Hi, my name is Chivalry Mendoza and I’ve been going to the gym for a couple of years now. I can honestly say to you that I myself skipped going to the gym for a few months, and would not even bother to get my ass off to the gym. My body still looks a little bit chubby; far from the typical “beach body” type wherein there is that 8-pack-abs, V-shaped upper body, jacked biceps, nice ass, ripped legs, and a thick neck muscle. But how did I motivate myself in going to the gym until this day? I’ll be sharing my tips to you people who are willing to get their body goals achieved this year. All you need is a little motivation, and an inspiration if you will (winky face).
Disclaimer: this are the things that I observed and experienced when I started going to the gym.
TIP NUMBER 1: Find a gym buddy.
- Even study groups have their own “study buddy” that makes the experience fun and interesting for the both of them. Even at a gym setting, a gym buddy is a must to have especially when you get a little bit lazy… they are there to remind you to go and work out together, have fun together, laugh at memes during rest periods, and talk about how sore your body feels after a tiring work out. This might even ignite a little bit of competition between you and your gym buddy. But if you can’t manage to find one… that’s okay, you’ll eventually find good people inside the gym that can serve as your gym buddy.
- Your personal trainer can also be a viable gym buddy because they are always at the gym. They would even workout with you just to make sure that you are doing the routine right and executing the proper form to avoid such injuries or accidents.
TIP NUMBER 2: Download a nice playlist.
- Research says that having a bouncy kind of music makes a person more active and hyper, as to slow music, it makes the person a little bit calm and collected. So we try to use this to our advantage, but some gym have their own sound system where they play banging music that would really let you carry heavy weights without you noticing it.
TIP NUMBER 3: Stay hydrated.
- Before starting any workout, sip a little bit of water; during workout, sip a little bit of water to avoid having a dry throat. After the workout, drink lots of water to refuel the fluid in your body. – Lifting weights, doing warm up exercises and mostly cardio routine drains a lot of water from your body. That’s why you should always bring your own water to avoid dehydration (cause that is not the purpose of you going to the gym).
TIP NUMBER 4: Watch fitness channels on YouTube.
- Immerse yourself in watching a lot of YouTube videos about fitness as it keeps you motivated, updated, informed in the things that you need to know about your current situation. It would even help you answer your questions that you are so afraid/shy to ask your trainer about. A great example of this is when we were doing some squats, we thought that our form was right but after the exercise… knees were aching and our lower back feel a lil’ bit weird and all, so we watched how to properly execute “the squat” (which is pretty basic for most people) until we got it spot on.
TIP NUMBER 5: You are what you eat.
- It’s not magical that you sign up for a gym membership and you start seeing results, you need to put in effort also. A lot of fitness guys says that if you are eating junk food, then you are a junk guy. Whole food is the way to go; but here in the Philippines, too much consumption of rice is the leading cause of obesity that’s why even the senate attempts to ban unlimited rice in eateries and big fast food chain.
- Always go for fiber enriched food like pears, strawberry, avocado, apples, raspberries, bananas, carrots, beets, broccoli, artichoke, brussels sprouts, lentils, kidney beans, oats, almonds, chia seeds, and sweet potatoes. Because this makes your belly full for a longer period of time due to the fact that fiber takes a longer amount of time to digest. – Protein based diet is also good for your muscle growth like eggs, chicken breast, cheese, yogurt, milk, tuna, pumpkin, shrimp, peanuts, and nuts.
- Also, challenge yourself to avoid processed sugars, soda, fast foods, processed chips and instant food products… instead go for fruits, vegetables, and water for your fluid intake. I know it sounds hard, slowly changing your diet can make a dramatic impact not only on your health but also on the way you think and how you view life itself. – Try a diet plan whether it be ketogenic diet, vegan diet, low-carb diet, the dukan diet, the ultra-low-fat diet and my favorite, the intermittent fasting… wherein there is a fasting and an eating window throughout the day.
TIP NUMBER 6: Take breaks, but come back stronger.
- It’s a no brainer that your body gets tired and needs rest. It is also important to let your muscle fibers repair itself due to the micro tear that is caused by your gym workouts. A well rested body and a strong mind is what keeps you going through the rest of week even if you are killing those workout routines. One to two days of rest per week is mostly advised by health professionals to ensure muscle rehabilitation. Cheat days is also considered a rest for some guys, it is where they would satisfy their cravings to break away from the monotonous taste of pure healthy foods… a chocolate bar and/or pizza is enough for this.
TIP NUMBER 7: Just ask!
- When in doubt about anything, always ask someone to assist you or to teach you things. It is a given that gym instructors are always there to assist you but if you are that shy… muster up that courage and just talk to them, you’ll eventually realize that they are nice people and there is nothing to be afraid of. Having a gym buddy in this situation makes asking questions to other makes it a little bit easier.
There you have it, my 7 tips of motivation in going to the gym. But the question that still lingers is that “going to gym, is it really worth it?”. My answer to that is yes, because considering the benefits that you will be gaining in doing this kind of activity is much greater than the effort that you really invested… to list a few:
- helps you lose that stubborn fat
- boosts you mood and metabolism (as studies shows that doing exercise produces dopamine and serotonin which are called the “feel good” hormones)
- strengthens your muscle and even your bones
- improves your sleep (because every time you go home after a gym session, your body is tired all you wanna do is drop dead in your soft and comfy bed)
That’s it for me, and I’ll see guys in the next one. Peace!
Chivalry's World 