To Gym Or Not To Gym

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I know I am not the only one who has paid for a gym membership and then let it waste away, slowly draining money out of my account every month. Don’t get me wrong, I work out on a very regular basis. The problem was, in the past, I thought a gym membership meant I was serious about fitness. I believed that without a gym to claim allegiance to, I was just another fitness failure, doomed to use home workout DVDs for eternity. While there’s nothing wrong with working out at home in front of the television, it just isn’t for me. What I realized, however, was that gyms weren’t for me either.

 If you are considering a gym membership, take your time. You can expect to pay a pretty penny for some of the nicer gyms out there and if you aren’t certain about your level of dedication, you could be wasting your money like I did. A gym membership doesn’t make your fitness “official”. You aren’t automatically going to be taken any more seriously when you talk about working out amongst friends. They may have wasted money on a gym in the past too only to realize a gym membership doesn’t mean much if you aren’t using it. If you’re already a gym-goer, more power to you. Many people find that a gym membership motivates them to workout. Belonging to a gym also means direct access to great equipment and group classes. Some gyms even offer free training sessions for new members. And how could I neglect to mention the singles scene at many popular gyms. Some facilities are hardly above a night club when it comes to scoping out members of the opposite sex. There’s no doubt that there are many perks to joining a gym but you need to think about it from the perspective of your fitness needs, goals, and habits. If you like to take classes or workout among other people, the right gym can become your home away from home. Likewise, if you are big on lifting and want to spend the majority of your workouts in the weight stacks, you will find a monthly membership to be far more realistic then building your own home gym. Just keep your fitness needs in mind when picking the right gym for you. Don’t join a facility that caters to beefy bodybuilders if you want to find some good yoga or belly dancing classes. Personally, I prefer to work out in solitude. Working out at home I can wear what I want, crank up my music, and not be concerned if I grunt a little bit when I’m on my last set of weighted squats. When you workout at home you don’t have to worry about people watching you or talking to you when you are in the zone. Working out is my “me time”. Whether I am in the house with the world closed off or pounding the pavement of my neighborhood, solitude suits me fine. When weighing the options of a gym, think about your lifestyle and personality. If you are self conscious about how you look when you work out, you may end up hating the gym. On the other hand, the extra attention may be just what you need to bring you out of your shell a bit. If you’re on the fence, try a month. Don’t get suckered into a contract unless you are 100% sure that you are a gym person and the gym you have chosen is the right one for you. The most important thing to remember is to workout. You can’t determine what fitness style is right for you if you aren’t working out consistently. Don’t get too caught up in what you are doing and where you are doing it. Especially if you are new to fitness, working out is enough. Get moving and worry about the details later.