{"id":61450,"date":"2017-09-04T07:15:42","date_gmt":"2017-09-04T11:15:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=61450"},"modified":"2021-09-22T05:39:43","modified_gmt":"2021-09-22T09:39:43","slug":"beginner-weight-room-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/beginner-weight-room-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"What No One Tells You Before Entering the Gym"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"What
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Top trainers may have ripped abs, know the name of every muscle in the body, and how to whip up an amazing circuit for the booty<\/a> you want. But they were once newbies in the weight room, too. That\u2019s why we asked nine top trainers to dish on the biggest blunders they made when they were fresh on the mats, plus the most common missteps<\/a> they see from others.<\/p>\n

Because sure, it\u2019d be great if setting up a weight machine made complete sense (what does this knob do?), and you weren\u2019t constantly distracted by this<\/a><\/em> cast of characters<\/a>, but that\u2019s not always the case for beginners. And that\u2019s OK!<\/p>\n

We bet you can relate to the fears and face-palm moments below. Even better, you\u2019ll get top-notch insights on how you can learn from them. Get ready to feel more confident<\/a> in the weight room, starting now.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>7 Trainer Quotes That Will Instantly Boost Confidence<\/a><\/p>\n

Weight Room Confidential: What No One Told Me Starting Out<\/h2>\n

1. \u201cI had no clue how to set anything up.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cWhen I first started, one of the common mistakes I made \u2014 and I see other new gym-goers make now \u2014 was not knowing how to properly adjust the weight machines<\/a>. I\u2019d feel overwhelmed as I\u2019d panic trying to adjust something, only to find that the knob wouldn\u2019t budge or the pin was stuck in place. I\u2019d then simply use the equipment in the position it was already in, which means it often didn\u2019t fit my body \u2014 I\u2019m just 5\u20192\u201d! Or, I\u2019d give up using the equipment all together. When I became a personal trainer, I\u2019d lead free weekly equipment orientation<\/a> sessions, taking groups of members around the gym. Check if your gym offers this and then take advantage of it.\u201d \u2014Jessica Matthews, MS, spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise<\/a>, and author of Stretching to Stay Young<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

2. \u201cI had zero plan.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cI would just walk around and use machines I felt comfortable with. Or I\u2019d work body parts I could see in the mirror. I coined this \u2018Mirror Body Syndrome.\u2019 Talk about developing an unbalanced body! Write down your workouts or follow a program<\/a>. It will give you structure in your training so you remember what you did the day before and don\u2019t over or under-train certain body parts. It will also give you results when you\u2019re not just spinning your wheels walking around aimlessly.\u201d \u2014Ashley Borden<\/a>, master trainer, celebrity fitness and lifestyle consultant<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The 15 Most Underrated Exercises, According to Trainers<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"What
Photo: Twenty20<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

3. \u201cI went too hard.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cWhen I started out, I took on way too much too soon. I worked out too long, cut too many calories, and I got myself so sore<\/a> that I wouldn\u2019t get back to the gym consistently. Learn from my experience and take on a smaller goal so you can be consistent about it. For instance, go to the gym for 30 minutes and work one or two body parts along with basic cardio. Once you have that consistency, you can add more volume and frequency.\u201d \u2014Jen Widerstrom<\/a>, fitness expert, costar of Daily Blast Live<\/em>, and author of Diet Right For Your Personality Type<\/em><\/a> (Check out her 15-Minute Workouts on Daily Burn<\/a>!) <\/em><\/p>\n

4. \u201cI cared what other people thought.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cWhen I first started going to the gym, I felt like everyone\u2019s eyes were zeroed in on me! After a while, I realized that it was just my own self-consciousness making me feel that way. When my new clients tell me that they\u2019re worried about other gym-goers staring at them and they don\u2019t want to embarrass themselves, I tell them it\u2019s a silly worry. Don\u2019t let that be the reason you skip the gym. From my years of experience, I can confidently say the only reason someone is looking at you at the gym is either because they\u2019re checking out your cute self or trying to see what exercises you\u2019re doing so they can do them, too.\u201d \u2014<\/strong>Jess Davis<\/a>, owner of Boost! Fitness in Dallas, Texas<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>25 Workout Memes We Can Totally Relate To<\/a><\/p>\n

