Thinking of joining a gym
Discussion
I'm 34 and have started "spreading" from the waist and rear end, so it's time I did something about it. To this end, I've took up swimming which I enjoy but timings don't always work great. However, this pool also has a gym which I plan on asking about Thursday when I go for a swim.
http://www.belperleisurecentre.co.uk/#!palms/cnvn
I live local and currently go swimming between 1-2 (lunch hour at work) so I could mix days of swimming and gym, all for £19 (£5 more than my swim anytime membership) per month which seems cheap. I can see the gym from the pool and in the time I want to go, it always looks empty.
Now I've never been to a gym, I've no idea what to wear or what gym etiquette I need to be aware of. I'd also rather not return to the office sweaty. Might all seem daft to experienced gym folk, but genuine questions.
Oh and to complicate matters, as a teenager I used to do regular sports but developed osgood schlatters (sp!) so rules out any heavy activity on my knees.
So after a bit of advice for regular gym users really! Particularly if, by a stroke of luck, anyone has experience of this particular gym.
http://www.belperleisurecentre.co.uk/#!palms/cnvn
I live local and currently go swimming between 1-2 (lunch hour at work) so I could mix days of swimming and gym, all for £19 (£5 more than my swim anytime membership) per month which seems cheap. I can see the gym from the pool and in the time I want to go, it always looks empty.
Now I've never been to a gym, I've no idea what to wear or what gym etiquette I need to be aware of. I'd also rather not return to the office sweaty. Might all seem daft to experienced gym folk, but genuine questions.
Oh and to complicate matters, as a teenager I used to do regular sports but developed osgood schlatters (sp!) so rules out any heavy activity on my knees.
So after a bit of advice for regular gym users really! Particularly if, by a stroke of luck, anyone has experience of this particular gym.
Edited by zedx19 on Tuesday 18th August 14:22
You'd need to have an induction from the staff anyway. I say need, it's more that they indemnify themselves from you keeling over and/or dropping 100kg weights on yourself. Most cardio equipment has a quick start feature for things like running or the cross trainer anyway, then you just stick the resistance up to what you're happy with. The weights machines are fairly simple to figure out, but again will probably be covered in your induction
Gym clothes - shorts and a t shirt, or running tracksuit bottoms are fine.
As to coming away sweaty, the general polite rule is you wipe down the equipment you sweated on so someone else can use it, and then if you want a shower, do that. I used to go first thing in the morning, do about 45 minutes in the gym then hit the sauna or jacuzzi for 10 minutes, shower, change into work gear then go to the office.
Gym clothes - shorts and a t shirt, or running tracksuit bottoms are fine.
As to coming away sweaty, the general polite rule is you wipe down the equipment you sweated on so someone else can use it, and then if you want a shower, do that. I used to go first thing in the morning, do about 45 minutes in the gym then hit the sauna or jacuzzi for 10 minutes, shower, change into work gear then go to the office.
There's no real 'etiquette' I've found, apart from when using free weights, which is a bit of a minefield to the uninitiated.
For cardio equipment, it's fairly straightforward - wipe stuff down if you are sweaty and if equipment is limited and the gym is busy, limit your time on a particular piece of equipment as others may be waiting for it.
Clothing - shorts or tracksuit bottoms, t-shirt, trainers.
Don't be self-conscious. Gyms are a tool for people to exercise in - the last thing they're doing is concerning themselves too much with others. There are people who use it as a social platform but that's not everyone.
If I notice a fat person in the gym, I (internally) applaud them - they're doing something about it, so all power to them. It's not all washboard abs and bench-pressing.
For cardio equipment, it's fairly straightforward - wipe stuff down if you are sweaty and if equipment is limited and the gym is busy, limit your time on a particular piece of equipment as others may be waiting for it.
Clothing - shorts or tracksuit bottoms, t-shirt, trainers.
Don't be self-conscious. Gyms are a tool for people to exercise in - the last thing they're doing is concerning themselves too much with others. There are people who use it as a social platform but that's not everyone.
If I notice a fat person in the gym, I (internally) applaud them - they're doing something about it, so all power to them. It's not all washboard abs and bench-pressing.
Calories is everything. If your putting on weight you need to eat/drink less. Without getting into the nitty gritty of it.
