Five tips for feeling comfortable in the gym
Many people are starting or resuming regular exercise activities as part of their New Year’s resolutions. Some activities, such as running or cycling, are outdoor activities, but many people prefer to workout indoors at a gym, especially in the middle of winter.
If you’re not familiar with working out with other people around in a gym environment, it can be intimidating, distracting, or confusing. Here are some tips for getting started at the gym, from the American Council on Exercise:
- Don’t be rude. Avoid lingering on machines too long, blaring your music, singing noisily, grunting excessively while working out or talking loudly on your cell phone.
- Maintain good hygiene. The gym is a public place, be considerate and leave all the machines clean after using them. Wipe your sweat off the equipment once you’re finished.
- Restack your weights. Don’t leave someone else to do your dirty work, restack your weights for the next user. Making someone remove weights that are too heavy could place them at risk for injury.
- Stay back when starting a group exercise class. When joining a new group exercise class with detailed choreography, stand near the back of the room and let the experienced group workout near the front. Also, respect the limited space of others in the class and keep your arms and legs at a reasonable distance from others.
- Hire a personal trainer. There’s no better way to learn the ins and outs of the gym than working with a trainer. He or she can show you how to safely and properly use the equipment in the facility.
At the start of each year, it’s fairly easy to spot many new faces in most gyms, and newcomers can often be seen practicing items #1-4 above. As for item #5, even if you don’t need or want a personal trainer, you should ask the gym staff to explain any equipment you are unfamiliar with before using it, and you may find it helpful to spend a session or two with a trainer to learn your way around.
September 20th, 2006 at 9:03 pm
Good article. As a personal trainer of 15 years, I’ve seen too many people get hurt because they don’t know how to use machines or free weights properly. I think it’s really important that if you are new to exercising to ask for help. Most gyms offer 2-3 sessions with a trainer as part of your membership.