#yycfit

It's been over 17 years since I picked up my first set of weights, and for the first time in all those years, I have consistently gone to, and thoroughly enjoyed, the gym.

I'm a firm believer that their is some aspect of fitness for everyone out there and that you should consistently engage in it for your own health and personal benefit. The problem is that it can be really difficult to get started, and even harder to be consistent. I've decided to share my little findings and insights in the hopes that it might help others who struggle with getting regular activity in their lives.

Personally poor mental, and later physical, health always kept me from regularly going, or even working out in a healthy manner. If and when I could get my head in check and get into the gym, which was not as often as I wished for, I would totally go for broke; 5 days a week, too much cardio after intense weight lifting, and unnecessary supplements. I also wasn't always doing it for myself and the personal benefits that come with good training, and that even made me resent the gym to be honest.

On that note, my first big insight; do it for yourself and your benefit. Working out or any sort of consistent exercise can do so much for you when done properly. It's beyond just your physical health and appearance, as good exercise also really benefits your mental state. Even more so for other folks like myself who struggle with mental health issues.

It's not just confidence in yourself either. It decreases your anxiety, it can help desensitize to discomfort both mental and physical, and overall it balances out any ups and downs that happen. Hell, you could be upset beyond belief and a proper workout/exercise can relieve anger, stress, fear, and all of those sometimes destructive feelings better than any medication you might use or indulge in when those situations arise.

So you need to find a reason to not only be consistent, but to enjoy your workouts as that only benefits the consistency, but it really should be a reason that's all about you. I started working out heavily as a teenager to get a girlfriend, and when that didn't happen I stopped going the gym, but even worse, I hated wokring out period. I didn't get the benefit out of it I expected, because I was focused on something that really wasn't about me. If you put yoruself in that tye of position, you really lose out on more than expected.

Moving on, and this is another big one; find a type of fitness to engage in, a gym, or activity that you legitimately are comfortable with mentally. If you don't enjoy something or are not comfortable doing it, you won't maintain it over time. It can be anxiety that's keeping you out of that specific gym for some reason, maybe your doing a type of exercise or activity you just don't like or aren't interested in.

There's so many varying things out there you can do beyond just going in and doing cardio or lifting weight, and you need to find that, and you need to look forward to it. If you can't comfortably handle the soreness that comes with lifting weights, do something else, but don't quit, and don't continue doing something that you so dislike that eventually you will quit. Once you've gotten out of it, and gotten into that mindset, it can be near impossible to rewire and get back to finding something you actually do want to do.

So try things out. Most gyms have a free trial, so test that and find a place you feel comfortable going, this is a big one because if you feel judged, anxious, scared, or uncomfortable going, you probably will not keep it up. Wasted money, constant stress over that in turn, etc.

Try different workouts to see what you like or straight up hate and will not do, it's fine if you don't want to do something; but keep trying to find something you do want to continue. Try yoga or a group class, join a walking group, try a class at your local recreation centre, but don't settle and don't give up on finding something because it will arrive at some point. When you find it, it's as if you found something you always were looking for and going forward, you can't live without it.

The one I want to end at for now is really important to me, and I think it's something that a lot of people run into, and run away from after awhile. It's pretty simple; don't push yourself to your limit right off the bat, especially if you're not even sure if this is the right thing for you.

You don't need to go to the gym or do something phsyical 5 days out of the week, you don't have to count your calories, or weigh yourself every morning, noon, and night. You can, and really should just start slow and find what works. Especially if you decide to lift, because if you go for broke you will literally break, it might not be right away, but it'll happen. When it does, you not only lose the physical benefit you were aiming for, but it messes with your mental state to a hellish degree.

It's a long game when it comes to fitness. It doesn't matter if you want abs, better stamina, or just to breath easier; it's going to take a bit to get there. Even if you notice results right off the bat, the long term benefits and true results will occur exactly then; over the long term.

So you don't need to, and shouldn't be trying to kill yourself every time you engage in your preferred activity, or you will stop, ad in a lot of those cases it might not even be of your own accord. You can get sick, hurt, or worse if you aren't doing things properly and in a  well controlled manner.