Over the summer of 2022, I began going to the gym for the first time. At first, it was more to just get out of the house since I was back home and didn’t do much of anything other than work, but as the summer progressed, I was feeling really good. Who would’ve thought that exercise can do that to you? It was all good and dandy until I came back to campus. A couple of days before coming back to Austin I injured my knee. It was pretty bad too. I couldn’t walk without being in pain, so I put a dead pause on my “fitness journey”. Parenthesis on “fitness journey” because I wasn’t doing anything different other than exercise. I was still eating the same etc.Â
I recently began working out again, and while I am still very much a beginner, I see the differences in my confidence at the gym and want to share how I have gotten to this point. I am definitely still learning as I go, but it’s a work in progress I’m genuinely happy to continue working on. These are a just couple of things that have kept me motivated through my fitness journey so far.Â
- COMPARISON IS THE THIEF OF JOY
The most discouraging thing you can do for yourself when you begin working out is to compare yourself to others. That’s what I think was holding me back for a long time when it came to going to the gym. When people tell you that no one is looking at you and everyone is thinking about themselves, they’re right. Most sane people will not judge you at the gym because everyone starts somewhere. This is definitely a work in progress as I still find myself comparing my process, etc. to others around me. I try to remember that I don’t know how long they have been working out because too often those I compare myself to are people who have been working out for years. Everyone’s body is different and I began to realize that going to the gym doesn’t feel like a chore anymore. I can be happy with the progress I have made.
- WEARING CUTE WORKOUT CLOTHES MAKES ME FEEL COMFORTABLE AND MOTIVATEDÂ Â
Another way I feel more comfortable and confident at the gym is simply by wearing a cute workout set. You don’t think about it, but clothes do so much more for our confidence than we think. I never understood why gym girlies owned so many different color leggings/shorts until I began working out. There’s something so motivating about feeling good about how you look, not even for others, but for yourself. I now own so many cute colored shorts and that’s also a key component of the confidence I have gained at the gym. Something about planning a cute workout fit that just makes you want to go workout.Â
- CREATING A SET ROUTINE
I remember being so scared and overwhelmed the first time I stepped foot into a gym. With so many machines and equipment it really is like, “Where do I even start”? In order to not feel so overwhelmed, I began to watch workout videos and TikToks, seeing the exercises others did. I tried a couple of different exercises and routines until I finally found one that felt the best for me. This takes trial and error, but revolving around set routines motivated me to continue going to the gym because it felt like I had control of my life.
- ALWAYS STRETCHÂ
This sounds like common sense but ALWAYS STRETCH! This is more of a warning because not stretching is the reason I didn’t have a good gym experience. I was hurting my body by not preparing it for the intense workouts I was putting it through. I injured so many of my muscles and thought working out just wasn’t for me, but that was definitely not the case. With this, it is important to research the things we are doing to our bodies.Â
These are just a few of the things I have been doing to keep me motivated in my fitness journey. While many sound like common sense, we tend to be not as kind to ourselves and forget to give ourselves a break. It’s not going to feel right the first time and that is okay. Everyone starts somewhere.