Thursday 20 February 2014

Getting Comfortable in the gym


I have always had to work on my confidence, when I was fat I thought my weight was the reason for low confidence then the weight went and I still had to work on it...
One of the worst things low confidence did to my weight loss process was it slowed it down a lot...first because I was scared to enter the gym...next because after I entered the gym I was stuck to the treadmill (no other machines for very long)
I used to be so scared, I was even scared of training with a personal trainer, I knew I wanted to improve I knew I needed help but I was scared, I was scared about the trainer judging me..I wanted to try different classes in the gym but I was scared of standing out and being the odd one out. I waited almost 8-9 months before I went for my first class and this was after lot arguments with T, he kept telling  if I want to improve I need to change what I was doing and if I am not willing to change then I need to stop complaining or expecting different results

Today I can confidently say I am a different person.
I am willing to try new things.

I am willing to make mistakes

I am willing to ask for help

This is a list of few things that helped me get to where I am today

1.       Why did I join the gym?
Every time I worry about what people around me will say I ask myself this question ‘Why did I join the gym?’ did I join the gym to impress strangers? Did I join the gym to make friends? Did I join the gym to waste my time?
I joined the gym because I wanted to lose weight. I joined the gym because I wanted to get fit, because I wanted to do push ups....
How does what people think about me help me get to my goal? It pulls me back...so do I want to keep wasting time trying to get fit while my worry about people judging me keeps pulling me back? Or should I make the most of my gym membership and get to my goal faster?

2.       Stop fooling yourself
I was very good at doing this. I went to the gym 5 times a week. I did the treadmill for 40-45 minutes. I stuck to the same speed, I did the same thing every day. Initially I did lose weight because it was new for me but after a few months I was not even getting tired, it was easy. I stopped losing weight. I knew from all the reading I had done that I needed to change my fitness regime. My solution was to increase 45 minutes to 1 hour. I lost a bit of weight but the weight loss stopped again. Then I thought I should reduce my already reduced food intake, I couldn’t keep that up for very long nor could I keep increasing my time...I made excuses for not changing my routine, I would say this was my limit and I could not push myself to do better or try new things. Finally I had to face the truth my 45 minutes of the treadmill was really easy for me, it was more like light exercise and my body was used to it so the results would reflect the same. If I wanted to see good results I would have to stop believing that I could not do more. I had to push myself to either use the treadmill better or change to other fitness options.

3.       Find somebody who tells you the truth
I was always complaining, I felt like I was working out 5 days a week eating right but still not seeing the result I wanted. There used to be many days when I would be upset because going 5 days a week and not seeing the results was really frustrating.  I would complain about giving my best and being unlucky. That’s when Terence very sternly told me I was not giving my best. He said sometimes I am actually wasting my time in the gym repeating the same thing. I was not unlucky but I was being stubborn by not accepting my mistakes and trying to change them

4.       99%  gym goers don ’t care about you
Do you remember what anybody else in the gym was doing yesterday? Most of us have so much more going on in life to actually shift focus to somebody else. If I see somebody trying something new I am impressed. Usually I am doing my own stuff, focusing on my exercise and my improvement. If I do notice somebody it’s usually out of admiration and this does not only depend on how fit the person is. Even somebody who is just starting sometimes impresses me because you can see the effort they are putting which is wonderful.

What do you think? I hope you found this list useful. What do you do?

Keep Reading I will Keep Writing 
Tanvee

22 comments:

  1. I am definitely scared to join the gym in the spring. But liked reading this post. You are so right! My biggest concern? Being judged. But shit, I gotta start somewhere right?

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    1. Hi Leigh, you are going to be great in the gym..you are already an inspiration..the gym will just spread your capabilities more and motivate all your readers more :)
      Being judged is one thing that keeps pulling me back everywhere not only in the gym but other stuff in life...got to get over that..I think I have managed overcoming that fear in the gym and during all my other outdoor workouts now trying to do the same with other aspects of my life..

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  2. You gain more than just physical strength when joining a gym. There's a lot of mental strength gained, too.

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    1. I definitely gained a lot more through my weightloss and fitness journey. There was a point in my life when I was scared to even go to the store alone because I was so embarrassed of myself..now I enjoy sitting alone in a cafe with a book :) this even surprises me

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  3. I personally get very motivated in the gym ,just seeing others workout inspires me!

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    1. I know what you mean..every person in the gym who is putting in the effort motivates me to do better...I feel like I am a part of some team and we are all working towards becoming better...

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  4. Confidence is key throughout life ... no matter what we do.

    Good health, good fitness helps too and you are certainly working well on this.

