A Beginner's Guide to the Gym: 5 Things You Must Know

When I was new to going to the gym I thought it was a pretty intimidating place. I didn't know what some of the machines did, I always felt lost, and it took me a while to figure out some of the vocabulary. Now that I've learned the ins and outs, I've compiled this list of information every new gym-goer should know.

1. No One is Paying Attention to You

The people at the gym are there to do the same thing you are: to get a good workout. That's what they're focused on, not the people around them. So if you're a little confused or a little lost, you're the only one who knows it - the people around you are completely oblivious to what you're doing.

2. No One Is Judging You

This is the same concept - people at the gym are focused on what they're doing, not what you're doing. If you're not lifting very much weight or if you had to slow down on the treadmill, no one else cares. In fact, I've always respected people who obviously aren't in great shape just for getting to the gym - we all started somewhere.

3. The Gym Staff is There to Help

You know those people who just kind of stand around at the front of the weight room and don't really do anything? Don't be afraid to ask them for help if you have a question, they're there for a reason. Besides, if you were confused at the airport wouldn't you ask a worker for help? It's the same concept.

4. The Labels are Useful

I know that we are all a little averse to reading directions, but those stickers on the weight lifting machines can be really useful if you're new to the gym. They'll show you how to do the exercise, which muscle groups you'll be using and how to set up the machine based on your height.

5. Know This Gym Vocabulary

How many sets do you have left?

This is the polite way of asking if you're almost done with a particular machine. Do not rush your workout just because someone is waiting, but don't dilly-dally around on your phone either.

Can I work in with you?

This is the common follow-up question if the answer to the previous question is more than one set - you're basically being asked if they can do a set while you're resting, and then you'll do your next set when they're resting. Unless you're doing some kind of timed circuit training, always say yes. And of course, you can always ask to work in too, just make sure they're resting when you ask and try to avoid messing with the height adjustments too much.

Can you spot me?

You're basically being asked to help someone do an exercise at a weight they're not sure they can do. It's unlikely you'll get asked this if you're not really fit yet, but if you do, make sure you know exactly what the person wants you to do. If it sounds manageable, you could make a friend. If it doesn't, tell them so. They're looking to prevent an injury when they ask for a spot, so if you don't think you can help them, they'll want to know.

Reveal Your Abs: 6 Things to Know About That Elusive Six-Pack

Striving for that perfectly chiseled six-pack you see on magazines?  Besides some friendly lighting, airbrushing and photo-shopping, there are some things you need to know about revealing your abs that can help you achieve that beach body you’ve always wanted.

Everyone Has Six-Pack Muscles

They’re just hidden – under fat – which means that to truly begin revealing your six-pack, you need to cut body fat.  This is the unfortunate reality of this article because cutting body fat is a slow process.  Deep down I’m sure you knew this was true though, so you can expect to start seeing your abs when you’re at a healthy body fat percentage.

You Cannot Spot Burn Fat

End of story.  You can’t only lose fat in your stomach area while remaining chubby elsewhere.  It can’t be done.  Don’t believe anyone who tells you otherwise.

Crunches Won’t Reveal Your Abs

Abdominal crunches have got to be the most over-hyped exercise around.  Our core is made up of a combination of very small muscles that help to keep us upright and allow us to rotate our torsos.  They are a complex network that stretch from the front of your abs (the six-pack area), around to your obliques and even into your back.  Crunches will only work a very small percentage of these muscles, so any muscle definition you gain from sit-ups is likely to be minimal.  Also, because your ab muscles are so small, working them in isolation will burn only a negligible number of calories, which will not help to remove that layer of fat between your abs and your skin.

Focus on Big Muscles and Cardio

If you ever need some extra motivation to stay on the cardio machine for those last 5 minutes or to do your final set of squats, think of it as an indirect ab workout.  We all know that cardiovascular exercise is important to weight loss, and working large muscles, such as your quads and glutes, burns far more calories per repetition than working your much smaller abdominal muscles (in fact, squats burn more calories per rep than any other exercise).

The Best Ab Exercises

The most effective ab exercises involve more of your core than just the front part.  Stabilization exercises, such as planks, engage both the front and back areas of your core.  Try doing them on your sides with your elbow on the ground to engage your obliques.  Also, exercises that focus on trunk rotation will engage the front, sides and even back of your core.

