Help for a gym newbie please

Fire_Fox

Larger Asda stores have proper sweat wicking gym kit in at the moment, again go up well into the plus sizes and very cheap. As a qualified personal trainer I would say your two most important purchases are a sports bra and to get fitted for some cross trainers or walking trainers - you can get away with spending £30 providing a proper sports shop has give you a gait analysis (free). These two purchases are even more important if you are carrying extra weight.

Sorry but I don't agree you should go every day for two weeks. In scientific studies training frequently is associated with a high risk of injury as your body doesn't get time to recover, and also with a high dropout rate as people feel it takes too much time out of their lives. Twice a week is fine, every second day (providing you are not sore) is optimal. The most important thing is consistency, of it being an appointment in your diary that you don't miss.

Instead of seeing a personal trainer group exercise is brilliant for motivation, learning great technique and hopefully having some fun and social interaction whilst you sweat!

welshdent

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Sorry but I don't agree you should go every day for two weeks. In scientific studies training frequently is associated with a high risk of injury as your body doesn't get time to recover, and also with a high dropout rate as people feel it takes too much time out of their lives. Twice a week is fine, every second day (providing you are not sore) is optimal. The most important thing is consistency, of it being an appointment in your diary that you don't miss.

I didnt say do anything intense for 2 weeks ... I just said I WENT for 2 weeks... Physically attended so i got in to the routine. I also just said that as an example of what I did that worked for me. I have been going regularly with only breaks for holidays for 5 years now. Prior to that I hadnt been at all for 3 years and before THAT ... I went for a months maybe 8 times at most and stopped. I didnt get any injuries in my intensive 2 weeks and believe me, I am injury prone thanks to a childhood of rugby ... and now starting it again - I just observed what my body was feeling and managed accordingly. Some nights it may have just been 10 mins of core and chilling out (warming!) in the sauna. I personally would not have seen much benefit only exercising twice a week though. You can maintain but not really change in my experience. Also what I notice for me every time ... if I ache the day after exercise ... NOT doing anything makes me worse but doing something again sorts me out.

sooz

flutterbyuk25 wrote: »

i have the same problem!! i'm just not that co-ordinated, and I feel really silly cos other people seem to use if effortlessly!

x

You just need the right music for it.

And don't try to keep up with anyone doing it really quickly next to you. Go slowly, find a rhythm & keep going. Only go faster when you are more confident. Ignore the flashing notice on the machine that tells you you need to speed up. I also find it easier to cover up the flashing bits (on the machine, not me!) & the time with a towel. Set an discrete alarm on your phone or watch for the time you want to spend on it instead.

flutterbyuk25

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Larger Asda stores have proper sweat wicking gym kit in at the moment, again go up well into the plus sizes and very cheap. As a qualified personal trainer I would say your two most important purchases are a sports bra and to get fitted for some cross trainers or walking trainers - you can get away with spending £30 providing a proper sports shop has give you a gait analysis (free). These two purchases are even more important if you are carrying extra weight.

Thanks Firefox . We have a George store here so hopefully they will have something in there, I'll pop over later tonight. I still need to find a proper sports shop to get some trainers sorted.

sooz wrote: »

You just need the right music for it.

And don't try to keep up with anyone doing it really quickly next to you. Go slowly, find a rhythm & keep going. Only go faster when you are more confident. Ignore the flashing notice on the machine that tells you you need to speed up. I also find it easier to cover up the flashing bits (on the machine, not me!) & the time with a towel. Set an discrete alarm on your phone or watch for the time you want to spend on it instead.

Thanks sooz! I went for my 2nd gym session today and found that it was easier today, managed to get to 5mins without stopping, 30 second stop then another 4.5mins :j You are right about finding a rhythm, I did that today and it felt good.

x

lagerisgood

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1)A good amount of sessions to do down the gym for a beginner would probably be 2-3 quality sessions a week. I would also stick with the plan that the trainer has given you for about 3-4 weeks, after around 3 weeks (This is different for different people) the program should become to easy for you and you will need to up levels, resistance, add hills that sort of thing in order to keep progressing to your goal.

2)What to wear is all down to personal preference really...although defo get a good pair of trainners that are made for what you are doing not ones that are just there for fashion purposes, if you go into a big chain sports shop a member of the footwear dept will be able to help you find the right ones. Its worth spending a bit on trainers, the right footwear is essential in preventing injuries etc. Also being a woman a good set of sports bras is a must. Gear like clima cool from adidas are also great in keeping you cool, there are all sorts of new materials that are around which are there to enhance training, so again I would go down to your local sports store and speak to staff, there should be someone clued up on the products.

3) Working out in the morning is supposed to be the best time according to some , but then there is also research apposing this. To me it is whatever fits in with your lifestyle and the quality of the workout that gives u result. If you eat well and exercise you will notice the difference in your lifestyle, weight loss, happiness, not being tired as much etc.

4)If you go to the gym after work on most occasions just have a snack like a banana, i usually have a little snack an hour to an hour an a half or so before. Although when i go the gym in the morning before work I tend to eat after I have trained. So again to me its different depending on when you go.

Also just going back to the program and what exercises to do you may want to look at the classes available in your gym. At one point i used to think no way are classes for me but you get all levels of abilities in classes so it isnt as intimidating as people often think. Ones I really enjoy are spinning, circuits, ab classes, boxercise style ones and body pump.

Good luck with your training and if you need anymore advice Im always happy to help in the health and fitness department as I am fitness freak lol