The gym is scary.

Believe it or not, when you join a gym, the people in there are your people. You might not be in the shape you want to be in (yet) as you look upon the crowd of chiselled physiques who at first sight you assume were born that way. The truth is, everyone has a story. When I was working in a health club, I’d often ruin members’ workouts to ease my boredom (and ease my boredom it did) and I got to find out about why they were there and the challenges they had to face. Their body only tells us a fraction of their story, and the irony is that we’re the ones who are making judgements about them, yet we’re worried they’re making judgements about us. 

We’re a social species so of course it’s natural to worry about what other people think about us. This is all fine and normal until you start to care more about what strangers supposedly think, which stops you doing what you need to do to get the most out of your life.

His mum forgot to wash his gym t-shirt it seems.

So, do people deeply care about what you look like? Of course you know the answer on an intellectual level. But on an emotional level, that’s a different story. Talking through it can bring you into a more rational state and help you to realise they don’t care about you.

I mean it, they actually don’t care about you. It’s even more true today than ever. With personal mobile telephones (okay, Grandad) lots of people are too busy sharing photos with “friends” of their sweaty countenance, tongue out making a rock hand gesture despite listening to the “dance party smash hit anthems” playlist on Spotify and never really knowing that KISS was a band.

What about the people who do care about what you look like? Let’s say they exist, do you have respect for someone who goes around judging people? Do you think maybe that their judgemental attitude comes from a place of deep insecurity? It does. I know, because I’ve done it myself. Now when I catch myself doing it, I recognise that I’m feeling inadequate in some way that I need to address. 

The Spotlight Effect
Some of us may suffer from the illusion that we’re being watched more than we actually are. Didn’t perform a perfect set of Swiss ball single leg squat jumps? Nobody noticed. Actually, if you did try doing that, EVERYBODY noticed. Read more here: The Spotlight Effect

Ladies & Gents, are you watching? What do you mean “no”?!

Common Reasons for Gym Anxiety (and the Solutions):

• Fear of looking foolish for doing an exercise incorrectly
  • Hire a coach/watch YouTube videos/use machines which don’t require skill
• Not happy with how you look
  • Guess what, nobody is, but today is the day that you’re on your way to feeling happier with how you look
• Everyone is looking at you
  • They’re not, Tik Videos of people dancing in the name of Yuan is far more interesting
• You’re not sure if what you’re doing is going to work and you’ll always look and feel the same.
  • Follow a programme and aim to get better at it. There’s nothing worse than the “hmm what should I do next” approach because “go home” is an option
• You’re afraid to ask
  • Ask gym staff about how to use the equipment. It can be a really boring job working in a gym, so when a member of staff gets an opportunity to help, they’ll leap at it
• People will be rude to you
  • It’s very rare, but yes, it can happen, but it can also happen at the supermarket when you pick up the last Mars bar. Some gyms have a nicer culture than others, and with more and more gyms opening, you can find one that you feel comfortable in
• Comparing yourself to others
  • It’s like comparing apples, to Apple, to Apple Records

This guy’s just conquered his gym anxiety after reading my article

Now, go conquer that fear, the gym is yours!

PT Shaun