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The Question: If you want to succeed in bodybuilding you must be consistent going to the gym. After awhile our daily gym visits become very repetitive. We all have our own styles, how do you prepare for the gym? What do you wear? Do you have certain clothes you wear all the time to the gym? What do you bring with you? What shouldn't you bring with you? How do gyms accommodate their members? Are there any trends (good/bad) you see from gym to gym that might need to be emphasized/addressed? Bonus Question: What do you do with your kids when you go to the gym? Does your gym provide services for children? Show off your knowledge to the world! The Winners:
2. ho_124 View Profile 3. Squat_lt View Profile 3. Hesh View Profile
2nd place - 50 in store credit. 3rd place - 25 in store credit. To use your credit, e-mail Will @ will@bodybuilding.com for more info.
In order to be successful in the sport of bodybuilding, we must make it a habit to attend the gym on a regular basis. After awhile, going to the gym becomes rather monotonous. Obviously, we all have our own styles of preparation for the gym. Some of us are more animated before attempting a big lift, while others are somewhat quiet and keep to themselves.
Below is a list of guidelines that will help you prepare for the gym!
I've seen it way too many times - teenagers who waltz into the gym and crank out reps on the bench press with too much weight, having their spotter (who weighs less than the weight being used) give assistance to the bench presser.
These teens then follow up their awful bench pressing form with bicep curls - where they use too much momentum and back involvement. Now the last time I checked, bicep curls are supposed to target the biceps - not the back. After these horrid sets of bench pressing and curls, the group of teens leave the weight room expecting to grow off of what they had just done. I hate to break it to you, but a few sets of improper bench pressing and bicep curls aren't going to get you very far in the bodybuilding game. That is why it is imperative to establish an effective workout routine, which conclusively will better prepare you for the gym! By establishing a workout routine, you can better prepare for the gym because you will have a plan of what you are to do in the gym for that particular day. Going into the gym with no plan or purpose is simply setting yourself up for failure.
Before even stepping foot into the gym, I make sure that I had a solid pre-workout meal consisting predominantly of carbohydrates, moderate protein, and a small amount of fat. I cannot stress how important pre-workout nutrition is in order to maximize your performance in the gym. A good rule of thumb is to have consumed a proper pre-workout meal 45-90 minutes before your workout. This will allow for optimal digestion, and prevent any gastric discomfort. Below Are Two Of My Favorite Pre-Workout Meals: 
Meal Option #1 I like this meal because it's quick, easy, and gets the job done. Preferably, I like to use Vanilla Bean PrimaForce Substance WPI as my source of whey protein. I mix the oats, whey, and strawberries in a large bowl, and then pour the skim milk over the mixture and eat it like cereal! It's absolutely delicious! Meal Option #1 I like this meal because it's light, simple, and tastes excellent. I simply toast the 2 slices of whole wheat bread, and spread the cottage cheese on top of the toast. The 4 oz. of chicken I eat separately for extra protein.
This aspect of preparing for the gym is widely overlooked. Often times, we don't feel like going to the gym because we're just too tired. Sometimes we fail to train with all out intensity, and need a supplement to enable us to train harder and longer. Or maybe you're just looking for a product that will give you a mind-blowing pump! Whatever it is you're looking for, my recommendations are below! 
If you're an organized bodybuilder, you should be keeping a log book, in which you record sets, reps, and weight for each exercise. Each session, you should prepare for the gym by establishing goals to increase in either weight or reps on a few of the exercises. This will overload the muscle each workout and force it to grow! I personally prefer to keep my log online, conveniently located right here on Bodybuilding.com's forum in the workout journal section. Doing so allows me to interact with other members on the message boards - and they're great for giving me some motivation to lift heavy and hard!
Before heading to the gym, mentally picture yourself cranking out reps on the exercises you are scheduled to do that particular day. Lifting is almost completely mental for me - and I always convince myself that I can do it before attempting a heavy lift. So before you step foot into the gym, make sure you're mentally ready to lift some heavy weight! It's mind over matter, always.
