Gym

[Cats345]

Does any one have any tips on getting over Gym Anxiety and actually getting motivated?

What do you do instead of going? What are you anxious will happen?

It's quite hard to answer your questions with no context. It'll be a very different answer if you're anxious that it will eat up all your time than if you're anxious that you'll be too weak to pick up the lightest weights, or you hate to be seen sweating, or you hate that your gym pants visibly ride up your bum. For example.

@Cats345 I think everyone gets some anxiety at first. I found speaking with staff and getting a tour helped me to work out the machines. Get a PT for a couple of sessions if you can.
I like wearing headphones and listening to a good playlist. I used to start on the treadmill while I sussed out the rest of the gym. Having a good plan helps I think.
Remember that you belong there as much as everyone else.

I’ve been going about 3 times a week for a year now. In my 50s never been to a gym before for anything other than Pilates or yoga.

im doing a weights class.

tbh I still don’t really fit in, I’m not a natural gym person, I still have to ask a lot of questions. But I know some people there to say hi to now. The instructors know me. And I go because I can feel it’s done me good. I needed to lose weight and gain strength, and I have.

have a goal, concentrate on that, use the instructors and realise no one is thinking about you.

Never rely on motivation, it's fickle.

Work on discipline and creating routine/habit

Or don’t go to the gym, find something else that you can do regularly. Walk an hour, fast with a hill, every day. Go to a climbing wall. Join an outdoor circuit class (my favourite but can’t find one near me at moment). Classes motivate me more.

Get a PT for a few sessions. As a very late starter to exercise (48!) it's given me the confidence to know what does and doesn't work for me as well as confidently know my way around all the equipment. Most gyms have bios of their PTs so you can choose one that suits what you need. I more or less interviewed mine 🤣

Put your favourite music on, don't focus on others just yourself. Everyone at the gym is so caught up on how they look in the mirror. Trust me. No one cares what you're doing or not doing. They have TVs around the room or on the cardio equipment. I pop that on as a background image and forget where I am sometimes. Do your own thing. Good luck.

Have a plan and then have a back up plan incase that bit of equipment is busy.

We cannot help you with motivation that needs to come from within. For the anxiety aspect you can try going to the gym at quiet times at first. Or how about putting on big pair of headphones so that you are in your zone? But honestly at the gym nobody cares what anybody else is doing. They are there for their own self improvement.

You just need to be consistent. Build it into your schedule and make it non negotiable. I feel so much better for putting in the effort and it's made me look at other things I need to sort out too.