    Nice Post ... thanks

    All the best Jan

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    1. thanks Jan, Confidence is so important I feel through my weightloss journey I have gained some of it back but I have work to do in other aspects where I still need to build my confidence

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  5. Hi Tavnee, You remind me of me!!! This sounds like me all over the place. I think we think about life so much alike. Except that you have been figuring this out so much younger--which is so wonderful. You won't have to have an entire decade of overweight 30's like I lived. <3

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    1. :) :) Hi Marion, this is such a wonderful comment...I can only hope to get as fit as you. thank you so much!!!

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  6. Confidence is so important yet so hard to find for some people - myself included!

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

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    1. I agree with you it is so important, I think self confidence can make such a difference to any situation...

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  7. I fully agree with you that we need to change the things to get more benefit. I never went for a gym. I always have an inhibition that if I don't continue after joining it will be more harmful than not going at all. Am I right?

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    1. Hi Gopinath, focusing on what we really want is important..personally I don't think if you stop gym you can harm yourself ..(I will email you in detail)

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    2. Ok. I will wait for your mail.

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  8. I agree that 99% of the gym do not really care what you are doing at the gym. I have found that the majority of people who comment to me are supportive of what I am doing. In fact, as scared as I was about joining a gym many years ago, now I am a gym rat. I love almost every minute I spend at the gym...so much, that I am being told that I need to take a break/rest day at some point.

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    1. me too!!! I am a gym rat too...the rest/break day thing applies to me too *same pinch
      gym is one place where I am confident and comfortable such a change!!! people are usually supportive I have learned so many things just because people are nice and willing to help :)

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  9. I really took time to enter the gym..I knew it would help me but the fear crippled me...but overtime it's become a place I really enjoy going to...I also started with doing some workouts at home before entering the gym and my husband started directly in the gym...just like your story :)

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  10. Hey Tanvee.. nice to read your articles.. :)
    I just remembered my days!
    I was not overweight nor I was thin till my 12th, but yes I was never focused about fitness & exercising... I used to ride bicycle & eat homemade food.. but that all was in the habits.. I never focused on what to eat & what not to...
    Then came the years in my life where I put on almost 10 kgs of weight just in an year...
    First year of my engineering was a total mess for me...
    I had 10 subjects from different Engg streams to study & had no confidence that I can even learn them in brief..
    I got afraid of situation.. I started studying so hard that I cut down on my social life... friends.. cycling.. & started eating.. eating a lot...
    Those days I used to eat when I felt low.. when I had free time.. when I was studying.. when I felt afraid..

    I got depressed further...
    Though I got excellent grades in exams I had lost my confidence.. I used to avoid shopping, meeting friends, attending family functions & yes.. posing for snaps..
    I started looking 5 years elder than my age..

    Then one of my mom's friends adviced me to join a gym..
    I didnt like the advice at all.. but had no option than doing something to reduce the weight..
    I never believed that a gym & diet routine can make you thin & keep you thin..
    So I compromised on coming in shape with that gym..

    Initial days of gym were full of enthusiasm because I lost 2-3 kgs in first 2 weeks only.. It happened becasue a body with no exercise got an exercise... :D
    & then came the crucial times of eating less.. eating healthy.. finding a low cal menu when you go hotel-ing.. hit the gym every single day without a break..
    People around you criticize you for what you eat (rather what you avoid)... but still you need to stay strong & be motivated..

    Earlier I had a fear that ppl in the gym would comment on my weight.. ppl will laugh if I try something different in exercising... but yes its true that ppl are actually busy thinking the same & have no interest in you..
    But I realised this very late & used to hate if some lady was staring at me when I used to try a difficult abs exercise..
    I have now realised that the lady next to you is not watching you to criticize you.. she is actually appreciating you & your different workout exercise..

    You reach many threshold points in your weight reduction programme where you stop losing weight..
    You need to then observe what you eat.. change the food items.. recipes.. change the exercise type.. but be motivated..

    & then came the time when I could buy a tshirt with size "S".. jeans with waist 26!
    People around me actually started taking my advice on how to reduce weight.. :P
    And here I realised that most of the people around me were not fit, healthy, in shape & confident..
    I started noticiing them coz I had taken efforts to achieve all this very desparately..

    What I liked in my case is that that my excessive weight introduced me to the world of fitness.. eating healthy.. & execising regularly..
    Its a lifestyle now..
    I feel light,, happy.. healthy & always ready for a photograph.. :)

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    1. thank you so much for taking time out reading and commenting Gandhali :)
      other than the fact that you were initially in the normal weight range all your other experience reflect mine...I had lost my confidence, I did not enjoy shopping or going out...I was scared of people talking crap about me and now I'm always ready for a photograph :)

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  11. Love this post. It echoes a lot of my own experience!

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    1. I think most of us have so many things in common...looking forward to seeing you in London

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