Before going to the gym to workout, make sure that you have all the essentials packed in your gym bag. This includes:
If you have somewhere to be after working out, don't forget your clothes to change into after training!
I'm a pretty intense guy when it comes to bodybuilding. I'm currently preparing for my very first bodybuilding competition for next year, so before I enter the gym, I like to make sure everything is in check including my pre-workout nutrition and supplementation. Everything has to be just so. I usually train later in the afternoon after work or school (depending on my schedule). First, I eat a solid pre-workout meal about 45-90 minutes before working out. I take all my pre-workout supplements at this time as well. As I'm eating my meal, I look over my log book. I establish goals I want to achieve on each exercise, and say to myself I have to get those goals no matter what! If my energy levels are stagnant, I'll watch an intense scene or two from my favorite bodybuilding videos. The infamous squatting scene featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger from the documentary, Pumping Iron always gets me motivated. Ronnie Coleman : The Cost of Redemption is another one of my favorites to watch if I'm feeling low on energy and need some motivation to lift.
I then prepare for the gym by packing all the essentials I need for the gym in my gym bag. This includes my:
I also pack my MP3 player for some hard hitting music to get me amped to lift some serious weight!
On the drive to the gym, I blast some hard rock music with powerful vocals which gets me completely pumped to attack the weights! I mentally picture myself accomplishing all of my goal lifts for that particular day.
Once I begin to enter the gym, I begin to sip my SciVation Xtend, turn up the tunes on my MP3 player, take a good look in the mirror and let out a few shouts for extra motivation. By now, I'm ready to attack the weights!
I usually wear athletic shorts with a comfortable short-sleeve T-shirt. Since I live in the Southeast, it's pretty hot for the most part. On days when the heat index is elevated, I usually wear a tank top or my Bodybuilding.com racer-back tank top.
 A Wide Selection Of Clothes Available! I also wear my athletic shoes with my low top socks since the heat is usually scorching. On days I do squats, I wear my high top shoes for extra ankle support.
Yes, I often dress occasionally to the body part I'm training that particular day. For example, if I'm training my biceps and triceps tomorrow, chances are I'll wear a sleeveless shirt so I can better concentrate on the muscles I'm training. Dressing occasionally to the muscle I'm training has allowed me to increase my vision of training the particular muscle to the fullest, and conclusively has improved my mind-to-muscle connection!
Items I bring to the gym:
Of all the gyms I've trained at, the gym personnel have been extremely accommodating. For example, there have been times when I've forgotten to pack my towel, and the gym accommodated me with one. Another thing I noticed is that the gym's staff located at the front desk are very accommodating as well. There was an instance when I had cut my finger on a piece of equipment in the gym, and it started bleeding excessively. I went to the front desk and showed them my finger, and they fixed me right up! The current gym I train at is very considerate of their members - as several members requested for a broader dumbbell selection, and within a few weeks, the petition was fulfilled! They just ordered all new machines not too long ago, so I'm anticipating those as well!
One of the biggest problems I see at most gyms is members fail to wipe down the equipment with a paper towel and provided sanitizer. This often leaves the equipment covered in somebody else's sweat, which is just plain disgusting! Another trend I see that needs to be addressed is members using awful form for the sacrifice of using more weight. I see this mostly in beginner lifters and young teens. This problem certainly needs to be addressed at my gym, as it is way too common. Another big mistake I see from gym to gym is folks performing dangerous exercises that place too much stress on the joints - particularly the rotator cuff. Behind the neck barbell presses and upright rows are two very dangerous exercises, as they both put pressure on the rotator cuff and may cause shoulder impingement. These exercises should be avoided, as their are several alternatives that target the shoulders much more effectively.
If you have young children, you can simply leave them in the gym nursery while you get your workout in. If your gym doesn't have a nursery, you can simply let your kids play in the indoor basketball gym if they're old enough.
Another good alternative is to leave your children with your wife, relatives, or friends to watch over them while you get your workout in. As a last resort, you can always hire a baby sitter to watch your kids while you go to the gym.