5. \u201cI\u2019d make sure everyone knew proper gym etiquette.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cTrying to remember everything I did wrong starting out is quite hard. It\u2019s still a journey and I\u2019m always learning new things. But, one thing I see all the time is poor gym etiquette<\/a>. I hate trying to track down equipment that\u2019s not returned or laying down on a wet mat. Ew! Use those spray bottles, rags, and wet wipes. I tell everyone: be a sweetie, wipe the seatie<\/em>.\u201d \u2014Erin Oprea<\/a>, celebrity personal trainer and author of The 4 x 4 Diet<\/em><\/a> (Seriously, check out this complete list of trainers’ biggest pet peeves<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

6. \u201cI winged it on the rower.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had several people leave their shoe in the cradle of a rower<\/a> during a circuit because they are having a hard time getting their foot out. The simple fix is to loosen the strap and slide your foot up and out! Another issue is pulling the handle up to your neck so it looks like you\u2019ll chop your head off. Pull the rower handle to the bottom of your chest. And finally, before I took a rowing certification course, I used to lean too far back at the end of the movement. I\u2019d lean to three o\u2019clock, but the correct way is leaning back to one o\u2019clock. Now, I always tell students to do this, since it\u2019s a mistake I so often see.\u201d \u2014Daury Dross<\/a>, trainer at The Fhitting Room<\/a> in New York City (For more rowing machine tips, head here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

\"What
Photo: Twenty20<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

7. \u201cI could have asked for help sooner.\u201d <\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cWhether it\u2019s out of being nervous, shy or stubborn, it\u2019s so common to watch people in the gym not ask for help when they need it. When I was starting, I quickly learned to ask coaches for specific training advice. After all, as a newbie, the fastest way to get good at something is to learn from other people who are good at it. The trainers are more than happy to help. As a trainer, now I know that we geek out about this stuff and want to lend a helping hand. That said, I think it\u2019s uncool to offer unsolicited advice. So if you\u2019d like help, you\u2019ve gotta ask for it.\u201d \u2014Rob Sulaver<\/a>, founding trainer of Rumble Boxing in New York City<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The 20 Worst People in the Gym, According to Trainers<\/a><\/p>\n

8. \u201cI\u2019d encourage no half-a**ed moves.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cWhile I\u2019ve had my share of mistakes, one of the biggest things I see other people doing in the gym is doing a [partial range] exercise, or [unintentionally] not going through their full range of motion<\/a>. For instance, in a bicep curl, it\u2019s common for someone to lower the weight only halfway, rather than extend their arm all the way down. In a push-up, they\u2019ll go down halfway and then come back up. Getting the full range of motion is important in recruiting the proper muscles and getting stronger.\u201d \u2014Noam Tamir, CSCS, founder of TS Fitness<\/a> in New York City<\/p>\n

9. \u201cI\u2019d make sure everyone eats.\u201d<\/h3>\n

\u201cI see it all the time, people start a workout program and also try to restrict calories<\/a>. This backfires. If you aren\u2019t giving your body enough fuel to work with, you won\u2019t be able to sustain a good workout. Eating enough is also important for muscle growth, strength and recovery. If you aren\u2019t eating enough, you\u2019re at a much higher risk for injury in the weight room.\u201d \u2014Alissa Rumsey MS, RD, CSCS<\/a>, Founder of Alissa Rumsey Nutrition and Wellness<\/p>\n

Read More
\n<\/strong>7 HIIT Mistakes You’re Probably Making<\/a>
\n<\/strong>19 Reasons to Work Out (Beyond the Perfect Body)<\/a>
\n6 Mistakes You’re Probably Making with the Barbell<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Everyone had to start somewhere \u2014 even the pros. Learn from their mistakes (and those they see every day) to enter the weight room with more confidence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":71,"featured_media":61467,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,6,14],"tags":[266,105,104,281,341,353,160,154,99],"class_list":["post-61450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exercise","category-fitness","category-strength-training","tag-beginner","tag-free-weights","tag-goals","tag-strength-training","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2weight-training","tag-trainer","tag-weight-training","tag-weightlifting"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/71"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61450"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61450\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61450"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}