The start of a new year brings on the desire to get in shape. Here’s your plan to ensure success. Are you ready to for your gym guide for beginners?

Getting into workout routines for beginners takes more than just making the decision to get fit. Determination is important.

Why?

Simple. It can be quite hard to stick to good gym workouts no matter where you exercise or what you do. Of course, doing exercises that you feel are fun are a great way to ensure that you keep up your workout routine. But, there are lots of other ways. Here are some tips that’ll help you reach your exercise goals.

Gym Guide For Beginners Everything You Need To Know

Keep Your Workout Gear In Plain Sight

If you’re having trouble remembering to work out or you’re just not feeling motivated, keep your workout clothes and gear clearly visible around your house. It will serve as a constant reminder to get your workout in. It’ll also take less effort to get everything ready, meaning you’ll have one less excuse.

Have More Than One Set Of Workout Clothes

Most people who don’t exercise regularly have only one set of designated workout clothes. Unfortunately, this makes it easy to fall into the mindset that you can’t work out because your clothes aren’t clean. If you’re willing to put some money into buying new and effective workout clothes, then you’ll be more willing to wear them and actually put them to work!

Set Attainable Goals!

If your reason for getting fit is to lose a lot of weight or train to run a marathon, then it may be overwhelming and intimidating to start exercising because your goal seems so hard to achieve. It’s important to set small attainable goals when you begin working out like being able to lift a certain amount or run for a certain length of time by the end of the first week. You can also adjust your goals. The key is to stay motivated and achieving your short and long-term goals.

Be Prepared To Spend Money

Want to exercise at home?

Machines and free weights can get pricey. Gym memberships can also cost big bucks. Shop around. You may find there’s a big difference in price depending on where you go. If you’re serious about working out, then you need to be serious about the equipment and clothing that you use, especially footwear.

There are entire stores dedicated to workout footwear because your feet and body need different kinds of support for different kinds of exercise. Shoes help with your balance and with your posture, so you should buy good ones that work well regardless of how they look. They can also wear down easily with regular use, so you should replace them about every four or five months to ensure you always have proper support.

Get An Accountability Buddy

Sticking to an exercise routine is hard, especially when you’re going at it alone. The best thing to do is to get a friend to help you keep track of when you work out and keep you on target to stick with your schedule. Doing your workouts with a friend also helps because you can look out for and challenge each other.

Warm Up!

Don’t skip the warm-ups. Even simple stretching will help prepare your body for more intense exercises. Working out with tight and unprepared muscles could lead to injury or pulling a muscle that will make you have to cut your workout short. Warm ups are called warm ups because they get your muscles going. They get your muscles ready to expend the energy needed to do exercises and be more receptive to the muscle building hormones that are released.

Keep A Log Of Your Hours

Do you have a workout journal?

If not, think about getting one. Log your hours and exercises to keep track of your progress. You can even get an app to help you or log them on a social media site and allow your friends and followers to act as your motivators. The support of friends and family can be an incredible source of motivation.

If not, think about getting one. Log your hours and exercises to keep track of your progress. You can even get an app to help you or log them on a social media site and allow your friends and followers to act as your motivators. The support of friends and family can be an incredible source of motivation.

Work Out Every Day

This tip may seem to go against what you may have heard before. Most scheduled workouts advise at least a day of rest between workouts. But, if you’re having trouble sticking to a workout routine, then you may want to consider skipping those rest days. This doesn’t mean that you have to work hard every day, of course.

Of course, you shouldn’t target the same muscles on back-to-back days. But, you can do cardio work on back-to-back days. If you work out every day, it’s best to keep your exercises short and simple just until going to the gym or doing exercises becomes an ingrained part of your schedule. Once you build the habit of working out, you can boost the intensity of your exercises and add rest days into your workout schedule.

Use Proper Form!

Getting the right form or posture down is so important, especially for beginners. Improper form can lead to serious injury. No one wants that! Having the right posture for working out may seem obvious, but even little things like foot placement can affect your workout.

You don’t want to start with poor habits that will be hard to break. That’s why it’s a good idea to have a trainer help you establish good habits right away. This is especially the case when doing weightlifting exercises. Good form also includes using proper breathing techniques like fighting the urge to hold your breath during strenuous exercises.

Eat Right!

Every trainer or exercise professional you talk to you will tell you that exercise alone won’t help you achieve your goals and that eating right is one of the most important supplements to exercise. This doesn’t mean downing power bars and sports drinks during your workout. It means eating healthy meals around the clock so that your body has the proper nutrients it needs to help you feel good and to keep up your workout strength.

