Joining the Gym - Think I'll be laughed at

The answer to your question and fear is YES.
There are so many different types of people out there in this world. Some will laugh; and some maybe territorial and wonder why you are at "their" gym. These people are very few. However, for every one of those people, there ARE many more who are supportive and welcoming. (Just look at the responses so far.) You get to choose who to listen or who to ignore; kind of cool eh?

Your are Human; Expect Mistakes
The gym like anywhere else has its own culture, its own rhythm, its own quirks. If you are not an old veteran of the gym, expect to make mistakes. Give yourself the opportunity to learn the equipment, the culture and people. Give yourself a honest perspective. Yes, at first it will be awkward and intimidating. The more you visit the more you become familiar and comfortable. And yes, which each visit you will become more comfortable and you will become a familiar face.


Questions to you.
Three short months from now you would have either been going to the gym or not. You are a healthier and stronger person than you are today or not. You had set a goal and reached for that goal; or not. Which will it be?

Also, imagine that during those three months its the first week of the new year. There are a lot of new faces; people who are feeling the same as you are right now. You have been regularly going to the gym for month. Enough times for it to become a habit. Seeing the looks on their faces, you could reflect back and remember how you felt today. You might even smile and laugh at yourself.

Of course, One of the people you may find laughing at you is You. Laughing at yourself is a powerful and good thing.

I've had those fears with everything i do, sometimes they've been warrented and sometimes not. However, you might 1-2 people like that and tbh, if you let them keep you out of the gym and from exercising you are the one who loses. Besides when you hit it hard and shape up your body you will be the one laughing. It's an awesome feeling. When i went to the gym i found that as long as i worked hard and could zone out nothing else mattered. Atleast give it a try, most gyms have a trial period. You will probably love it and good luck.

I had a friend once who was fond of saying , " he who laughs last laughs best " . Do what you need to do without worrying too much about what others will think , this is for you and you will be laughing with joy when you start seeing results.

I waddled over, joined, and did 25 mins. Reminded myself why I hate cross trainers, but overall rather enjoyed it.

I'm absolutely delighted.

What I do is put it in my diary, same time every week, and see it as an appointment. As you get into the habit of going, it does get a LOT easier to make time for it.

Thank you all for the kick up the backside I needed!!

Happy to kick your backside any time you like. :bigsmile:

It's ridiculously expensive, but my husband and I joined a wellness center for this exact reason. Theere are a ton of morbidly obese and older people that are there as part of a physical therapy plan monitored by doctors. I've seen a much higher ratio of "normal" people that are middle aged, middle weight, just trying to get or be healthy than beefheads lifting or super-thin runner types.

I totally think if you just focus on the reasons you want to be there, you will be just fine, even if the first visit or two are tough. Good luck!

I am a very big woman, and I have never had a problem with mean people at the gym (belonged for three months). Even the young and fit crowd are very positive. Plus, no matter what they are thinking privately in their heads, I know that in a year, they will be thinking "she did well..."!

I know the fear you're talking about but I've been going on and off to the gym for years and all I can say is no one will laugh at you.

I don't know anyone in this world who would pay gym membership fees to specifically go and laugh at people. They're all there for their own fitness and most people are totally absorbed in what they are doing and envisaging their own perfect bodies.

The group of muscular guys doing the weights in corner of every gym are far more interest in the diameter of their own biceps than anything you are doing.

Remember: if you are at the gym/doing sport/exercise, you've already made the biggest step: you want to change. Everyone has to respect you for that.

I got a gym membership about a month ago, and I was scared of the same thing... You see all these "fit" people running on the treadmill, and I am out of breath walking. However I soon found it was nothing to be scared of! Most people are in thier own world listening to music, and everyone else has been friendly.

No one is going to laugh becuase if your trying to get healthy. As you start to loose weight you can then encourage others at the gym that they can do it too!