6 Easy Ways to Start Working Out
Starting on a workout journey is always hard, especially if you haven’t been working out regularly in recent months. Everyone struggles with it, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone in that gym started exactly where you are now. When looking into a beginner workout regimen, there are certain things you should take into consideration to make the beginning of your workout journey easier.
Start Slow
When starting to work out regularly, doing too much too fast is the easiest way to burn yourself out and even get injured in the process. While doctors recommend anywhere between 150 and 300 minutes of activity per week, that may be hard to achieve if you haven’t been exercising at all in recent months. Committing to this early on is similar to jumping into the deep end of the pool without knowing how to swim.
Start with a smaller amount of weekly exercise that you know you can reasonably commit to. This will help you remain consistent without overdoing it. Remember, you’re still doing more than you used to even if you’re not hitting the weekly goals according to the experts. Once you’re in a routine and your body is used to working out consistently, consider upping your session length and/or frequency.
Set Goals
As with any project that you start, setting goals is a great way to keep yourself motivated and on track while you progress. Sit down at the beginning of your workout journey, and set both large and small goals to focus on. The larger goals give you something to strive for on your harder days, serving as a light at the end of the tunnel in some ways. The smaller goals give you a sense of accomplishment on your way to the larger goal. You can look back on how far you’ve come instead of focusing on how far you still have to go.
Make A Plan
If you have a plan when you’re headed to the gym, you’re more likely to actually go and stick to it. People without a plan tend to put off going to the gym because they don’t know what they’ll do when they get there. This small mental load of making those decisions is often enough to subconsciously convince someone that it’s too much effort to go to the gym that day.
Having a plan is key to keeping yourself consistent. This means knowing what your warm-ups will be, what machines you’ll use during the session, and what your cool downs will be. Take the time once a week (or even once a month) to plan when you’ll go to the gym and what exercises you’ll do when you get there. That way, the only thing you have to do is show up and follow the directions you already set up. If you’re having trouble coming up with a workout plan, consider following an already established one. There are many free ones online crafted with beginners in mind.
Choose Exercises You Actually Enjoy
Going to the gym doesn’t have to be full of exercises you hate. There are plenty of ways to get your cardio in without running several miles, and you don’t have to do a bench press in the name of strength-training. Do your research and craft a workout routine full of exercises that you’ll actually want to do when you head to the gym. If you’re having trouble figuring out what to do to cover your bases, consider consulting with a personal trainer.
Make a Friend
Having someone to keep you accountable when it comes to working out is key to keeping yourself moving forward on your workout journey. This can be someone you’ve known for a while or someone you meet on your first day at the gym. Having someone with you in the gym and cheering you on toward your goals keeps you motivated to actually meet them.
Don’t Compare Yourself to Others
When starting your exercise journey, the quickest way to set yourself up for failure is to put too much pressure on yourself. Standing in the gym, waiting for the machine you need to be free, it’s easy to look at the weight that someone else is lifting or how long someone has spent running on the treadmill. Don’t do that.
Your exercise journey is your own, and comparing yourself to someone who has spent the past five years going to the gym five times a week isn’t where your mind should be. Focus on your goals and the progress you’re making. The only person you should be comparing yourself to is your past self.