No matter who you are, if you’re not weight training, you’re seriously missing out.
There are so many reasons why you should start weight training, so you might as well take the opportunity to improve yourself mentally and physically by beginning strength training.
I started strength training seriously a little over a year and a half ago, about a year and 8 months, and the benefits I’ve seen so far are incredible.
I hope I can convince every one, especially women as far less women strength train than men, to start strength training.
So, if I’ve in any way persuaded you to give strength training a try, here are some tips that can help you get started in the gym.
Get a gym membership (or workout at home)
The first step to weight training is to find the weights.
When I first started weight training, I was lucky to have some dumbbells laying around the house that I could use. This was a great way to get me started and warmed up feeling like I was ready to get into the gym.
If you’re someone who also has weights at home, awesome! This is a great way to start and can get you more comfortable with working out before you move somewhere more serious.
I just want you to be aware that yes, working out at home is awesome, convenient, and quicker (less people, no drive), but buying gym equipment can get pretty pricey.
And, there is a much wider variety of equipment at the gym so it’s much easier to find what works for you and, once you get more serious, not limit your progress from having less available to you at home.
I suggest finding a popular gym close to you that you’re interested in signing up for. Then, you can schedule a time to tour the gym, talk with the employees, and decide if it’s the best fit for you.
Find a friend to workout with you
This is one of the best tips to starting in the gym. I believe having a friend to workout with is one of the best things you can do when you’re just getting started.
When I first started in the gym, I had a friend who would workout with me everyday. The benefits to working out with my friend were countless.
We kept each other motivated, figured movements out together, could correct each others’ form, felt less shy having each other there, and most importantly we had so much fun.
You’ll never dread a workout again if you have a friend to workout with you. They’ll keep things fun and exciting!
I have no doubt we each found our passion for the gym because of each other and doing it together was one of the best parts of the process.
Invest in a personal trainer
When I first started lifting, I was lucky enough to have my dad, who happened to be a former personal trainer, teach me how to get started in the gym.
He taught me and showed me the basic techniques, exercises, and form. Otherwise, I think I would’ve been pretty clueless.
If you also think you’d start out clueless like me, then it might be worth it to invest in a personal trainer. At least until you get the basics down and feel a little confident in what you’re doing.
Don’t start too heavy, get the form down first
Trust me, no one in the gym is going to judge you for lifting too lightly. It’s best to start with the lightest weight you’re comfortable with and work on perfecting your form.
Form is the most important part of each exercise. There are so many reasons why it’s important to have good form when weight training. To just list a few, good form will give you the best progress the quickest and will help prevent you from getting injured.
If you’re lifting too heavy before you get the form down, it’ll be extremely hard to then correct your form. The easiest way to correct your form is with light weights.
That’s why, I like to start at a light weight then once I know I got the form down, I move up to a weight where I can replicate the same, perfect form.
Create a workout plan
We’ve all had days where we go into the gym and just don’t know where to start. Yeah, this happens sometimes to everybody but it’s important to plan ahead as much as possible.
This is where having a personal trainer might come in helpful, because they can help you plan. But, it’s not impossible to do on your own.
You’ll want to start by picking what days you want to work on certain body parts. This is commonly referred to as a workout “split”.
Your split might look something like this:
Monday – Quads and glutes
Tuesday – Back and shoulders
Wednesday – Rest
Thursday – Hamstrings and calves
Saturday – Chest and arms
Sunday – Rest
This is my current split and I find it works well so far. I actually just switched up my split a little so I’ve only been doing this one for about two weeks now. So far, so good but I’ll have to give it more time before I know how much I actually like it.
You can arrange your split any way you want and change it up based on what you think works best for you.
After you decide which days you want to work which body part, you should then pick a few exercises that you want to do for each body part.
I recommend having somewhere between 4-8 exercises for each day you train.
For example, if you’re working legs, you might pick things like squats, leg extensions, leg press, split squats, and hamstring curls.
You just have to find exercises that work best for you and that you like the best. Then, you can implement them as you want.
Start slow and let your body adjust
When first starting in the gym, it’s easy to get too eager and exited and over do it.
It’s important to keep in mind that your body isn’t going to be used to this type of resistance training. Your muscles will likely be extremely sore for the first month especially.
You certainly don’t want to start by training too much, this could get you injured right off the bat. Then you might lose interest or desire to lift. We certainly don’t want that happening.
What you can do is don’t rush into things. Give your body adequate time to adjust. You can do this by giving yourself plenty of rest days.
Whether you’re a beginner or a pro, rest days are one of the most important parts of being in the gym, so don’t be afraid to take one or two a week.
Make sure you are eating and drinking enough
Once you start weight training, your body will need more food than ever.
Your body will need so much more energy going into the gym and to help you recover. How much food and the foods you eat will help you be in the best conditions to make the most progress.
Going into the gym, your body will need more calories and energy to give you strength to lift heavy.
Coming out of the gym, as you begin to put on more muscle, your metabolism will increase because your muscles need more calories to maintain themselves than fat does.
Because of this, it’s important to make sure you’re eating enough of the right foods.
You’ll especially need to focus on protein. There are so many reasons why protein is important when trying to gain muscle.
The main reasons are that your muscles are made up of amino acids that come from protein. Protein is what will help your muscles recover, rebuild, and come back bigger and stronger.
As for water intake, it’s important to keep your water intake high.
Some people suggest drinking as much as a gallon a day. I know this number can be hard to hit so you’ll want to shoot for as close to this as possible.
Drinking lots of water will help to keep your muscles hydrated.
Hydrated muscles will perform better and grow more.
Get started!
Now that you have all the tips to getting started, you just have to do it!
Hopefully, these tips gave you a good basis and now you’re at least a little more comfortable with what to expect.
Over time, your progress will give you more confidence but for now just remember, everybody starts somewhere so just get yourself out there and get started. You can do it!