1st Morning at the Gym

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msessRN
msessRN Posts: 16
in Fitness and Exercise
My first morning at the gym.......5:15am is definitely early! I had the women's side of the gym all to myself I gues since no one else is as dumb as I am to get up that early! I started with the treadmill, walking then doing some interval sprints, then the eliptical, a few weight machines (which I had no idea how to use) and then finished back on the treadmill. 45-40min total. I really have no clue if that was a good workout or not. Seeing all of those machines and not really having a cclue which ones I should be doing is a little intimidating! I am a nurse and save lives everyday but I feel like an idiot in the gym as to what I should be doing. Any suggestions for a new girl to the gym......who is not a small girl either. Lol

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  • mrs_lanza
    mrs_lanza Posts: 33
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    Most gyms have a trainer who can walk you around and show you how to use the machines and what machines to use to accomplish your goals.
  • rjt1000
    rjt1000 Posts: 700 Member
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    My first morning at the gym.......5:15am is definitely early! I had the women's side of the gym all to myself I gues since no one else is as dumb as I am to get up that early! I started with the treadmill, walking then doing some interval sprints, then the eliptical, a few weight machines (which I had no idea how to use) and then finished back on the treadmill. 45-40min total. I really have no clue if that was a good workout or not. Seeing all of those machines and not really having a cclue which ones I should be doing is a little intimidating! I am a nurse and save lives everyday but I feel like an idiot in the gym as to what I should be doing. Any suggestions for a new girl to the gym......who is not a small girl either. Lol

    what's your goal, lose weight, add muscle, improve cardio? What's your current situation? Are you overweight, just a little or a lot, etc? If you want to lose weight, a mix of cardio and strength. Treadmill and elliptical are good but you have to push yourself, not just plod along at a steady pace for 45 minutes. If you aren't good and sweaty at the end, you didn't stress your muscles and aren't accomplishing much of anything.
  • msessRN
    msessRN Posts: 16
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    My goals are weight loss, cardio and strength........and yes definitely rather overweight sad to say. Ultimately I would like to lose close to 160lbs. Thank you all so much for your advise, I really appreciate it. The gym can be an intimidating place when you don't know how you should be working out!
  • Hellbent_Heidi
    Hellbent_Heidi Posts: 3,669 Member
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    Well, I guess I'm an idiot then as well, because I'm there that time every morning..and lots of others at my gym too (although Fridays do tend to have a smaller crowd).

    Find a trainer to show you how to use the machines (or at the very least, study the diagrams carefully so you aren't doing them wrong, which can cause injury). Most of all...figure out what things you like to do. Try not to overdo it right out of the gate, because you'll need to pace yourself if this is going to be a regular thing (and change it up from time to time). As your endurance and overall fitness level increases, then you can add longer workouts and higher intensity.

    Congraulations on taking the first big step!
  • pa_jorg
    pa_jorg Posts: 4,404 Member
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    First things first, great job going to the gym (especially that early)!!!! If you're really intimidated, definitely ask for a trainer to walk you around the place and show you all the equipment. This is a free consultation they should give when you join and not an extra you need to pay for.

    And if you're going to keep exercising in the mornings, we have an MFP group that encourages one another for early workouts:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/1146-early-bird-club
  • blissy_girl
    blissy_girl Posts: 45 Member
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    That is so awesome that you had your first day at the gym. For sure have a trainer show you around and show you how to use things. Like others have said this is usually free with your signup. When I first started I acutally paid for a trainer for a month. She showed me how to workout and use the machines. Then she set up a routine for me to do, after the month I would see her once a month and she would work out a new routine for me and check my progress.

    I know this is going to sound crazy... but I have even asked those MEN over at the other side of the gym to show me how to use something. The guys who go everyday seem to know quite a bit and would get excited to show me how to use the machine or freeweights.

    I need to get back to lifting weights. You are an insperation! Keep at it.
  • admanMike
    admanMike Posts: 371 Member
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    First of all congratulations! Going to the gym is difficult enough, especially that early!
    I would say...
    1. set specific goals and write them down
    2. consult a trainer on best program to achieve your goals
    3. stick with it
    4. find ways to make it fun!
  • kcgslp
    kcgslp Posts: 212
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    CONGRATULATIONS FOR GETTING TO THE GYM!!! I do early morning (5:45am) 2 days a week and it's become such a part of my routine that now I still go at 5:45 on those days even when I'm off of work.

    It's early but before you know it, it'll be your routine!

    What to do.... sounds like you have a nice cardio routine. I just suggest make a plan. That way you're controlling your workout and keeping track.
    For Example. Plan to walk/jog for 10 min, run 10 min and walk the last 10 min.
    then plan on doing the elliptical for 15 min.
    That way you will feel accomplished, monitor your progress as you can run longer and it will help you stay in control of your workout.
    To increase strength I would suggest starting with a routine of body weight type excercises (i.e. lunges, squats, crunches) you can search youtube for beginner strength training or just google it.

    good luck and again CONGRATULATIONS!
  • rjt1000
    rjt1000 Posts: 700 Member
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    My goals are weight loss, cardio and strength........and yes definitely rather overweight sad to say. Ultimately I would like to lose close to 160lbs. Thank you all so much for your advise, I really appreciate it. The gym can be an intimidating place when you don't know how you should be working out!

    Awesome. First, try not to worry about what you look like while you exercise. EVERYBODY looks stupid when they exercise. Spend a minute or two watching "those guys" over there with the large free weights and you'll see how stupid they look all puffed up and huffing and puffing and grunting. You can't look any sillier.

    Cardio- do you have any physical limitations? joint problems, injuries, etc? or just general weight? If you don't have any injuries to deal with, the elliptical machines with the arm/ski pole action are good to burn calories up. But don't just pick a pace and go at that pace for 45 minutes. Intervals. Intervals. Get a good pace and a good resistance level, then after 4 or 5 minute warm up, do 30 seconds as fast as you can go. Regular pace a minute, 30 seconds fast as you can, regular pace a minute, 30 more seconds at all out. Then a few minutes regular pace. Then do 5 or 6 minutes where you increase the resistance a couple levels every minute or 2. Try to keep your pace at your regular pace. When you get 10 levels above your regular resistance, do a minute there, then back down a level at a time, one minute per level till you get to your regular level. If you are still functioning, you can push yourself with another round of intervals. Try to do this at least 3 times a week. You'll find that you're "regular" speed is easier and you can go faster fairly quickly. When I started back in September after long period not working out for injuries, I doubled my regular pace in 3 weeks.

    Weights- You can do some simple free weight exercises and build muscle strength easily. Bench press, military press, one arm rows, bicep curls are great starters. Use low weight and do 12-15 reps. Do 3 sets of reps for each exercise with a minute or 2 minutes between them. When you can do 15 reps with no problem, increase your weights. Again, after doing this 3 times a week for 4 or 5 weeks, you'll see the difference as you are able to increase the weights. You must alternate days, though. Don't do weights 2 days in a row. Always a day of rest in between.

    Keep track of your exercise just like you're diet. Record what levels you use on the equipment, what weights, etc. And again, you have to push yourself. No benefit in doing the same level and never increasing it. If you aren't dripping sweat at the end of your cardio workout, you aren't pushing yourself enough.

    Sounds simple, doesn't it? And you've done the hardest part already, getting motivated and getting to the gym.

    And absolutely, ask others at the gym for help and advice. Almost everyone will be glad to help.

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