01/05/2023
I read a comment today about going to the gym and the “intimidating factor” it has or can have. Here’s my thoughts…if it matters, and it probably doesn’t to most:
1. New is never easy. Everything is hard. Choose your hard. If you need a hand to hold be prepared to invest in a hand that will push, guide/teach and respect you for where you start.
2. Everyone else is thinking exactly what you are; “am I doing it right? 😲Do I look like an idiot? 😧Are people looking at me?” 😵💫 and then you lean into the movement or the mind muscle connection and you hang around long enough and you get addicted to the dopamine hit you get from making your body work. 🥳🎯🎆🎆🎆🎆💪🏻🥰🥰🥰
3. But we are ALL here learning. 📓📖 From the beginner getting comfortable using dumbbells to advanced gym goer with a specific training protocol trying to push their PR without injury. So, with learning in mind, it very quickly becomes a space where you get lost in your methodology.
4. Male dominant gym spaces are and can be uncomfortable. Ladies, I’m going to to tell you a hard truth….this space is led by a woman, our audience is 96% women and our members are 98% women. 🥳🤩. The guys definitely feel waaaaay more intimidated when they come. 💯
5. If you lean too much on a friend to hold your hand be careful. We humans have a herd mentality by nature and we can easily give up on ourselves when we feel it’s “different” from the group that is directly around us.
6. Anxiety about “doing the right thing” is a double edged sword. Not only how to use a piece of equipment mechanically but the worry if it’s something you should utilize and “how to use it” as a programming piece. There are a TON of you tube videos and influencers and “buy this to burn fat fast.” Just scoot that bullsh*t to the side and use a weight that’s challenging….it needs to makes your muscle burn. Slow steady burn is on the money. Sharp, firework burn is bad.
7. Change your goal from “lose weight” and “I want to get down to (fill in the blank) on the scale.” Change it to LOSE FAT, build muscle, sleep better, regulate mood, improve digestion, FEEL BETTER.
Lastly, on a personal note, I am aware I am myself “intimidating” or “intense” to some. My son tells me to chill daily. I went down this rabbit hole of fitness, bodybuilding, hormones and nutrition a long time ago. I’ve only dug deeper. I pushed myself….to the extreme. I didn’t give myself a lot of grace and think maybe THAT is what others pick up in. They know I’m not easy on myself and they assume I won’t be easy on them. In some ways, I won’t be. In other ways, I definitely want to be helpful and do seek to serve. Especially those that dig deep in themselves first.
Comment below what intimidates YOU. I’ll comment THE most intimidating gym circumstance I’ve had to date.
