Gym anxiety is something that many people experience. If you are new to the scene, you are probably assuming that the average gym-goer is in much better shape than yourself. However, this is very often not the case. Still, this is a rational fear, so don’t feel too bad.
Obviously, you cannot allow this anxious feeling to ruin your workout. A person who is committed to their fitness goals must overcome this anxiety, but we realize that it’s easier said than done. Thus, we offer our five guaranteed methods for conquering gym anxiety.
1. Make A Regimented Workout Plan
You’ve probably heard this kind of advice before. Everyone knows that proper organization helps you to manage your time and get more work done. However, you may not have considered the mental side of the story. Anxiety tends to have a crippling effect on people, causing them to be paralyzed with fear or embarrassment. If you make a detailed plan, you can concentrate fully on that plan. This makes it easier to ignore those who are in better shape than yourself, and who may be inclined to throw judgmental looks in your direction.
2. Dip Your Toes In The Water
When you’re learning to swim, an instructor will probably start you in the shallow water. In like manner, you can limit your time at the gym to help reduce anxiety. Short sessions will be a lot easier to handle, and will gradually condition your mind to let go of all that nervous tension. This method does not necessarily force you to undercut your workouts. You can do two short sessions instead of one long one. You can also do half your workout at the gym and the other half at home. Whichever way you choose, the purpose is to allow your mind to get used to a new situation.
3. Train At Weird Times
A lot of gyms are open 24 hours a day, and these are a great asset for those of you who may be suffering from gym anxiety. If you really can’t stand for other people to watch you while you work out, you can always time your visits so that there are fewer people around. Every gym has “peak times” and “dead times.” You already know which one of these is best for you. By showing up at a time when few other people show up, you can reduce the number of people who might be looking at you.
4. Make Use Of Headphones
When you are at the gym, you should be focused on what you are doing, rather than focusing on what everyone else is doing. Not only does this help you meet your goals, but it also keeps you from thinking about that person in the other corner who seems like they might judge you for being too fat or too skinny.
As every teenager knows, headphones are one of the best ways to ignore something. It’s a good idea to make a playlist that contains high-motivation music. Since you are already wearing headphones, you might as well kill two birds with one stone and get some extra motivation out of the deal.
5. Tell Yourself That No One Cares About You
This one might seem a little weird. After all, we all want other people to care about us, right? In some cases, that answer is completely wrong. Unless you have friends at the gym, the people there are likely to be unconcerned with you or your appearance. Chances are, they have come to the gym for the same purpose you have: to work out.
If you re not in the best of shape, and you are worried that people will look at you and judge you, you should take the opposite attitude. Think about it like this: That swelled-up dude on the bench doesn’t care about you and he doesn’t care about anything you’re doing. Unless you step into his world, why would he care?
Common Questions
Here are two of the most common questions that we receive on this subject:
How Long Will It Take Me To Overcome Gym Anxiety?
The answer to that question depends entirely on you. Remember; this is all in your head. However, there is one surefire way to overcome this kind of anxiety, and that is to achieve your fitness goals. Whether your goal is to lose weight, build muscle, or just look better, you will probably lose all your gym anxiety once you attain that goal. Thus, you should use your anxiety as motivation to work harder!
Will It Help To Bring A Friend?
It can certainly be beneficial to bring a friend to the gym. By giving yourself at least one familiar person to talk with, you can make it easier to ignore all those other people. The only thing to remember is this; Make sure that you choose a friend with whom you are very comfortable. Otherwise, the anxiety could be increased rather than decreased.
Conclusion
You may have noticed that we did not include any scientific research in this article, as we do with most of our work. This research has been omitted because we aren’t talking about science here. We’re talking about your emotions, and how you can do a better job of controlling them. This does not mean that emotion should be suppressed; Rather, you should make it work for you instead of working against you.
We hope that you will be able to overcome this debilitating problem and move on to forge the body of your dreams. Once you have done that, your visits to the gym will be a source of pride rather than anxiety. So, in closing, remember that all the anxiety will go away…but only if you work hard and earn that feeling of pride! Please feel free to follow us on Facebook if you have found our advice to be helpful.
The post 5 Guaranteed Methods For Conquering Gym Anxiety appeared first on Gaspari Nutrition.