The Struggle is Real….
As someone who has always enjoyed the gym and the challenge of lifting heavy weights from a very early age it is easy to forget how intimidating a gym can be. When I first opened AFSCrossFit I was met with an array of initial feedback when people first walked into our gym. AFSCrossFit 1.0 was a wide open space, with a huge rig set up. It was the second build from Beaverfit who have gone on to build a massive brand of workout containers and rigs. I was always met with “Wow, that’s a torture device” or “where is the sex swing and bondage gear”. Without the usual rows of treadmills and weight machines it was an alien space for even seasoned gym goers at the beginning to get their heads around.
As time as moved on and the concept of CrossFit and Functional Fitness has evolved and you can’t walk into many facilities and not find a rig or functional area of some sort. So why, I ask myself are people still struggling with making that first step towards getting fit? Here are a few of the reasons I hear:
People will look at me / Laugh at me
I don’t know what I’m doing
I’m scared I will hurt myself
I need to be fit before I start training
I can’t commit to training
I’m sure there are many more reasons individual to each person. Anxiety manifests itself in all sorts of ways and is very difficult to manage. Here are just a few tips to try and help.
Look at every gym or trainer around until you find a space that you are comfortable in. As 1 of 700 CrossFit affiliates in the UK it is very easy for people to assume we are all the same. This is not true. The coaching styles are individual, the business goals range from holistic coaching all the way through to Competition coaching. The culture of the gym can alter massively also. It’s always worth going along and having a chat first. We offer everyone thinking about the gym a No Sweat Intro. This makes for a great start and the perfect chance to find out if we fit for you and you fit for us.
Most traditional gyms set you a generic program and leave you to it. When you want to progress and work on new things it’s easy to get injured and put off. Sadly this business model is more about you not turning up than actually turning up. Here at AFSCrossFit we work differently. We have small classes which are all coached from start to finish. This ensures your form is correct, you're working at the right intensity and you are progressing. No one wants to waste time and that’s something a great gym will provide. An efficient program that effectively and safely overloads your training to allow you to adapt and grow in both cardio vascular fitness and strength.
If you have ever been injured then you know the ball ache getting over the initial injury can be and then the long road to rehabilitation is a painstaking one. The fear of getting injured or re-injuring is real. The best and most effective course of action to get over this is to get a Personal Trainer who will be present and coach you specifically on your needs and goals. The next best option would be small group personal training. You and a couple of friends work with a trainer through your sessions. This is not quite as personable but a little cheeper. Then you have large group training like our CrossFit or Bootcamp classes. Here you will train with a group, get that community feel as well as getting coached.
This fourth point is a funny one. Over the years I have hears so many times that people need to get fit before trying CrossFit. Do you know what though? I get that now. Sometimes our workouts are hard, involve technical moves that require skill and practice and I maintain that we can coach anyone to achieve these results in the classes. I have taken this feedback on board and we now offer a bootcamp for the complete gym newbie. This class is all about going from Couch to 50Kgs. A perfect place to start if you have never been in the gym or looking to restart. We then have our Beginners CrossFit class which will start introducing the technical moves and upping the intensity then finally we have our CrossFit classes at the top of the pyramid.
Sometimes we want to train. We know we need to train. And feel bad that we don’t train. This is where an accountability coach can help. You have a Coach work with you to break down the 6 key points in a holistic approach to health. These 6 points are:
Lifestyle
Exercise
Support
Nutrition
Sleep
Stress
Some are lucky and only have 1 of these points out of whack and it’s a quick fix. Some, however are not so lucky and takes working with a dedicated, and caring Coach to unpick these elements so you can get into the gym and start taking control of your health of wellbeing.