Gym Phobia

I felt the same way. I went to all my local gyms and did their free trial week/day until I finally found one I was comfortable at. I even had a free week at one and left before I even finished working out and never went back!

I hated the gym I belonged to in college (when I was pretty fit) because it was a stereotypical "meat market" and no one showed me how to use/do anything. But to be fair, I never asked. I lasted only a few months. When I joined my current gym (3 years ago at age 36) it was night and day. The club manager gave me a full tour, showed me how to use everything and checked in on me for weeks when he saw me in working out. I started with basic cardio with my headset on trying to be invisible but I quickly realized that no one gave a crap what anyone else was doing. There were fit people, heavy people, "meatheads," old people, young people ... and it turns out everyone is really darn nice!

Eventually, I joined group classes and was the worst at everything ... until I wasn't. But all the people were encouraging and I even made friends with people I never would have expected. Now I also do personal training. I still suck at a lot of things but I no longer feel anything but pride when I am grunting to pull a deadlift or almost in tears from weighted hip thrusts because even the "meatheads" who walk by say "Good job, girl!" Or "Keep pushing" ---

Hold your head up high, get some advice or even a couple of PT sessions and just rock it!

I so get this. I have 75lbs left to lose. I started needing to lose 90lbs. I exercised outside all summer but knew I was going to have to hit the gym this winter. I also really wanted to start lifting weights again as that has always been a good way for me to lose weight previously. I looked at the two gyms in our little town. I had some parameters I wanted a gym to meet (no contract was one of them), etc. When I joined my current gym I specifically asked when their slowest hours were. I did NOT want to be there when there was a ton of people - I was already feeling so self conscious. It's a 24hr gym so I go at 7:00am. Sure enough, there is hardly anyone there and to my great surprise, at that time of the morning the average age is probably 60 (I'm 46) and it was older, heavier set people (like, needing to lose over a 100#'s). There are one or two that are really fit but mostly it's us "oldies." So ask when their non-busy hours are. It really does help with the phobia feeling.

The second thing I did was invest in some workout cloths I was comfortable in. I wear workout tights, but I have gym shorts over them and a longer shirt so I feel like my backside is covered better. It's obvious putting my gym cloths on now that I've lost as everything is much looser. That is also a great motivator for me to keep going.

Then, take a deep breath, and go in. Go to work and ignore everyone else (headphones are great for this) and in a few weeks you'll feel much more comfortable. It also really helps to ask someone to walk you through the equipment (most gyms do this for free) so you can feel like you know what you're doing. You can do it! And you'll be so glad you did.

If other truly cared about what you do at a gym, there would be far too many accidents.

Do you care about what others at the gym do or what they look like?
No? You're like everyone else.

Also, no one started at the gym being pros.

I used to nearly get panic attacks whenever I would venture into the weight room. It took me sucking it up and convincing myself that I belonged there. I would come in with a lifting plan utilizing only weights/machines that I knew where they were at first. If something was busy I'd just do a different exercise first. While I worked out the first few times I scanned the area for other machines/weights so I knew where everything was and started to incorporate these into my plans. If I ever found myself in a nearly empty gym at an off time, I'd throw out my plan and experiment as much as I could without people looking.

It sounds like a silly problem to some people but everyone has been there to some degree. Another thing that could help is looking on groupon/living social for a personal trainer package. Even a few lessons can help you get more comfortable with the equipment and being in a gym.

Nobody has ever died of being stared or laughed at.
Many people die from issues associated with being overweight and sedentary.

Stop caring about what other people think more than you care about your own health and well being.

I started going to the gym when I was in high school and would stick to the cardio machines and then leave because I was so afraid that others would judge me - if I wasn't in shape enough, didn't use the equipment properly or had poor form. It wasn't until this past year and a half that I started using weights. I started with the machines, and let me tell you, it was brutal mentally. I had no idea what I was doing half the time, but I pushed through. I would observe, ask the gym trainers questions when need-be, and then eventually (about a year ago) I got enough courage to get in the weight room and train. Now? I do hip thrusts shamelessly and even wear shorts to the gym which would have never happened before. I promise that even the most fit of the gym rats started somewhere, and chances are they were a tad nervous to get in there and be judged as well. You'll find as you get more into it that the people that you are so nervous to be around are probably so into their own work out that they don't even notice your form. And going by your profile picture, if they're looking at you they most likely are just admiring your gorgeous-ness. My biggest tip is put the headphones in, block out the world, and start lifting. You can do it!

People won't judge you for going to the gym In fact, they'll probably be happy for you and impressed that you made it to the gym while many people don't exercise at all! Even if they do judge you privately, remember that you are doing this to better yourself. It isn't your problem what others think- they're pretty much just being toxic inside themselves.

If you still don't feel up to going to the gym, why not work up to it by exercising in other ways? Go for regular walks/jogs/runs (with music, an audio book, Pokemon Go, etc), get some friends together and attend an exercise class or swim at a beach or the pool, walk the dog. Dance to your favourite songs, or start vacuuming vigorously. You really don't need to go to the gym to get exercise anyway, but since you're scared of it, it might be something to work up to in order to help your anxiety around it!