New to the Gym - what should I be looking at doing?

westie2506
westie2506 Posts: 11
in Fitness and Exercise
So...

It's been 13 years since I last went to any Gym, and the woman doing my induction on the new equipment was less than half my weight, which put me off.

Until recently. Our local PureGym drew me in, so in exchange for my hard earned cash, I now get 24/7 access to the latest in excercise equipment (Plus they have lights that look like lightsabers! - how cool is that!)

I've not been pushing myself as I tip the scales at 18st 3 and really don't want a heart attack at 40! so I have questions about my work rate at the gym.

1 - I'm only using the cardio-vascular machines - bikes, treadmill, cross-trainer, rower... Is this ok or should I also be looking at tightening up muscles too?

2 - My heart rate during excercise rarely hits 125 and is generally around 118. Should I be pushing myself harder?

3 - In the 4 x 10 minute cardio workouts, I burn around 230 calories in total. Should I be aiming for more?

Thanks in advance

Replies

  • hendinerik
    hendinerik Posts: 287 Member
    How about get a couple of trainer sessions to show you a customized workout you can do on your own?
    That helped me a lot as I tended to be fairly self-conscious in the gym and the sessions took some of the mystery out of it.
  • westie2506
    westie2506 Posts: 11
    They charge £15 of a fitness plan and £25-£35 for a personal trainer session. Unfortunately I can't afford that.
  • skparker2
    skparker2 Posts: 132
    I definitely say that a very slow, steady start is best. I am fairly new to my gym as well, Westie2506. I just joined toward the end of February & it's been a learning process for me.

    What I like to do is cardio first---warming up on one of the exercise bikes or the ellipitical. I used to only be able to handle 15-20 minutes max on either one. I eventually started switching it up by adding in weight machines, then gradually adding weight & adding time to my workouts.

    For your heart rate, it honestly depends. I say push yourself a li'l bit more. Not the entire time, but periodly, go faster or harder on the machines. It'll up your calorie burn! But if you get extremely exhausted or if you feel yourself getting sick or if your chest hurts, back off!

    I myself can't afford a personal trainer. I had a fitness evaluation with a trainer & I've been working out off and on, on my own. I feel your pain. I've had to slowly reduce & cut out all the trips to fast food & reduce all the soda I was intaking. I lost two pounds, then gained it back in muscle, then lost it again. And then started losing a pound a week. I'm down to 7 pounds now & am hoping for 10 pounds by my 2-month mark.

    It took me about a month and a half to two months before I started seeing results. I about gave up but then remembered that my gym membership costs a pretty penny so I might as well use it!

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