What?!!! Me In a Gym?!

Kintarō Hattori

While never having used one I've never been a fan of gyms. I always thought if you wanted to get fit you should go walk/run/cycle/swim and eat better. It's healthy and costs less. However I can't seem to get the missus to do any of these and overtime I've put on weight and become less healthy as a result.

Soo anywhoo she wants to go to her local gym and:

A - I think I should go with her to back her up and keep her motivated
B - It won't do me any harm as I've a fine little belly these days and I'm horribly unfit

So I'm a little worried that if I join a gym I'm going to feel very out of place and won't know what I should be doing. What machines do I use, how long to I use them for etc. How much guidance will we rceieve? Also to be honest I'm also a little self-conscious as I am so unfit and have a wee belly.


Anyay she wants to join the Escape gym in smithfield. Does anyone have any experiances of this place, is it any good etc?

EileenG

I took a look at it, Looks good but expensive, you'd want to be sure you are going to use it a lot.

Don't worry about how you look in the gym. Wear trainers, sweat pants and a clean t-shirt. Keep the cologne and aftershave to a minimum. Carry a towel to wipe down machines after you've sweated on them, and a water bottle. Now you look like 90% of regular gym users.

Exrx.net is a great site for showing you what to do in a gym. Here's the link for squat, deadlift and bench press, which are the big three of lifting.
www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/BBSquat.html
www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBDeadlift.html
www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/PectoralSternal/BBBenchPress.html

Start with light weights and work up to the heavier ones. If you can do 12 reps, you can increase the weight a little next time.

Most gyms have a lot of shiny machines, but you'll get the best results from the free weights, the barbells and dumbbells.

hot fuss

Hi,

I'm a member of One Escape in Smithfield and have been going there for a good few months at this stage. I find it really good. It's the only gym I've ever been a member of apart from my work one which is very basic. The swimming pool, sauna, steam room area is fantastic. They have a great range of classes - I go to boot camp, spinning and bodysculpt. I got to early morning ones (7.30am) and evening ones and there's a really comprehensive timetable.

I only started going a lot in the last few weeks and one of the trainers did a programme for me. They do six week programmes and then readjust it for you after six weeks. I'm going nearly every day now, either doing my programme, a class or going for a swim and would highly recommend it.

It definitely is expensive - if you join as a couple it'll be 70 a month each - but I am definitely making the most of my membership at the moment and getting what I think is value for money.

Also, there are a lot of super fit looking people there, but not everyone is like that (including me) so I really wouldn't worry about what people think and reactions. Just enjoy it!

Edited to add, once you join, just meet a trainer, tell them what you want to achieve and they'll do a programme up for you. Then you'll know your way around and how to use whatever machines you want to use..