Back to Basics: Strength 1

Starting, or re-starting, strength training can be daunting.  Unless we happen to have a bunch of weights lying around (me!  I do!), we need to acquire some or go to a place that has them.  That can be intimidating or expensive or both.  Then we have to figure out what to do with the weights.

Most gym memberships come with a free orientation.  Gyms use these as a tool to sell personal training, but that doesn’t mean we have to buy.  (Buying personal training is definitely a useful idea, but when I did those orientations myself, I wanted to ensure that gym members knew how to use the equipment safely on their own.  Any reasonably ethical and responsible trainer should do the same.)  It is worth taking the gym up on the freebie rather than just relying on watching other folks, who may or may not know what the heck they’re doing.  In the orientation, the trainer should show you how to set up and use machines safely, where the free weights are located and what safety precautions to take (things like weight collars for barbells, for instance), and should help you figure out where to adjust seats and arms and such for best performance.  You should end up with a sheet of paper that tells you all that stuff for reference in the future.  That’s a great place to start.

 

Another possibility for a no-cost start is to take a trainer up on a first-session-free offer like I give.  Typically, this can include a fitness assessment and interview to discuss who you are, what you want out of a gym experience, what your injury history is, and what motivates you.  Then you get a workout.  That workout is one you can use on your own in future, whether or not you sign up for training.  Some trainers get grumpy if you take the free one and don’t sign up for training.  I do not.  I often encourage people I know shouldn’t be paying me (or any other trainer) to come for a free one because I think I can help them.  If their circumstances change in future, maybe they’ll buy sessions; if not, I’ve done a good deed.

 

Tomorrow:  some thoughts on specifics.