Yes, and many of the gym members find it very convenient. I don't have young kids, but have talked to several of the members and they love the program the gym implements. The gym members simply drop their kids off in the nursery, get their workout in, and pick up their kids when they're done working out! Easy as that! Good luck with all of your training goals! Mike
Although preparing for the gym isn't the most important thing you can do, it is still a good idea to prepare properly to get a good workout, because a good workout means better results. The same thing is with anything else, for example all different kinds of sports. If a hockey team just came into a game two minutes before it started and didn't bother to get concentrated or warm-up, they wouldn't perform too well. You sometimes hear commentators say, when you're watching a sport, that a certain athlete or team didn't give themselves enough time to prepare or get focused which is why they aren't performing. The same is true when going to the gym; if you rush into the gym with jeans and boots and start lifting right away, there's no way you will be able to push yourself to your full potential. It doesn't take that long at all to prepare, just dress properly and do whatever else you do, warm-up, and take one or two minutes to concentrate before you start lifting. Again, this might not be the most important thing that will make your or break you in terms of bodybuilding, powerlifting or whatever your doing, but it's still something that you should be doing because all the little things make a difference.
1. The Most Important: Warm-up. Warm-up is probably the most important thing you can do when getting ready to hit the weights. Probably 20-40% of the people you see in the gym warm-up meaning the majority of people hit the weights with cold muscles just waiting to be injured.
Warming up can never be underestimated since it also prepares your muscles for the beating they will be taking so you can push yourself to your full potential. If you lift with cold muscles you most likely won't be able to push the full amount of reps you should had you had you warmed up. Think about it, for all sports people always take as much time as they need to warm-up. Take volleyball for an example, when I watched some of the school games they warmed up for at least 20 minutes. I always warm-up before hitting weights, because if I don't I won't be able to lift as well (cold muscles aren't as effective as ones that are warmed up). There are many different styles to warming up. Some people just use weights to warm-up, some people like to do a bit of cardio to warm-up and so on. My style of warming up take a little longer, but in the end I feel more ready to hit the weights. What I like to do is do about five minutes of cardio. If I'm doing a back day then I might go on the rowing machine, if I'm doing legs then the bike would do. But the most important thing is getting blood flowing throughout the body. Once the five minutes of cardio is done I like to stretch and the main reason for doing this is to prevent injury and getting the muscles loosened up. I don't stretch too long before a workout however, all I basically do is stretch the involved body parts I'm going to be working for 20 seconds for two sets. Stretching too long will hinder how much weight you can lift which is what you don't want. 2. Getting Mentally Focused & Concentrated. When you're sitting on the bench, or getting ready at the squat rack to do your first set or even before all of that you should take a minute or two to get mentally focused. You can even get focused while warming up, but either way pushing those last few grueling reps is all a mental game which puts your mind vs. your body. If your body tells you to stop but your mind keeps going no matter what, to complete the reps, you will have a lot better chance of finishing those reps than if you just stop when your muscles are tired. To be able to push yourself mentally you have to spend at least a minute concentrating and pushing everything else out of your mind. You can't concentrate on lifting if you're thinking about work or cooking dinner. If you think about it, it's just one minute of your time, some athletes spend hours before a match visualizing what they are going to do and getting focused. You can always, I mean always tell which people who come into the gym are mentally focused and will be able to push out those last reps even though their muscles are in pure fatigue. You can see by how they look, there's those guys with looks that could kill you. This should be telling you that they are into what their doing. Then there's the rest who are either nervously looking around at other guys and won't even be able to push through a little fatigue, or those laid back guys with no goals who just come in a push a few reps and quit when they're tired and still think they are building muscle. 3. Pre-Workout Meal. Before your workout it's important to be well fed or else you won't have the optimal energy to lift at your peak. You should never go workout on an empty stomach just like any other sport. Do you think professional athletes before a big game say "Hey, I'm too lazy to eat something so I'm just going to play hungry."
