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Four Steps To Start Strength Training
Everyone knows by now that strength training should be the foundation of any fitness routine. Yes, even endurance athletes are turning to strength for better endurance and pain-free races.
And for most people, weight loss programs should start with strength training too. Not cardio.
But strength training isn't just something you can pick up and get started with on your own. It takes some equipment, some know-how, and some practice. It's often intimidating and exclusive too because gym culture often separates people based on their body type, abilities, PR records, etc.
I want to change this. Everyone should be welcome and belong in the gym no matter their level or where they are starting.
If you've been thinking about starting strength training but you're feeling like you don't belong yet, you're not alone, and you're not behind. You're getting started and that's what we care about at FRVR FIT.
Here's the truth about judgment in the gym: it's rarely loud. Nobody's usually pointing and laughing at the new person figuring out how to hold a barbell. The judgment most people fear is quiet, internal, and self-imposed; the voice that says everyone else already knows what they're doing and you're starting at the bottom.
But starting at the bottom isn't something to be ashamed of. Everyone in the gym started at first base one day too. The only real disappointment comes not from starting, but from looking back a year from now and realizing you just put it off...again.
At FRVR FIT, we're not measuring you against anyone else in the room. We're just glad you showed up.
Here are four simple steps to build your confidence.
1. Start with isometric holds and stability
Learn to engage your core, learn to hinge properly making sure your pelvis is moving with your spine, and learn to brace your shoulders. These three areas make up what I call your "pillar". A few exercises to help with this: Plank holds, Dead-bugs, Bear-crawl, Good-mornings, Scapular push-ups. Check out this video for a demonstration of these movements.
2. Build in uni-lateral movements
Most of life happens uni-laterally not bi-laterally. Meaning: one side of your body is working at a time. Walking, running, steps, carrying groceries, holding a child. This is all uni-lateral. Movements like Lunges, Russian twists, Single arm press, etc help to keep strength balanced and prioritizes stability in the joints over heavy loads.
3. Add resistance
Bands, dumbbells, barbells are all forms of resistance. However, the rutt many ladies get stuck in is lifting only small dumbbells for 20-30 reps and they wonder why they still can't do a proper push up or pull up. 20-30 reps is another form of cardio. Strength comes when you're lifting heavier loads and failing safely in lower rep ranges. That's why you need barbells and 30-40 pound dumbbells. But only after you master steps 1 and 2.
4. Find your people
This might be the most overlooked step and it's the one our clients mention most. A gym routine sticks when you're not doing it alone. A coach who checks your form. A community that cheers when you finish a hard set. People who notice when you show up, even on the days you didn't want to. It's not a nice-to-have. It's the difference between a habit that lasts and one that fizzles out by February.
"It's an hour I don't have to think about anyone else or manage anyone's problems. It's my social life too and the community and support is what keeps me coming back. Even when I don't feel like it." -Diane
You're not behind, you're getting started
There's no prerequisite for showing up. No weight you need to already be lifting, no size you need to already be, no experience you need to already have. The only thing that separates the people who get stronger from the people who stay stuck is that the first group decided to start at whatever level "start" happened to be.
So start at the bottom. Start imperfectly. Start unsure of which foot goes where. We'll meet you exactly there, no expectations, just glad you're here.
