'I Don't Know What I'm Doing!'
It’s easy to feel intimidated when you’re new to the gym, but if you follow these three steps you’ll look like a pro in no time!
Step 1: Have a plan when you arrive
‘I’ll look stupid’
‘I don’t know what I’m doing’
‘I feel lost’
The main reason people who are new to the gym feel self conscious there is that they don’t have a plan. If you don’t know what you’re doing then it will look like you don’t know what you’re doing. If you show up with a clear plan, detailing every bit of kit you’re going to use as well as all of your sets and reps, then there’s no way for you to look lost.
Imagine this: you’re thrust onto a construction site with no prior experience and told to lend a hand building a house. You’re unfamiliar with the tools and the environment, surrounded by people more experienced than you. That’d be a pretty stressful situation, right?
Now imagine instead that you arrive on that same site with a clear list of tasks. Every detail of what you’re supposed to do is highlighted for you and all you need to do is pick up the right tools and perform your tasks as instructed. Sounds better, right?
I know a lot of people are going to be anxious on their first visits to the gym no matter what—actually, we’ve all been there—but the more time you spend there the easier it will become. For now, just don’t go in blind and give yourself a fighting chance by having a plan.
Step 2: Focus on what you’re doing, not how you look when you're doing it
This is an extension of step one. If you have a plan then all of your focus should be on the completion of that plan.
Don’t get bogged down by how you might look as you perform exercises because, if you’re new, chances are you’ll be doing something wrong no matter what. Get used to being shit because it’s the only way you’ll learn not to be.
Get in the gym, follow the steps and learn as you go.
I highly recommend you film yourself training and look back over it. You’ll learn much faster that way and can even ask a more experienced friend or coach to give you some pointers.
Step 3: Don’t lose sight when you leave the gym
This is a big one but probably also the most overlooked.
Too often, people feel anxious in the gym because they’re there out of guilt. They think what they need to do is ‘work off’ the takeaway, for example. Or they just know that they’ve been making choices outside of the gym that work against the reason they’re there in the first place. It’s like showing up to the exam knowing you’ve done zero studying.
Your confidence in the gym ultimately stems from knowing that going to the gym is actually working for you. If you show up every other day or every week and you know that you’re not getting anywhere, it’ll be hard for you to flourish and feel comfortable in that environment.
Make good choices with your nutrition and lifestyle outside of the gym. You don’t need to center your life around being a ‘gym person’ but you do need to keep sight of your fitness goals in all areas of your life.
Confidence will come with results and results come from consistency.