Sit Up Straight

Even if you were to somehow do an hour of ab work every single day, your abs are still resting for the other 23 hours of the day.  One of the most basic functions of your abs is to keep you upright, so make them do their job!  If you’re working your abs basically whenever you’re awake by sitting up straight, you’ll be a lot more pleased with the results in a lot less time.

A Weight-Lifting Must

It can be very tempting to hold our breath while we struggle to get through the last few reps of our exercise and then pant when we finally finish it, but your muscles need a steady supply of oxygen to perform at their peak.  It's much better to establish a steady breathing rhythm while we lift: exhale when you're straining your muscles and inhale again when they're relaxing.  Still having trouble remembering to breathe?  Try whispering the count out loud each time you perform a repetition.

The Truth about Health Food Buzzwords

Marketers have responded to the recent pushes to eat better and lead healthier lives with buzzwords that make their products sound healthy.  Words and phrases like “all natural,” “organic,” “made with real fruit juice,” and “made with whole grain” dominate the packages in the aisles of your local grocery store.  Be careful though, these words may not mean what you think they do and they certainly aren’t the only factor you should consider when you’re filling your pantry.

All Natural

This one is probably the most misleading health food buzzword out there because “natural” likely doesn’t mean what you think it means.  In fact, according to the FDA, it doesn’t mean anything at all – the FDA does not define or regulate the term on food products.  The USDA loosely defines what natural means for meat products as not having artificial preservatives (which doesn’t mean it doesn’t have any preservatives – salt is found naturally in the earth after all), coloring ingredients, and it should be minimally processed.  Here’s the problem: meat from animals treated with strange hormones while they were alive can still technically be considered natural.  Also, the enforcement of companies who make “all natural” claims isn’t very stringent, so it’s largely up to the producer to define what natural is.  My recommendation: ignore any advertisement that says “all natural” and investigate the product on your own by taking a look at the ingredients list.

Organic

Food labeled as organic is much more stringently regulated than food labeled as all natural; and the “Certified USDA Organic” seal can only be used after a company undergoes an approval process and frequent inspections by USDA inspectors.  There’s a lot to the definition of what is and is not organic, but basically produce cannot be grown with synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation, etc. and the pest control process cannot use certain chemicals.  Meat must be fed with organic feed, have access to the great outdoors, and they cannot be given growth hormones or antibiotics.  Again, that’s a very brief definition, but organic food is more what you think of when you think of food being made naturally.  If this is important to you, then you should spend the extra money on organic foods and visit Farmer’s Markets, but realize that organic is not synonymous with healthy.  You can make organic cookies or other organic foods that we would usually consider to be “junk food,” and although it may have been made naturally, it is not necessarily good for you.

Made with Real Fruit Juice

This one actually means what it sounds like, but it’s usually not as healthy as it sounds.  I have yet to find a label that says “made with real fruit juice” without having added sugar on the ingredients list.  Here’s the other problem with this label: when you’re only getting the fruit juice, you tend to lose all the other nutritional benefits of fruit.  Take an apple as an example.  An apple with the peel has about 5 grams of fiber (depending on the size of the apple), but if you only have a little apple fruit juice, you’re not getting any fiber.  You’re better off with real fruit, not real fruit juice.

Made with Whole Grain

I’m a big proponent of eating whole grains, but that doesn’t mean everything with whole grains is healthy.  Look for labels that say 100% whole grain – you should still check for sugar, fat and sodium content, but 100% whole grain is a good start.  If the label doesn’t say anything about what percentage of the product is whole grain, check to see how many grams of whole grain the label says a product is made with (which should be posted) and compare that to the number of grams of carbohydrates on the nutritional label.  Finally, you can check the ingredients list to see if the first ingredient listed says something about whole grains (note: an ingredient’s list is always listed from the most abundant ingredient to the least abundant ingredient).

The Bottom Line

Always check the nutritional label and ingredient’s list.  Marketers can’t try to deceive you here – they’re required by law to post this information and that is well regulated.

Simple Substitution #5: Almonds

Almonds are loaded in healthy omega-3 fats that will keep you full for hours.  It also packs a good dose of protein and Vitamin E, which is essential for protein absorption.  I especially like to take my protein shake with almond milk, which has nearly your entire daily value's worth of Vitamin E in just one serving, to make sure my muscles absorb as much as possible and for a thicker texture than water (discover if a protein supplement is right for you).  Carry around a package of almonds with you wherever you go for a natural snack full of nutritional benefits.