So, you’ve decided to join a gym to give your fitness a boost and get your body back in shape. You can’t help but be excited about the prospect of becoming a gym bunny and cannot wait to get in there and start pushing yourself.
The gym can be a great way to workout, of course, it can, but the fact is it’s not suited to everyone. You probably have high hopes for the gym, and that’s great – optimism is important, but it’s a good idea to understand that your expectations may not be met. Often, when we hype ourselves up for something, our expectations surpass reality.
What do you expect from the gym?
The chances are that if you’re excited about your new gym membership, you are expecting a lot from the gym.
One of the most common reasons that people sign up to a gym is to have access to a motivational workout space. You see, a lot of us feel that to be able to really throw ourselves into our workout regime, we need to have the perfect space to do it in. There’s something about gyms that look motivational, isn’t there?
Another perk of joining a gym is having access to state of the art machinery. Gyms always have all of the newest machinery, don’t they? Imagine being the first person to try out that hot, new piece of kit that all the celebrities are talking about – wouldn’t that be incredible?
When you join a gym, you get access to constant help and support should you need it, or at least, that’s what a lot of us are lead to believe. You’re basically getting a personal trainer for free, aren’t you?
What actually happens?
Above are the assumptions that we tend to have about joining a gym, but what’s the reality?
Unfortunately, often public gyms get incredibly overcrowded, especially in the early mornings before work and in the evenings after work. There’s nothing worse than working out in an overcrowded gym where there’s a wait on all the best machines. Learn more on how you can avoid this.
It’s not exactly a motivational space when it’s packed full every time that you go, making it hard to get the most out of your workout. Plus, although there are instructors on hand to help you, they have to split their time between everyone who needs help.
Your gym might get a new piece of equipment every so often, but the chances are it won’t regularly be updated with all the new kit. Unless, of course, you’ve signed up to a luxury gym, that is.
Is there an alternative?
Not as happy with your gym membership as you thought you would be? Then why not cancel your membership and come up with an alternative way to workout? After all, signing up to gym isn’t the only option for working out, there are plenty of other ways you can stay in shape.
If you’re a fan of the gym but dislike public gyms, why not create a home gym? Just think, you could workout in the comfort of your own home without having to worry that the gym would be too crowded or that you won’t have access to the equipment that you need. Obviously, if you’re going to do that, you will need to be willing to invest in any equipment that you will need, such as the Bowflex pr1000, for instance. Just make sure that before you invest in any piece of kit, you read the reviews of it – you can read a Bowflex pr1000 compelling review here.
Or, how about using the great outdoors to exercise? Perhaps you could start running or jogging? Maybe you could try an extreme sport, like rock climbing or whitewater rafting? Could meditation-based exercise be more up your street? There are plenty of options; it’s just a case of finding one that works for you.
Public gyms aren’t for everyone and it’s important to understand that.
