When I started going to the gym I picked the biggest local gym I could find. Part of it was obviously the variety of classes, machines and programs available, but also because it had a women’s only section which I thought could be my sanctuary from the meat heads who were looking at themselves in the mirror all the time. I was self-conscious, despite my general confidence of going to the gym. I didn’t want to go alone, and I surely didn’t want to be doing exercises where people would laugh at me or sneer at me because I was the bigger girl doing the exercises.
Little did I realise that I wouldn’t even use the female only section and that in the grand scheme of things, no-one paid any attention to me. And that wasn’t a bad thing. I started reading and watching Youtubers who did bodybuilding and strength training and my perspectives quickly changed. All of them spoke about the positivity of the community (and yes, there will always be some idiot who carries on about fat people just need to stop eating, but they’re idiots for a reason) and of their own challenges in getting to the fitness levels they were at.
I quickly realised that everyone had their own motivations and reasons for going to the gym, as did I.
Here are five really important lessons I learned at the gym, and especially, how they translated to my everyday life:
I know sometimes it seems a bit of ‘easier said than done’ – but really it isn’t. You are your own judge and your only limitation. You are the only person who is accountable for their progress and the only one who can actually be productive in that progression. Don’t ever be the type of person that limits themselves because of size, money, social status, appearance or any other social category we define ourselves by.
We’re going to be looking at goals and achieving goals in November’s themed week. What lessons have you learned at the gym? Have you employed them in your daily life? Like, share, comment and stay tuned for daily blog posts on thatfitologylife.com.
That Fitology Life 