You don’t want to undo all the hard work you do in the gym by eating tons of sugary and fatty foods!

Stay Hydrated!

Drinking water before and after a workout is important to help your body maintain healthy hydration. This is an important tip to remember when you work out. Dehydration is dangerous and can happen fast if you’re not used to vigorous exercise. Even if you don’t feel like you’re breaking a sweat or you don’t feel thirsty, it’s always a good idea to take a swig from your water bottle between exercises so that your body can keep up with the hard work that you’re putting it through.

Don’t Be Intimidated

This is easier said than done, but most fitness beginners quit or don’t even begin because they are intimidated by other gym-goers.

Don’t! 

Just remember that the buff men and women around you had to start somewhere, too. If you’re still uncomfortable, you can hire a trainer to help you become an expert in how to use the equipment, workout with a buddy or make your visits around times when the gym is less crowded.

Consider All Your Exercise Options

Many people find it hard to get into a workout routine because they aren’t comfortable with spending all their time in a gym or they find it boring. The good news is that you don’t always have to go to a gym to keep fit. You could sprinkle in days with other forms of exercises.

Besides lifting and machines, there are many other types of exercises you can do that you may find more fun and interesting such as sports, running, swimming, hiking, etc. As long as you have the right equipment and multiple types of exercises incorporated into these same activities, you can get similar results as going to the gym. This gives you options to keep things interesting.

Develop Home Exercises

Develop exercises that you can do at home as worst-case scenarios. You should always try to get to the gym or to your normal workout environment to ensure the best results. But, life can sometimes get in the way.

If you wake up late or just don’t have the time to get to your regular gym, you should always have home exercise routines on hand so that you don’t lose a day or break your good habit. Even missing one unplanned day can result in a breakdown of your entire routine. Don’t let that happen. Do some exercises at home to keep up with your daily requirements and help you maintain your good workout habits.

Stay Motivated By Being Creative

Be creative with your workout gear and routines, especially if going to the gym isn’t your passion. For example, some name their equipment. Others find some way to incorporate humor into their workout. A funny podcast or up-tempo music could be all that you need. These will help put a positive note on working out and make you less likely to be bored.

Shake Up Your Routine

It’s easy for beginners to pick one machine they know and just stick to that. While this may help you ease your way into the workout scene, sticking to the same exercise will eventually get boring and you’ll stop seeing results after a while. Change up the routine from time to time, even if it’s just going at a different speed, incline or time on the treadmill. Add different machines or exercises to your routine so that you don’t plateau.

Cool Down!

Similar to warming up before a workout, you should always do a few cooling down exercises after your workout. After contracting and exerting your muscles for a long stretch of time, they tend to tighten up again. That’s why it’s vital to loosen them up so you don’t get any cramps. Cool downs can be simple stretches that you did as warm-ups, as long as whatever you do relaxes and loosens your muscles.

Reward Yourself

If you’re struggling to find motivation to maintain a good workout schedule and routine, try using a reward system. These rewards should be healthy and beneficial. Avoid undoing your hard work in the gym by rewarding yourself with a greasy hamburger or sugary snack. These aren’t really rewards. These will only set you back in your progress and lead to frustration when you can’t lose any weight.

Good rewards don’t have to involve food. You can reward yourself with things like seeing a movie or getting a massage. If you have something to look forward to after completing your workout, you’re more likely to be motivated to get the exercises done properly.

Maintain A Positive Attitude

In the end, achieving any goal in life is all about having the right attitude. Getting into fitness is no exception. If you look at working out as a chore, you’ll grow to resent it and you will not put in the effort needed to get the results you want. Find ways to maintain a positive attitude about exercising, whether it’s a reward system or reminding yourself why you wanted to start working out in the first place. If you feel good about exercising, then you’ll keep up the efforts and achieve your goals much quicker.

Conclusion

The most important thing to remember when getting into fitness is that you don’t have to do it alone. Even if you don’t have a friend or trainer who is already into fitness, you likely have a friend or family member who has also been looking for a reason to start working out. You can both venture into fitness together.

It may seem like it takes a lot of effort to maintain a good fitness schedule. At first, it is. But, that feeling will pass. It doesn’t have to be difficult. Following these tips will help you to establish a good workout routine that will only serve to help you achieve your fitness goals whatever they may be!

By Sara Campanelli