I lifted weights for about eighteen months before I got up the guts to step into the free weight room. I had been reading a lot on the Internet with posts of people (mostly men) sneering at women whose bodies did not meet their criteria. I was afraid of being mistreated or people acting like I didn’t belong there.
I was thinking about that this morning when I was lifting. I was having a hard time with something, and was offered help. Now, I work at the gym in the mornings, so I knew every one of the guys up there in the free weight room. I like ’em. They’re decent people.
The thing is, these people were plenty nice to me long before I worked at the gym. (I went there for about a year before I got to cheap to pay for a membership and started working there instead).
I say this because if you like lifting or are interested in trying it out, don’t let fear of not belonging stop you. I’m even going to get myself in trouble and give you the Secret Gym Rat Initiation to the Cool Kids Club:
- Go to a gym.
- Go into the weight room.
- Pick up something that feels kinda heavy to you.
- Put it down.
- Pick it up again until you feel a little tired.
That’s it. You’re done. You belong and are One of Us.
You are absolutely right. This morning I was doing my usual workout with my female trainer when she was called away. There is a male trainer there that is…oh..how should I say it…DROP DEAD GORGEOUS…! Let’s put it this way, if his eyes aren’t enough to motivate you to get there everyday there’s something wrong!
Anyway…I started thinking..”oh great…gorgeous, built, young guy with overwhelming energy is going to spot me and I’m supposed to focus?” I started thinking about how he was probably judging me, etc. Turns out he was very concerned about my current workout and seemed pretty invested in pushing me a little harder…we also talked about all kinds of things and found we had a lot in common. As soon as I put my assumptions away we connected on a cordial level I had a phenominal workout. He’s still GREAT to look at…but now I know he is an excellent trainer who could tell by watching my workout that I needed more than I was getting.