I’ve been going to the gym for a good 5 years now, and over the course of these 5 years my gym technique has really evolved. I’ve gone from someone who was uneducated as to how to use any of the cardio equipment, staying away from the weights area and keeping myself in the “ladies only” workout rooms, to someone who can confidently stride into the weights area and start going a kettle bell workout.
However, it was only until a few months ago that I started signing myself up for gym classes, and it was only then that my gym class experience and love for gym classes started.
Sure, it’s the first thing most of us sign ourselves up for when we get a gym membership. I think it’s more what people push you to do when you’re first going to the gym. The usual phrase that most of us have heard it to sign yourself up for everything and see what you like.
For me it was different, I really didn’t want to throw myself into group exercise classes as that was totally out of comfort zone. I didn’t want to be the newbie gym goer who had signed up for classes that were way too advanced for my fitness level. I even thought this was the case for classes that were targeted and aimed at beginners. Competitive me didn’t want to be shown up as someone who didn’t have a clue what they were doing.
So for years I opted on sole gym sessions, mixing it up between HIIT, cardio and weights, and this appeased to work for me for years. But that’s when I hit a brick wall, I just wasn’t motivated to go to the gym any-more, and working out just seemed like another chore on the list.
I knew that my wedding was fast approaching, and being bored of going to the gym was not an option – not to mention how much I was spending at the gym! I finally decided to download the app, which listed all the classes that were available to me at my local gym, and start looking into ones that I could sign up for. This was me just throwing myself truly out of my comfort zone, as for 5 years I was so comfortable with the gym floor, sticking my headphones in and doing my own thing. Having someone tell me how many reps to do, how to perfect my lunges was certainly something almost foreign to me.
It was actually by accident that I signed myself up for my first gym class – body balance, a mix of yoga, tai chi and Pilates to music, renowned to make you leaner, stronger and help relieve stress. By accident I mean butter fingers over here, accidentally clicked the “book now” button on my phone, less than 24 hours before the class. Which meant there was no way out; I couldn’t cancel it, and by not turning up I would have a big fat red cross against my name – yes, I’m dramatizing.
Along I went, that same day, to my first ever gym class – I kid you not, I was nervous! I had dabbled at doing some on-line yoga classes, but I didn’t have a clue what Pilates or Tai Chi entailed. Reluctantly I set up my area, right at the back of the class, with my yoga mats and openly told the instructor it was my first class, ever.
To be honest, looking back at it now, I’m not entirely sure what I was so anxious about. Did I embarrass myself? Maybe. Did anyone laugh? No way. Did I learn something new? Yes. Did I feel like I worked out? Yes. Did I have fun? Hell yes.
By the end of the class I felt so much more at ease; it motivated me to start taking a dip into other classes to see what they were like. In all honesty, it has improved my fitness and core. Instructors in classes do really push you, but you know your own limits, so work to them, but try and push yourself just that little bit harder.
A one hour class literally flies by, as you’re all working out together. You’re all in the same position and there for one thing. There’s no competition, no judgement, and nothing to be worried about.
Have you tried any gym classes lately?