You might even pass out because of the high load of stress put on your body. And since you don't have enough energy to withstand it, your body just shuts down (not as in dying). That's what happened one time when I used to play badminton. I never ate for a while and I went to practice where we did training and I almost passed out and couldn't play for the rest of the day. Plus I hardly got anything out of the training because I didn't have much energy. So to prevent this you should eat a pre-workout meal about one hour and fifteen minutes to an hour and a half before your workout. It should consist of mostly slow absorbing carbs so that the energy is released gradually so that when it's time to workout you have plenty of energy to lift. Some protein is nice but it isn't the most important thing since right now you want energy and protein's main job isn't to provide energy. What I usually do is eat something with a little protein like a piece of chicken or some fish. Next for carbs I might eat some oatmeal, whole grain bread and some fruits like oranges, grapefruit and some berries. Now think, are you better prepared, tired or energized? 4. Get Someone To Workout With You.
I usually like to get someone who is serious about lifting to workout with me. Like anything, training with someone else who is serious about it beats training alone most of the time. Since I sometimes workout at school, there are always people going to workout so I usually ask someone I know to workout with me. Be careful though, you don't want some guy who has no clue what he's doing and will just end up wasting your time by talking. Getting someone to workout with you helps you to prepare since you won't have to look for someone to spot you or help you on forced reps or something like that.
When I go to the gym, I never wear baggy clothing, which is something you should do too. First of all with baggy clothing, you can't see what your muscles are doing. For example, if your wearing super baggy shorts and your doing squats, you might not be able to tell if your form is correct or if your knees are going over your toes. Or if you're wearing a baggy shirt, you might not be able to tell if you're cheating by moving your elbows up a little bit. And in general I don't feel comfortable at all wearing baggy clothing while working out. I usually like to wear a well fitting shirt or muscle shirt with shorts that stop about the middle of the knees or some sweat pants even though it's hard to tell what my legs are doing with them on. I also like to wear my old badminton shoes to workout because they are small, comfy, and give me good support. If I wore my usual shoes, they would be bulking and uncomfortable when doing legs or something like that. Right now the only things I wear to workout are a short plain white T-shirt, a muscle shirt, a pair of shorts, and some sweat pants. For some reason I just alternate between them and it's just a superstition that I have.
These are the things I bring with me to workout. 1. Bag: I just bring a backpack or a small bag to store my clothing, music player, a towel and other things like water, my protein shake or whatever else. You should bring a bag with you because you can't carry everything in with you at once. It's something that will get you more organized. 2. Music: Music is a good thing that helps you get focused and concentrated because it pushes everything out of your mind. Generally you don't want to have some soft classical music because that will relax you which is what you don't really want. Get some heavy music like some rap or metal so that you will get pumped. But either way music is still a good thing to have to get yourself centered. 3. Towel & Water: Bring water because it is important to keep yourself hydrated or else you might pass out. A towel comes in handy when you need one because you're squatting or something like that. You can use the towel to wipe sweat from the equipment. The next person will be appreciative of that fact.
4. Comfortable Shoes: Like I said above, my casual shoes are kind of bulky and aren't really a workout shoe. So I like to bring my own shoes for working out that are slim and provide good support. Don't be dumb and bring sandals or something. 5. Protein Shake: After I workout, I want to start my recovery right away, that's why I have my protein shake in my bag ready to go. All I need to do is add water and it's ready since the whey powder and the simple sugars are already in there. Plus you can add creatine, BCAA, multivitamins and other supplements if you want. 6. Workout Log: This is important to bring to chart your gains and see what you're doing. If you don't know what exercises your suppose to do then you can't workout. And if you don't write in how many reps or how much weight you used, you won't know if your getting any stronger or not or what weight you used last time. Making a workout log is useless unless you bring it with you to the gym. 7. Gloves: I bring gloves basically so the weights don't grind against my hands and to prevent getting calluses. If you're touching a girl you wouldn't want to be scratching her would you?
