You Don't Have To Be Fit To Get Fit - Jones Brothers Gym

​‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’ - You have to get fit to go to the place that helps get unfit people fit? It’s like saying I need to fix my car before I take it to the mechanics to get it fixed

This comment has a few moving parts to it. Some of us who work in a gym should/can sympathise with elements of the statement, while other interpretations can render it simply confusing and annoying.

I can sympathise with people who say ‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’ because it shows that deep down this person wants to make a change for the better. They are showing an awareness that getting fit is a great place to start with helping them feel better and improving their self-esteem. People just getting started may feel like they won’t be accepted by people at the gym or that they’ll be judged by the other gym goers, which makes them nervous about going into a new environment. Think about the last time you tried something for the first time. I’m sure it was a little daunting, not being sure what was going to happen or who you were going to meet.

These reasons are why I can see why people are scared to START their fitness journeys. As a trainer I sympathise with these legitimate reasons and as part of my job is to help people transition from uncomfortable to comfortable in the gym environment.

BUT this sentence also annoys me! ‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’ drives me nuts because it’s also used as an excuse to NEVER! Start their fitness journey. People say this so much they convince themselves that they actually can’t get fit till they get themselves fit and they aren’t fit because they haven’t been able to motivate themselves or know how to actually get fit. It turns the trainer from someone who they thought could help them, to a big scary monster that only want to train people who are already ‘fit’.

When ‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’ goes from being a genuine concern about the unknown to an excuse to never start, it drives me crazy! And you know when it has turned into an excuse when they have done NOTHING!! To change what they are currently doing and every time you bring up how or where to start, refer trainers/gyms/dietitians, offer support to getting them started and they don’t take any of that on board and continue doing the same thing they always have but continue to say ‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’

How can we help people that say ‘I need to get fit before I go to the gym’? As a trainer I can say is great trainers don’t care if you’re unfit!!! We are here to help teach you what you should and shouldn’t be doing. Trainers are here to help you with your goals not hinder you from achieving them.

Trainers see people of all shapes, sizes, back grounds and fitness levels. If you are nervous about starting, and want to get a bit fitter before joining a group session, we not only understand, but we encourage it at Jones Brothers Gym. Come in for a one-on-one, to get your confidence up in the gym and then when you are ready, jump into a class and have a blast improving your fitness with the other legends on the lake!

Izzy Jones

The younger but bigger Jones Brother, and Manager/Head Trainer at Jones Brothers Gym Albert Park.