Tag: healthy mindset

What I wish I had known before I started working out in the gym

Hi! Thanks for finding the headline interesting enough to click on it! How did you find it? (I’m curious, let me know in the comments.)

OK, no more chit-chat, that’s not why you’re here.

Content

  • There’s really no wrong way
  • It’s OK to ask
  • Everybody sweats!
  • No one really cares about you

There’s no wrong way

Do you have worries that people think you’re an idiot when using an unfamiliar machine for the first time, because you might be using it wrong? I know I worried about this when I first started working out.

Well I can tell you now, after 5-ish years of working out, only stupid people will make fun of you for that. All over Facebook and mostly Instagram, people show alternative ways to use different machines in the gym.

You’re not using the machine wrong; you’re inventing a new way of using it! (It’s all about your mindset.)

So don’t worry about it.

It’s OK to ASK

Ask for help if you need it! You can always ask the staff for help, but other members are usually happy to help as well.

A woman at my gym (member, not staff) taught me how to do a deadlift with a kettlebell. She even lent me her resistance band.

Another time, two older guys helped me with the lat pulldown machine. When I first prepped the machine with the right bar and stuff, I did it wrong, so the bar turned the wrong way (damn it). I had to stand on the seat because I couldn’t reach, with the “big heavy” bar in my hands. They saw that I was struggling and helped me!

This is just two of many examples.

Quick tip: Just avoid asking people in the middle of their heaviest set of squats 😉

Everybody sweats

That’s why you’re there, isn’t it?

This is something I’m still working on myself: It’s ok that your clothes get stained with sweat. Heck, you can be drenched and it shouldn’t matter!

I bought a pair of Flexxfit leggings not so long ago, and sadly they are not sweatproof at all (a.k.a. booty sweat that can be spotted a mile away). It took a great deal for me to stay and finish my workout. But when I was done, I felt great. And guess what…

No one batted an eye.

Try not to care to much about it. We can work on it together 🙂

No one really cares…

No one really cares how you look or how you use the machines. Not because you’re an uninteresting person, just because people are there to work on themselves. Just like you are. So, that’s where their focus will be. Not on you.

Overall, my biggest advice is to just go in there, have a great workout with lots of sweat and no worries. ASK for help if you’re in doubt.

Remember, it’s the fewest people that pays for a membership just to go pick on others.

Just think about it… you don’t judge other people if they sweat or use a machine an alternative way, do you? So why would anybody else.

I really hope that you found any of this helpful. Please share your advice with me in the comments!

Sunflower kisses and well wishes,

How I (try) to start my day

I’m a firm believer that having a great start to your day will increase your mood the rest of the day as well. That’s why I try to make it a habit to wake up well-rested and with a happy mindset. But if you’re like me, and don’t have much time in the morning, you know this can be a challenge.

That’s why I try to remember to do the smaller things instead, to give me a good start to my day.

  • Drinking at least two cups of water before consuming anything else (I often forget this and jump straight to coffee)
  • Music. Music is always a real mood-booster for me. That’s why I always put music on first thing in the morning (after peeing).
  • Getting ready without looking at my phone. This also helps me get ready faster, so that I have more time to drink my water and coffee

This is how I want my mornings to go…

Waking up at 06:20, well-rested after at least 8 hours of sleep. I get up as soon as the first alarm goes off. After making my bed, I stroll to the bathroom for a pee and a shower. When I’m done getting ready, around 06:40, I sit down on my bedroom floor for a quick 10-minute meditation session.

With my head clear and my body hungry, I head downstairs to the kitchen for my 2 cups of water. Then I’m going for a cup of coffee and a healthy breakfast before heading off to work.

How my mornings usually go…

I wake up at 06:40 after 17 alarms. Tired after only 6 hours of sleep, I roll out of bed and rush to the bathroom, probably stubbing my toe on my way there. Around 07:05 I’m done getting ready. I quickly make my bed and hurry downstairs for a much-needed cup of coffee. I never manage to eat breakfast at home. Instead I eat something quick at my desk at work, with a tired body and a chaotic mind.

Obviously not all my mornings go like this…(Yeah, I exaggerate in the examples, lol). Most mornings are probably a mix of the two.

Let me know how your mornings go, or how you would like them to go, in the comments below!

Sunflower kisses and well wishes,

P.S. This was my struggle trying to take this picture: