Whether you are male or female, young or old, the first time you walk into a gym can be daunting. It can be overwhelming to see all the massive guys with the type of physique you’ve always dreamed of obtaining, or the girl with the J-Lo bottom who lives by the Squat rack. However the most important thing to remember is that everyone in the gym regardless of how muscular, ripped or strong they are all started at the same place as you and all had that same ‘first time at the gym’ experience.
Something that can make the whole experience so much more pleasant is ensuring you choose the right gym for your goals. If you want to progress in CrossFit make sure you pick somewhere with suitable equipment, if you are serious about Bodybuilding try to find a gym with sufficient free weights, machines and racks, there is nothing worse than an oversubscribed gym, with too little equipment.
Once you have joined a gym make sure you have a plan, don’t just walk in a do a few sets on any machine that is free. Most importantly try to work out a ‘split’ that you know you will be able to stick to, one that fits in with school, work, social commitments etc. I have seen many people ruin their progression simply by having bad routines or ‘splits’. An optimal routine will allow you to target muscle groups with sufficient frequency to encourage growth and allow adequate recovery. An example of a bad routine would be one whereby you train Chest on a Monday and then Shoulders on a Tuesday, this is because the Anterior (Front) Deltoid is used extensively on most Chest Exercises. Another example would be to train Back on a Monday and then Biceps on a Tuesday, the Biceps are small but they are recruited heavily during Back exercises and would require sufficient recovery for growth before training directly. A general rule is to leave 48 hours between training muscles that share function such as pulling (Biceps and Back) and Pushing (Chest and Triceps). There are however numerous types of split. Some alternate push / pull, some are based on a 3 day rotation, others combine powerlifting and Bodybuilding with a low rep / heavy day and a higher rep / Hypertrophy day in the same week. The important thing is to find a split that fits your schedule and that is suitable for your genetic makeup, this can take time to see how you respond to certain rep ranges or exercises.
The temptation when starting at the gym is to try to lift as heavy as possible, usually this means focusing on Back exercises, if there is one exercise I regularly see new members focusing on its Shrugs. But always try to focus on muscle contraction and on creating a balanced physique. Don’t just pick one exercise because it’s your strongest and keep doing it, this will likely cause an imbalance. Try to focus on the exercises you hate, work on developing mind muscle connection, concentrate on the muscle as you are working it. Simply throwing around weight will rarely give you a fantastic physique, unless you are genetically gifted and generally fast twitch dominant.
If you see someone whose physique appeals to you observe how they train, it’s often a great start to simply replicate what someone knowledgeable is doing. If you have a training partner also joining the gym try to resist the urge of ‘over-spotting’ when appropriate, I regularly see guys benching 140kg with their spotter literally barbell rowing each rep for them - I see them on days without a spotter and they can barely lift 100Kg. Ego does not build a great physique, for that you need dedication, patience and determination.
Finally it is important to understand and execute gym etiquette. Following a few simple rules will ensure you aren’t immediately tarnished with a bad reputation amongst the regulars and gym owner:
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Always re-rack weights.
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Don’t put your stuff on a piece of equipment if you aren’t currently using it or simply going to the toilet or for a drink of water. This is not an all-inclusive holiday in Spain where you wake up at 5am just to put your beach towel on your favourite sun lounger. You cannot reserve gym equipment.
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If training at peak times don’t expect to be able to superset with additional weights or equipment unless your gym happens to be extremely well equipped.
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Allow others to train in with you if they ask, likewise ask if you can train in with others. You want to minimise time standing round doing nothing.
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Don’t be that person sitting around on a piece of popular (or otherwise) equipment messing around on your mobile device. Although you may be using it to update a workout app or similar be mindful that this will often be interpreted as you wasting time on heavily utilised equipment and you will not be looked upon favourably. I prefer to use an old fashioned hardback log book. It takes less time to update and I don’t risk damaging or losing my phone.
Don’t forget to smile and say hello to other gym goers, you’ll be amazed how quickly you can make good friends at the gym - which makes the whole experience so much more enjoyable!