1. Leave Your Gangster Clothing Somewhere Else: First off for those people who like to dress that way, please don't bring your super baggy gangster clothing in the gym for your workout. I mean seriously, one time when I was working out I saw these three guys come into the gym dressed in super baggy jeans and sweats, lugz boots with laces hanging out, oversized shirts and sweaters, and baseball caps. I mean come on, friggin lugz to workout?!? And jeans and sweaters? If it was a hot muggy day they probably would have been sweating and cooking like crazy. Plus it will save yourself some embarrassment if you don't go dressed that way. 2. Thongs & Sandals: For some reason some people try to look cool by wearing thongs and sandals into the gym. But if you think a little bit people are always dropping weight or even you might be dropping weight either by accident or because you can't hold the weight up anymore. Imagine if you dropped a 45 pound plate or dumbbell on your foot? Never mind the pain (that will be the worst pain you've ever felt in your foot) but you probably won't be able to walk on it for days and it will leave a huge bruise. Leave them for the beach. 3. Things That Distract: Leave your distractions for somewhere else. So don't bring in your pager or phone with you, or else an hour workout might end up being an hour and fifteen minute workout. Also don't bring something to read, like I said above you don't want anything getting your mind off concentrating on weights. If you read an interesting article you probably won't be thinking about weights and your mental focus won't be as strong, let alone you might waste a lot of time. Again like I mentioned above, you don't want to workout with someone you know will just end up talking for a long time. You don't want to be talking a lot since you won't be able to concentrate mentally.
4. Watch & Necklace: Take off your watch and necklace if you have one before you go workout. Your watch might get damaged or get in the way if you leave it on. Also you might want to take your necklace off if you have one. It might get in the way of squatting or other exercises you might be doing. It can also get caught on something which you don't want.
There are some basic things a gym should provide. Then there are the gyms that go the extra mile and give you more for your dollar. I will outline the trends with the first being the most basic and the last being the things that gyms do to further accommodate their members.
 All In One! Complete Home Gym Product Guide. Go!It should also have a variety of other machines that could be useful if you're trying to isolate different body parts.
I don't have kids since I'm only eighteen. But my gym is great for people who have children. It has four pools (Pan Am pool), diving boards and other swimming accessories. It also has a running track and a cafeteria. They also offer courses like swimming, water polo and it has swimming associations like Manta and Marlins which teach kids how to swim competitively. You can drop your kid off to do some swimming lessons and hit the weights. There is also a kiddy pool in my gym that has a fountain and a bunch of mats and toys. My gym has water polo that the kids could play or a huge alligator that is filled with air that children climb on top of.
My preparation for a workout starts at early morning. Everything is carefully planned so every time I train my maximum potential is reached.
Generally My Preparation Starts With:
My Gym Bag Usually Contains:
I don't have any special prejudices regarding workout clothing but I do have some clothes I like to wear when I'm training. I usually wear:
In my opinion, what you bring to the gym is very important. Some things can greatly boost and improve your workout, while others can distract you from training and ruin your workout. Every bodybuilder should consider about bringing these things to gym:
Good dressing can also slightly improve or decrease performance of your training.
Nowadays there is huge choice of various accessories regarding weightlifting. Some of them help to train more comfortably, while others are essential if you are serious about weight training. I will write about a few of the most popular bodybuilding accessories that you can see in the gym almost every day.
You can find all accessories for your workout here.
Nowadays probably everybody knows the importance of post workout nutrition. More and more people call post workout meal as most important meal of the day and it's definitely true! After hard and exhausting workout glycogen stores are low and protein breakdown is increased. You need to consume simple carbs and some protein quickly. Post workout meal may not be a problem if you are living few minutes away from gym, but to most people it takes much longer to travel back home ant prepare a meal. Then post workout shake comes into play.
Nowadays most gyms have many various facilities. Such as swimming pools, saunas, jacuzzis, tanning beds, various classes, basketball and tennis courts, etc. You should choose a gym regarding your concerns. If you are serious about bodybuilding, you should leave all fancy health centers with swimming pools and choose good gym with sufficient range of free weights, machines and cardio equipment. You don't need anything more. Usually membership for this kind of gym is cheaper too.
