If you've joined a gym and don't know what to do, here's the short answer. Go in with a plan, at a quiet time, and keep it simple. Twice a week for the first 2 weeks. 40 minutes each time. 3 to 4 machines. Write down what you lift.
I'm Malcolm, a personal trainer in Hove, and this is what I tell people starting out.
Go in with a plan
Before your first session, know exactly what you're going to do that day. How long is the warm-up? Which exercises? How many sets? When do you cool down and leave?
Without a plan, you'll end up on the treadmill looking around at what everyone else is doing.
Have a walk around first. See where everything is and just look at the equipment.
If you can, avoid peak times, which means early mornings before work and straight after work. Mid-morning, mid-afternoon or a weekend is much quieter.
The mistakes I see most
Doing what you've always done. If the treadmill is all you've ever done, that's where you'll head after a long break.
Using whatever's free. The quiet machine might not be the right one for you.
Copying someone else. They may not have good form, and they'll have a different body and a different level of experience to you.
Your first 2 weeks
Go twice a week. Pick 2 days out of the 7, and make one a weekend day if you can, as it'll be less busy.
Work out the whole trip, from leaving the house to getting home, including parking. Then put it in your calendar, so the time is there.
Each session is 40 minutes.
- 5 minute warm-up
- 30 minute workout on 3 to 4 machines
- 5 minute cool-down
On each machine, do 2 warm-up sets, then 2 working sets of 8 to 12 reps.
Don't overdo it. You're still getting your bearings, you don't want to get hurt, and you don't want to be unable to walk the next day.
Why machines first
Machines are easy. You sit in it, adjust the height, and maybe one other setting to suit your body. There's normally a diagram on the machine showing which body part it works.
Aim for a mix, such as a chest press, a lat pulldown, a leg press and a leg curl.
Dumbbells are great, and they come later, because you usually need showing how to lift them and get them into a safe position.
After 2 weeks
Your body will have adjusted to the weights by now. From here there are 4 ways to progress, and it's not all about getting heavier.
- Add a rep on the same weight
- Add a set, going from 2 working sets to 3
- Increase the weight
- Slow the tempo down
You need less than you think
You don't need lots of cardio or hours of training to see changes. Beginners get stronger, lose weight and see their body change quickly. We call it newbie gains. After about 6 months, that's when your training, nutrition and cardio need to get more targeted.
More isn't always better either. Train more and you get more tired, for your next set, your next session and your daily life. What counts is the effort you bring to each set, along with your food.
Worried people will stare?
Feeling nervous is completely normal. Even I feel it. As a personal trainer and experienced lifter, when I go into a new gym I don't walk in with the same confidence. I do a few more warm-ups, and on some equipment I look like a newbie myself.
After a while you realise nobody's really watching. They're wrapped up in their own workouts, their music and their podcasts. If someone glances at you in the mirror, they're only killing time between sets.
They were all in your position once. If you can't adjust a bench, ask someone. I bet they'll take their earphones out and help you with a big smile.
How to know it's working
Track everything. Weights, reps and sets, in your phone notes or an old school book. Then look back in week 3, 4 or 12 at what you started with. If the weights, reps or sets have gone up, your body's getting stronger.
You can't out-train a bad diet
You can work as hard as you like in the gym, but if your food and water aren't supporting it, it may not show on your body. You need enough protein, enough water and the right amount of calories for what you're trying to do, whether that's getting stronger or getting smaller.
If you'd rather be shown
I start people from scratch. One client came to me doing yoga and spin. She'd never really picked up weights, the machines looked scary, and she didn't know which button to press on the cardio machines.
I showed her how to set up each machine and which body parts it uses, then asked her to do it in front of me. If she forgot or fumbled, I was there to put it right. Now when she trains on her own, she knows exactly how to set up and what weight to use.
If I'm working with you online, I send you demonstration videos of each exercise. You film yourself doing them and send them to me. Then I'll either tell you you're doing it right and there's nothing to change, or show you what to improve. I might even suggest a different machine from the ones you've got at your gym.
If it all feels too much to think about, I'll plan it and you follow it.