Exercise is secondary (no doubt lots of people will be along to say i'm wrong but ignore them)
BUT if you think its a good deal, will use it and are happy with the contract you'll get tied into then sign up and fill your boots
Etiquette, if you use something put it back where it lives, take a small towel to wipe your sweat off equipment once you finish, if your using cable machines (and some other equipment to) don't just stand and wait, politely ask if you can jump in and take turns.
Clothing - usual sports clothing trackies/trainers/tshirt whatever's comfortable, have a bottle of water with you to.
Have a shower after you work out
Exercise is secondary (no doubt lots of people will be along to say i'm wrong but ignore them)
BUT if you think its a good deal, will use it and are happy with the contract you'll get tied into then sign up and fill your boots
Etiquette, if you use something put it back where it lives, take a small towel to wipe your sweat off equipment once you finish, if your using cable machines (and some other equipment to) don't just stand and wait, politely ask if you can jump in and take turns.
Clothing - usual sports clothing trackies/trainers/tshirt whatever's comfortable, have a bottle of water with you to.
Have a shower after you work out
Edited by Foliage on Tuesday 18th August 16:11
Foliage said:
Calories is everything. If your putting on weight you need to eat/drink less. Without getting into the nitty gritty of it.
Exercise is secondary (no doubt lots of people will be along to say i'm wrong but ignore them)
BUT if you think its a good deal, will use it and are happy with the contract you'll get tied into then sign up and fill your boots
Agreed - in general you lose weight through your diet and tone up through exercise. I find this useful for when I want to lose a few poundsExercise is secondary (no doubt lots of people will be along to say i'm wrong but ignore them)
BUT if you think its a good deal, will use it and are happy with the contract you'll get tied into then sign up and fill your boots
http://www.myfitnesspal.com
and the Gym plus the 30 day Abs challenge is great when I've done so.
Good luck
I appreciate the comments, thank you chaps.
With regards to calorie intake I know full well I could reduce my intake, particularly with chocolate/biscuits with a brew in the evening. However, I was once 16 stone and dropped down to 12 stone through pure healthy eating. I've been hovering at 14 stone for months and just want to see whether I can drop that back a stone without having to forgo the chocolate/biscuits. Might sound daft, but why give up the odd treat if I can offset it with a bit of fitness training!
Re: Contract, my current swim anytime is £14 per month, quit anytime with 30 days notice. I'm assuming the £19 off peak gym would be the same notice period, so not the end of the world if I turn out to be a quitter!
With regards to calorie intake I know full well I could reduce my intake, particularly with chocolate/biscuits with a brew in the evening. However, I was once 16 stone and dropped down to 12 stone through pure healthy eating. I've been hovering at 14 stone for months and just want to see whether I can drop that back a stone without having to forgo the chocolate/biscuits. Might sound daft, but why give up the odd treat if I can offset it with a bit of fitness training!
Re: Contract, my current swim anytime is £14 per month, quit anytime with 30 days notice. I'm assuming the £19 off peak gym would be the same notice period, so not the end of the world if I turn out to be a quitter!
zedx19 said:
I appreciate the comments, thank you chaps.
With regards to calorie intake I know full well I could reduce my intake,
And none of it is relevant to anyone but you until you ask for advice about it With regards to calorie intake I know full well I could reduce my intake,
The best thing I did when I joined a gym was go through the bulls
t parade they set up, I think it was a Bannatynes the first time, and it came off the back of meningitis. The staff there set out a training program for me that was designed around what I wanted to get out of it. I mentioned bullst earlier, because I think it's probably the same routine that everyone else gets when they join, but for me it was fairly helpful to start me up with the types of equipment that I'd be using, how long to use them for, when not to use them and when to scale up the resistance. The routine helped actually, though I did feel a bit of a plonker walking round with my sheet to the different machines. No-one else who was paying to be there really took any notice or cared, the staff checked in every so often asking how I was doing and were telling me to get a 'review' in to make sure I was on target.
