Getting started with fitness: 4 tips for beginners

Do you finally want to get started with fitness, but don’t know how? Fitness is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, whether you want to lose weight, build muscle or just be healthier. But for beginners, getting started can pose some challenges. In this article, we have four tips for you to get started with exercise and stay with it in the long term!

1. Find your sport and the right studio or gym

Getting started with fitness in a way you enjoy

You can increase your fitness in many different ways. You can go to a gym and do some classic strength training to increase your muscle strength, but you can also train by bouldering or swimming. Find something that you enjoy because this will motivate you to stick with it.

Here’s a selection of sports that you can try out:

• Bouldering for beginners
• Swimming and strength training
• Getting started with combat sports
• Yoga or Pilates 
• Getting started with meditation

Find a studio or gym where you feel comfortable

When you start exercising, you’ll be going to the gym regularly. The atmosphere must be right. Get to know the staff, the community, and the coaches. At most gyms, you can arrange a trial session, so you can check it out and get a feel for it without committing to anything.

Why the gym should be nearby

If you exercise several times a week, long routes are not ideal. You exercise in your free time – the only effort should be the exercise itself. So it’s best to find a gym near  your home or place of work. There are plenty of gyms around, and you’ll certainly be able to find one where you feel comfortable.

2. Come up with a suitable training plan

Start with whole-body exercise

Whole-body exercise means that you use all the muscles in your body to ensure balanced exercise. You can achieve this both in the gym and with a combination of different sports. For example, bouldering trains lots of different muscles and serves as a whole-body workout. Make sure that you equally train legs, chest, abdomen, back, arms and shoulders during an exercise session. Here you can find out what steps you should take to create your first training plan.

Pay attention to reps, sets, intensity and breaks

Those who are just starting out with strength training are often confused with the terms “reps” and “sets”. Reps indicate how many times in a row an exercise should be carried out, while a certain number of reps strung together is known as a set. The number of reps depends on whether your goal is to build muscle or increase endurance.

At the beginning, keep the intensity low (50 – 60% of the maximum weight) and the frequency high (12 – 15 reps). The maximum weight is the highest weight that you can manage for one rep. It’s best to get help from a coach to determine what yours is. Your body must be prepared for your next workout. Ligaments, joints, muscles and bones must get used to the strain gradually. For this purpose, endurance training two to three times a week is a good option. To avoid injuries, it’s best to start with machines. Your coach will create your first plan for you. If your goal is to build muscle, you can take a look at this book by Jim Stoppani – comprehensive, honest and motivating!

It’s also important to think about breaks between sets and exercise sessions. This will give your body time to recover.

Getting started with fitness – choose the right exercises

Unless you want to wander aimlessly through the gym, you should choose exercises that you can complete at every workout. The exercises will help you know which stations to go to. We also recommend that you keep track of your progress, so you know which weight you have used for each exercise.

3. Starting with the right technique

Training with free weights with the wrong technique can have severe consequences over the long term. That’s why you must learn the correct techniques for the exercises if you want to get fit. Getting support also plays an important role here. A coach will make time for you and give you expert advice. If something isn’t clear to you or you don’t understand an exercise, ask!

If you are really interested in the important topics “technique” and “mobility“, this classic book, “Becoming a Supple Leopard”, is a must-read. The book contains lots of important tips and is very well illustrated!

4. Transform your diet

The right diet is a basic requirement if you want to reach success quickly as a fitness novice. You need enough energy for your workouts and protein for building muscle. This is possible with vegan sports nutrition as well as a mixed diet. Important: All bodies are different, so there is no single correct diet for everyone. Maybe intermittent fasting works really well for your training buddy when strength training, but it just doesn’t fit into your daily routine. Always listen to your body, and seek good advice. Allow yourself time to adjust to the diet. That could take one week or several weeks.

Before your exercise, make sure you’re getting enough carbohydrates in your diet to keep you going through your workout. Meet your daily protein needs by having 1.5 grams of protein for every kilogram of body weight. That’s roughly 100 grams of protein for someone who weighs 70 kilograms. You should also make sure your diet includes enough vitamins and minerals. 

Want to start exercising today and go to the gym? With Urban Sports Club, you can find partners in your area and find a sports studio or gym that suits you and in which you feel comfortable! With a varied selection of countless fitness, yoga, swimming, climbing, team sports and wellness offerings, you can get off to a flying start and begin your workout right away! There are also many coaches that can support you at every step, from creating an exercise plan to managing your diet, whether you’re doing strength training or yoga.

Where do you prefer to do your workouts? Do you have any other tips for fitness beginners? Tell us more in the comments!