If you just acquired a gym subscription, we have compiled tips for navigating the weight room as a beginner. Weight training has many benefits for overall well-being. In addition to building muscle, calibrating internal organs, and revitalizing the skin, it can boost your confidence and resilience.
However, adopting the correct exercise techniques is essential to make your efforts productive and worthwhile. Some minor details around navigating the weight room as a beginner may make or mar the utility of that gym subscription.
So, if you are ready to pursue fitness goals this year, we have prepared this guide to help you on your beginner workout journey. With tailored adherence and progress tracking, you will become a gym pro in no time.
Start With Strength Building Exercise
Know your free weights before returning to the gym. A standard gym has three basic types of free weights: kettlebells, barbells, and dumbbells. Fitness experts often recommend that newbies start with dumbbells because using them is a no-brainer compared to the other two types.
It is possible to add weights onto most barbells and kettlebells, while dumbbells come in different weight sizes, depending on the muscle groups you want to build. So, the trick is to start with dumbbells of the smallest size available.
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Go For Lighter Weights First
Even when the gym is busy and only heavyweights are available, it is always unadvisable for beginners to jump to heavy weights without gradual escalation. For personal safety, the correct equipment usage strategy is to start with light barbells and increase the weight progressively as you build the ability to lift them.
Avoid getting overly excited from watching deadlifters do their thing in the gym; they have years of experience. Also, please don’t get distracted by Anatoly’s trending videos on social media; he has built his resilience over the years and often warms up behind the scenes.
Proceed to Machine Exercises and Resistance Bands
After working through all the weights of the dumbbells, we recommend having a hiatus before proceeding to barbells and other complex gym equipment. Building core and overall strength should be the next target on your list of fitness goals.
You can achieve this strength-building goal with the help of bodyweight, lightweight machines, and resistance band workouts. These workout routines may not build specific muscle groups, but you become stronger and more agile.
Take Note of Gym Etiquette and Adhere to It
We know you paid a premium to use the gym facilities, but you must follow some common gym etiquette as a public space. Being a beginner is no excuse for flouting these rules.
- Avoid Interrupting Someone in the Middle of an Intense Workout
Completing rep goals can sometimes be daunting and require undivided attention. So, interrupting someone in the middle of their workout may be seen as rude and uncomely. Never interrupt an intense workout, whether you want to ask the individual to be your spotter or for how long they’ll use a piece of equipment.
- Always Return Weights to Their Place
This equipment usage etiquette requires consistently placing back weights where you picked them. Gyms often have racks for weight sets, and you don’t want to be the one person who leaves gym equipment lying around.
- Never Drop Weights
This is one reason the recommended exercise techniques for beginner workouts are progressive. This means the newbie starts with easy equipment and a routine and proceeds as their capacity for strength-building permits. Going beyond your capacity makes dropping weights very likely. Such drops may pose personal safety risks to the newbie or fellow gym users. In addition, they may damage the kit and distract other members.
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Book a Personal Trainer
Most newbies tend to plateau and even drop out on their fitness goals after a while. After building their strength and resilience and having a go at most of the equipment in the gym, their enthusiasm soon starts to flag.
Once your progress tracking techniques reveal you are about to hit this wall, we recommend getting a personal trainer. So far, you’ve mostly explored, do your own thing, or replicate what you see others do. Working with a personal trainer will help you see dumbbells and other kits and what they are meant for. In addition, with minimal or no equipment use at all, they will show you how to keep your fitness goals colorful and lively.
There you have it: Starting is usually the most challenging part of achieving most goals, and navigating the weight room as a beginner is no exception. Something as casual and easy as resistance band workouts can transform your workout experience.
