Welcome to the Jungle (Er, Gym): How to Make it Through Your First Day!

So, you’ve decided to take your firsts steps through the gym doors. First off: congratulations! The hardest part of all this is forcing yourself to go – we all have to start somewhere!.

If your feeling nervous or having a doubts about going, the best thing I can tell you as someone who is in the gym most days of the week is that, honestly, no one cares what you do. It may seem intimidating when you see online or looking through the window only everyone looking in good shape and lifting heavy, but just remember that they once stood awkwardly near the entrance too.

This should be your plan of attack to ace your first day and be ready to come back for more!

1. What to Bring

Don’t turn up without the things that you need, but equally don’t bring a big bag that looks like your off on a 3 month hiking trip!

• Dress for Comfort, It’s Not a Fashion Show: Wear whatever makes you feel good and lets you move. A basic active t-shirt, breathable shorts or leggings, and some comfortable sporty shoes are all you need to wear. You don’t need to come in some expensive Gymshark ensemble!
• Bring the Essentials:
  • A water bottle: Keeping hydrated is important, gyms usually aren’t the coolest of places, so you will likely work up a sweat.
  • Headphones: These are optional. I don’t know anyone who actually likes the music in the gym, but maybe for your first few times suffer through it so you know what’s going on around you.

2. What to do When You Arrive

It’s up to you what to do when you get there, but your best bet is either straight to the front desk to ask for a tour/gym induction to get you used to the layout and basic equipment or to jump straight in!

The first thing I would do when you’re in is pick a spot where you feel comfortable setting down your water bottle like a treadmill or something similar. It’s good to start there to get the blood pumping, and it gives you an opportunity to get the lay of the land.

3. What to Workout

Keep it light the first few times, you are new to this and weights are heavy. Don’t hurt yourself for no reason. My advise would be to do your sets just above a weight that you’d consider a warmup – Try for at least 12 reps per set to get used to the movements without risking injury due to poor form.

Keep your exercises simple. This is your first run, you don’t need to do a marathon straight away! Think of the basics and don’t worry about the plate loaded machines yet. Machine row, machine chest press, machine shoulder press, leg press/extension/curl machines, dumbbell bicep curls, etc. Just the simple, easy movements that let you get into the swing of the gym.

4. The Unwritten Rules of Gym Etiquette

Gym etiquette sounds fancy, but it really boils down to basic decency:

• Wipe it down: Always wipe off your machine or bench with the provided disinfectant sprays/wipes when you’re finished (if they have them). Nobody wants to sit in someone else’s sweat puddle.
• Re-rack your weights: Put dumbbells or weight plates back where you found them.
• Share the space: It’s perfectly normal and accepted to rest between sets, but try not to camp out on a machine for 10 minutes while staring at your phone, even if no one looks like they’re waiting.

5. The Most Important Part – Nobody Cares That You Are There!

Here is the biggest secret about the gym: Nobody is watching you.

It’s easy to feel like everyone is judging your form or checking out what weight you’re using. In reality, most people are entirely focused on:

1. Trying not to drop a dumbbell on their own foot.
2. Wondering what they’re going to eat for dinner.
3. Staring at themselves in the mirror checking their own form.

Everyone is there for themselves, not to watch and judge other people. In all my years in the gym, I have only looked at anyone else when it looks like they’re going to do an exercise dangerously and hurt themselves or if they are bench pressing, squatting or something of that nature on their own in case they fail and need a spot. The only time I have ever been approached is either for a spot or by the biggest, scariest looking guy in the gym to offer me some advice on better form when I was first starting out!

What you will find over time is this; we are all there for ourselves, but the gym community is one of the most welcoming. We are there to make ourselves better, and most of us love to share it and help if asked!

You’ve Got This!

Your first workout should never be an intense, gruelling, multi hour war. Even if you just go, walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes, scope out the gym and then go home, that is a massive win for you! You have successfully forced yourself to go, and the first step is always the hardest. Just show up, get familiar with the space, and give yourself credit for starting.

If you want to check out what the best workout split might be for you, check out my article on that here!