I think one of the biggest bad trends in gyms is poor knowledge of trainers. Every gym has instructor, but we can count good ones on a fingers of a single man. I'm in bodybuilding for a while and I saw really bad trainers at gyms. I remember one very skinny guy in my old gym. He was training for years without any progress. He was always crying that he needs to gain weight. Fat or muscle, no matter what, but gain. He was strictly following a training routine made by a trainer. He trained every muscle group 2 times a week and he was doing cardio for almost an hour before every workout! I tried to speak with him - how can you gain weight and muscle if you are doing almost 4 hours of cardio a week?! How can you build your muscle if you train after a one hour marathon on a treadmill?! But he blindly followed that workout anyway... He supported his marathons that cardio is good for heart (sad and funny). Did not mentioned that the instructor was a "joke" too. He couldn't even bench 200 pounds. So we can see that a bad gym instructor can certainly distance and destroy goals of person who's new to sport. Another bad habit in gym would be free weights. I'm sick of people leaving weights everywhere. It's always a big hassle if you want to find small plates. You need to search all over the gym before you find them somewhere in the corner. I've been training in many gyms but "bring weight to its place" discipline was emphasized only in one. More gym trainers and owners should bring order to gyms.
Actually, it's not a big problem for me because I don't have any children yet. But services for children at gym should be essential part of every gym. It's great to bring all family to gym. Both you and your partner could train while your child is having fun at the same time. Hassle with children would be avoided at this case. However most gyms don't have services for children (my gym as well). Sometimes even worse - some gyms allow little kids in the training hall. It's dangerous and it creates a big distraction for bodybuilders. Gym management shouldn't allow this!
If you want to succeed in bodybuilding you must be consistent going to the gym. After awhile our daily gym visits become very repetitive. More and more people are thinking about health and wanting to get fit. More are joining gyms. Sadly, however, many of the new faces we see in January will no longer be around come March or April. Skipping workouts is a slippery slope. So is giving less than 100%. So is cutting back the time spent at each gym visit. Persistence, therefore, is of paramount importance. Psychologists say that intrinsic motivation is a more powerful driving force than extrinsic motivation. That is, those who do an activity "for its own sake" are more likely to stick with it than those who dislike performing the activity, but are doing so nonetheless in hopes of attaining long term rewards.
My advice to those folks at a statistical disadvantage: create intrinsic value where none exists. Appreciate the altered state of mind. Savor the challenge. Learn from the experience. Think about how good it feels to be hoisting up more than the last time. Feel the pride in forcing yourself to transcend pain. When the extrinsic motivation is lacking, employ intrinsic motivation, and likewise when intrinsic is lacking employ extrinsic. Do your best to up your levels of both types.
Prepare mentally to give your all. On the car ride to the gym, listen to fast paced, adrenaline inducing music. Picture yourself attacking those weights with a fury never before seen. Imagine your best session ever. If you really want to be on top of your game, though, view preparation as a constant process that takes place day in and day out. Make physical fitness a way of life. Listen to Eye of the Tiger. Think about Roman soldiers. Throw on an inspirational movie. Tape a picture of your favorite strongman or maybe a Greek god or two up on your bedroom wall so that this is the first thing you see upon awakening each morning. Slap a couple pics on the fridge. Eat the natural foods that keep your immune system strong and your body functioning at an optimum level. Get sufficient rest. Steer clear of nicotine, alcohol, and junk food.
Becoming overheated while exercising is not only an unpleasant feeling, but can also keep your workout from being less than optimal. Workouts should be function over fashion. Aim for breathable, loose fitting apparel. (I like 100% cotton.) Remember too that light colored clothing absorbs less heat from the lights than does dark colored clothing.
Personally, I'm accustomed to throwing on whatever I have on hand that is comfortable and gets the job done. Some bodybuilders, however, like to wear a lucky or special article of clothing. As long as this is does not compromise safety or interfere with your ability to do your best, I say more power to you!
WATER is very important. Even slight dehydration can significantly impair performance. In addition, the muscles themselves are made up of not just protein but water. Drink as much water as you can stand while working out and continue to do so later throughout the course of the day.