Point taken with regards to chocolate, however, I'm not trying to be an athlete here, I'm just trying to loose a stone. If I've hovered at 14 stone for month after month (probably 12 month now), then surely by exercising alone, this weight should slowly drop? Bonus points by actually feeling better and enjoying it. After half hour swimming each day, I feel refreshed and like I've actually achieved something. If I can hit the gym for half hour 1 day, swimming next and stick at it, surely I'll continue feeling like I've achieved something and notice increased energy with a bit of weight loss?
zedx19 said:
Point taken with regards to chocolate, however, I'm not trying to be an athlete here, I'm just trying to loose a stone. If I've hovered at 14 stone for month after month (probably 12 month now), then surely by exercising alone, this weight should slowly drop? Bonus points by actually feeling better and enjoying it. After half hour swimming each day, I feel refreshed and like I've actually achieved something. If I can hit the gym for half hour 1 day, swimming next and stick at it, surely I'll continue feeling like I've achieved something and notice increased energy with a bit of weight loss?
Weightloss is about 80% and 20% exercise.If you're not limiting your intake and changing your feeding habits, do not expect doing 30 minutes exercise a day to change your fat content much at all.
LordGrover said:
'Just a stone' is roughly 50,000 kcals.
You'll find it a lot easier and simpler to not eat that than to burn it off in the gym.
I'm not saying don't do the gym thing, but be realistic. We all know someone who starts out with the best of intentions - but it rarely lasts.
Best of luck.
Wow! 50,000 calories!!!!! Good point though, maybe I should review my intake while I'm making an attempt at exercise.You'll find it a lot easier and simpler to not eat that than to burn it off in the gym.
I'm not saying don't do the gym thing, but be realistic. We all know someone who starts out with the best of intentions - but it rarely lasts.
Best of luck.
You really need a focus/aim (and a suitable program) to get the most from joining a gym.
Classes at the gym that combine strength and endurance training are a good thing. They used to be called "circuits", but have all kinds of other names now.
Body weight (and free weights like kettlebells, medicine balls etc, rather than barbells) exercises are better than using machines.
From what I have seen, there are a lot of heavily tattooed blokes with big arms at gyms these days. you don't need to be like that, though.
Classes at the gym that combine strength and endurance training are a good thing. They used to be called "circuits", but have all kinds of other names now.
Body weight (and free weights like kettlebells, medicine balls etc, rather than barbells) exercises are better than using machines.
From what I have seen, there are a lot of heavily tattooed blokes with big arms at gyms these days. you don't need to be like that, though.
Can I suggest 'You Are Your Own Gym'?
https://www.marklauren.com/
The can buy the App and download it to Android/iPhone device for not much money.
I've just finished the first 10-week programme and it's excellent.
Bodyweight exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment.
Combine this with a radical change in your eating discipline and you will see the weight drop off. I've lost almost 2 stone in 10 weeks and toned up considerably.
Plus no monthly commitment/expenditure for a gym membership.
https://www.marklauren.com/
The can buy the App and download it to Android/iPhone device for not much money.
I've just finished the first 10-week programme and it's excellent.
Bodyweight exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment.
Combine this with a radical change in your eating discipline and you will see the weight drop off. I've lost almost 2 stone in 10 weeks and toned up considerably.
Plus no monthly commitment/expenditure for a gym membership.
shakotan said:
Can I suggest 'You Are Your Own Gym'?
https://www.marklauren.com/
The can buy the App and download it to Android/iPhone device for not much money.
I've just finished the first 10-week programme and it's excellent.
Bodyweight exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment.
Combine this with a radical change in your eating discipline and you will see the weight drop off. I've lost almost 2 stone in 10 weeks and toned up considerably.
Plus no monthly commitment/expenditure for a gym membership.
I have this book. It is very good and the programs are simple to follow.https://www.marklauren.com/
The can buy the App and download it to Android/iPhone device for not much money.
I've just finished the first 10-week programme and it's excellent.
Bodyweight exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment.
Combine this with a radical change in your eating discipline and you will see the weight drop off. I've lost almost 2 stone in 10 weeks and toned up considerably.
Plus no monthly commitment/expenditure for a gym membership.
I actually do some of it in my works gym (and outside it) but now use very little of the gym equipment.
Motivation is probably the hardest thing for many people. Having an aim is important.
Edited by MC Bodge on Wednesday 19th August 13:15
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