3 Ways to Overcome Gym Anxiety
And start getting into the best shape of your life
If you’ve ever felt nervous about going to the gym for whatever reason, you’re not alone.
I’m a 6'4" black guy, and I too have had gym anxiety.
I grew up very skinny. My football coaches used to joke that I had strings coming out of my shirt.
Turns out they were just talking about my arms.
These jokes hit hard, and prevented me from feeling comfortable to even go to the gym and actually gain muscle… for a long time.
But, using these three tips, I gained the courage, and now feel confident about my workouts at the gym.
(People are flabbergasted that I’ve gotten so big.)
1. Go with a Friend
Whether you know someone who’s a regular gym goer, or wants to start going like yourself, finding a friend to be your gym partner is one of the best ways to overcome gym anxiety.
Think about it, even if people are secretly judging you in their mind (which is false because everyone at the gym is in their own world), you can feel the security of having your friend there with you.
And if they’re judging you, you can just joke around and make it fun!
Having a friend to laugh with, motivate you, and push you to have a great workout, will drastically transform your time in the gym.
You can help each other progress towards hitting your fitness goals.
Overall, it’ll be an experience that you’ll begin to look forward to rather than dreading.
2. Go During the Gym’s Dead Hours
If grabbing a friend to go to the gym with you doesn’t work out, try going when no one else is there.
Every gym has dead zone hours.
It could be right before or after lunch, late at night, or for some gyms, early in the morning.
Whatever works for your schedule, find the time when you’ll be relatively alone, and that’ll ease you into getting to the gym.
Less people will be around, so you’ll feel less pressure. Your fear and anxiety will diminish as well overtime as you continue to get comfortable with physically being at the gym.
Your mind will realize there is no real threat or danger.
Eventually, you can transition into going during busier hours, or stick with the dead zone hours if it fits with your schedule and you’re already getting great workouts.
3. Start Small
The main tip that helped me personally was to just start small.
I would get fearful of what other people would think if I went in and was pushing some really light weights.
But eventually, I realized that I’ll never even get to the heavier weights if I never start at the lighter ones.
Sometimes you just have to kill your pride and just do it.
I used to never barbell(BB) bench press because I played baseball and didn’t want to mess up my shoulder. So I opted with dumbbell (DB) bench presses only.
Since I haven’t played in years, I figured I’d give BB benches a shot.
At first, the anxiety and fear tried to kick in. I started wondering what other people would think. I began to overthink and for the longest time, I would go to the basketball courts and skip my chest workouts.
Fear literally made me avoid the gym altogether.
Eventually, I killed my pride, got over the fear, and went into the gym and bench pressed a whopping 95lbs.
Yup… the bar (45lbs.) plus two 25lbs. weights on both sides.
But hey, I felt great. I overcame my fear and actually did the workout.
It was a win.
A lot of times we get stuck in comparison mode, and that stops us from reaching our goals and dreams.
Little by little, I got stronger and put on more weight.
A few months later I was able to rep out 235 lbs.
To some, that’s still probably not a lot. And I could really care less.
For someone who never grew up bench pressing, to overcoming their fear and now is excited when chest day comes around, I’m more than happy with where I’m at.
Because I know I’m still growing.
Summary:
- Find a friend to go with you
- Go when no one is there
- Start small
Going to the gym can be a great way to get in shape, let off some steam, and even build the ideal body that you’ve always wanted.
Utilizing these few tips should help you overcome any anxiety you may feel when it comes to going to the gym!
Enjoy your workouts fam!
What do you like most about going to the gym?
