in very skimpy workout outfits, which I mean, it’s the gym, wear whatever you want. But really, you feel the need to wear this $80 outfit from LaSenza? I mean, it is the gym, not some fashion show where you need to look your best to fit in. 90 percent of the people there are in sweaty gym gear, looking like a mess, and I am definitely one of those. The other thing is that I do not think they are really understanding what it takes to lose weight and tone your body. For example, at my gym I see this woman every day work very hard, but then I see her drinking an energy drink while she works out. Whether it is sugar free or not, those are added unhealthy calories that are basically reversing all the work she is doing. And doing the same workout every single day is not helping either. You need to target other muscle groups to burn fat all over.

Also, I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but a lot of these Instagram workouts won’t work for people like you and me. Why? Because they are designed for these fitness models or celebrities who can spend hours at the gym, instead of having to work for eight hours and have a normal life. These workouts would be great additions to a normal leg day workout, but doing just this on its own won't lead to much. Unfortunately, for those like us we need to work our entire bodies to in order to see results.

Do not base our bodies on those that we see on Instagram. Those men and women spend all day every day working out to get the perfect body. I'm not saying it is not possible for us to achieve that body, but with our daily lives not being focused around working out, it is a lot more difficult.

Let's celebrate the small success we have in our daily lives in regards to working out, and not think of them as nothing because they are not massive changes.