Aim for a gallon or two daily. This is especially important if you are taking creatine, whey, or caffeine, all of which dehydrate. Failure to down enough water means you can kiss those gains goodbye. The message: Don't forget that water bottle. (Or that gallon jug!) H20's not the only thing you'll be dumping down your throat though. Oh man what was that other ingredient for making muscle? Oh right its PROTEIN. As soon as your muscles have been worked to the max, it is important to get protein to them as quickly as possible. Have a protein shake really to go for on your way out of the gym or for on the ride home. Besides the optional creatine and glutamine, your post workout shake should include finely filtered whey protein, along with a simple carb and/or sugar to spike your insulin levels. Shoot for as little fat and fiber as possible, as these will slow the absorption of protein. Many places of exercise sell post workout shakes, which can be helpful should you forget to bring yours. However, it is more economical to buy the ingredients in bulk ahead of time to make your own. During the workout, your body is placed under a tremendous amount of stress. As soon as your mission is finished you want to start to relax, to help your body be in an anabolic state rather than a catabolic state. Pack accordingly to unwind with a hot shower or take it easy in the sauna with a friend. Have an easy listening CD ready to go for the car ride home. Stress inducing items like cell phones and valuables won't be in your bag.
Gyms are making more and more accommodations in hopes are attracting a larger membership. Special extras include showers, pools, saunas, temperature control, massages, extended hours, contests, stretching rooms, health information, vending machines, child care, complementary towels, and refresher courses.
These extra accommodations, however, should have no influence on the frequency of which you visit the gym. Should you be financially unable to pay for the gym with all the extra frills, happily accept what you can afford. Don't let lack of whatever special feature you were hoping for act as an excuse as to why you aren't working out. Champions wouldn't allow themselves to be held back by something so insignificant. If you want this bad enough, you'll find a way to make it happen. You don't need a fancy country club type gym to make gains.
I'll start with the bad news first. Many higher end gyms now require prospective buyers to commit to an entire year and to also pay an initiation fee before they are able to join. The more they can get you to pay upfront, the better for them. Have you met with a cheerful hospitality tour guide? Keep in mind that those employees who so eagerly want you to sign a contract are paid commission. Trust them as much as you would a car salesman. A healthy amount of skepticism is in order: don't necessarily believe everything they are telling you unless you get it in writing. When buying a lifetime membership, check to see how long the club has been established to help make an educated guess as to how long they might be sticking around. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a scenario where the gym to which you belong goes out of business, thus rendering your expensive membership worthless. Don't make the mistake of needlessly wasting money that could be better spent on supps and clean food. Cautions aside however, I'd like to emphasize that no matter who you are joining with, a gym is one of the best investments you can make. Your health is worth it! Speaking of health, did you know that older folks are now the fastest growing demographic of new gym members? What an encouraging trend! More often than not in our society, the elderly live in heavily medicated, broken down bodies. It's almost as if we expect this and accept it to be normal (Flipping through the pages of National Geographic, I was shocked to see pictures of Asian farmers working well into their 80's, 90's, and even longer!). In many ways, prosperity can be a double edged sword. Years of inactivity and poor eating choices will take its toll. But here's the good news: lifting weights can not only add muscle (muscle mass declines with age in seniors) but will also increase increases bone density (which can help protect against breaks). Physical exercise may also help delay or prevent the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's.
In other words, weight training may not only help the elderly experience a feeling of accomplishment, but may also allow them to hold on to their independence longer. One prominent example of this is fitness pioneer Jack Lalanne. Now age 91, his daily routine includes not only eating dinner at a restaurant and driving, but two hours of morning exercise! (My jaw almost hit the floor when I heard this.) If I'm ever feeling not in the mood to keep working out, I think about Jack. If he's 91 and can work out frequently then so can I. And so can you. Exercise is a healer, a valuable tool tragically underutilized.
Children learn by example. Parents who go to a gym are being exemplary role models by setting a good example to the kids who look up to them and want to copy their behavior. What a wonderful thing for healthy habits to be ingrained in them from a young age. It is crucial to give your child (and yourself) the impression that exercise is a blessing and an opportunity rather than a chore. Should your gym not provide child services and/or exclude those under 18 (as is the case with mine and many I've encountered); steps can still be taken to still ensure that the child remains active during this time. Perhaps Junior could be dropped off at soccer practice while father hits the iron. Use your imagination. You have the power to shape a life for the better.
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