Why I Started Working Out

I've had a few people ask me about what I get up to in the gym and seeing as it's such a big part of my life I thought it was about time I wrote a blog post about it.

I actually started going to the gym in 2015 - and not for your usual reasons. In 2015 I discovered a lump on my boob which was relatively concerning, after an MRI scan and a few check-ups later we were told I have something called a 'pectus deformity' (an extra rib cartilage) and mild scoliosis (slightly curved spine). - Sorry, Emily you’re forgetting this is a blog post and not an insight to your medical history. Anyway, I was advised to workout - particularly focusing on exercises to help build muscle in my chest. This was great news for me at the time as I'd been searching for an excuse to get a gym membership for a while but didn't have the money to afford one (thanks abnormalities for getting me a gym membership paid for by the 'rents). I turned up to our local gym and was shown a few exercises and machines that focussed on training chest but other than that had no idea what I was doing. In fact, I carried on not really knowing what I was doing in the gym for the next 2 years. My routine consisted of running for ten minutes on the treadmill followed by either an ab circuit following an app or a few reps on the leg press...

In September 2017 I started university. I went in with the mindset that I'd go to the gym once or twice a week, as it was always something I had enjoyed. However, I ended up buying a pay as you go membership which meant I didn't go very often...or at all. In fact, I think I probably went twice throughout the whole of September to December and wasn't very active at all. I was drinking alcohol at least twice a week and eating awfully - a lot more than I needed to as well, especially for my level of activity at the time. It came to the Christmas holidays, the first time I'd properly been home since starting uni and a few comments were made about my weight gain. It actually wasn't so much this that pushed me to start the gym again in January, but more so the fact I didn't feel like myself in the university lifestyle I had created for myself.

January 2018 I bought a gym guide which not only got me back into the gym but also pushed me to start resistance training. The guide asked me to do a number of things I'd never done before, such as barbell squats and pull ups, it used a mixture of body weight exercises, heavy weight exercises and cardio. I've always felt quite strong-willed and didn't give two thoughts about how I'd look to other people as I attempted these new exercises (something I'm aware is quite common in holding people back from trying resistance training). What was more concerning to me was whether I'd be able to actually lift even the lightest of weights. I'm 5ft tall and have always been rather diddy; I've been called weak before - which makes knowing what I can lift now all the more exciting.

Despite saying I'm quite strong-willed (whoops), I didn't actually stick to this guide, I'd say I followed it for a good two months until I decided to switch it up and stop using it. I learnt a lot from it however and I owe it to that guide for challenging me to actually pick up some weights in the gym. I found that that guide in particular didn't suit what I enjoyed doing - the number one priority when it comes to exercise: enjoyment - otherwise you won't stay consistent with it.

April 2018 I returned home for a month, during this month I re-joined my local gym and just experimented around with the equipment. I taught myself how to use the Smith-Machine and started incorporating HIIT (high intensity interval training) at the end of my sessions (for me this was 10 minutes of sprinting on 30 second intervals). After this month at home I started to move around a bit, making it difficult to stay consistent in my working out. I was back in Falmouth for a few weeks and then shortly after went off to Italy for a few days. It wasn't until I returned from Italy and started back up at my local gym that my love for resistance training properly took over.

In late July one evening I spontaneously bought an 8-weekworkout guide by Krissy Cela. I had no idea what to expect and not a lot of reasoning behind buying the guide in the first place, I just wanted to challenge myself in the gym and get more of an understanding as to what I was doing there. Her guide follows a set workout split consisting of 5 workout days a week, 2 upper body, 2 lower body and a cardio based circuit day. Each day focusses on a different muscle group with exercises specific to targeting those muscles. I learnt a great deal through this guide: how to use certain equipment, how to train specific parts of my body, how to build muscle but most importantly (and prepare for cringe) I learnt a lot about myself. On a daily basis I challenged myself to do new things, lift heavier weights and to actually listen to what my body needs. Throughout the 8 weeks I saw incredible changes in my physique and I've never felt stronger (literally) coming out of it. But what struck me the most was how it wasn't my physique as such that I cared about, it was how my mentality had changed across those 8 weeks. I came out of the guide feeling incredibly empowered, more confident and actually a lot more knowledgeable in myself. If you're looking to start resistance training but don't know how exactly, I can’t recommend that gym guide enough as it's got me to a level at which I now do my own thing in the gym.

Which brings me on to where I'm at now:I actually only finished the guide in early November last year due to taking a few breaks for holidays and settling back into university. However, I've since stayed consistent in the gym and still absolutely love resistance training.

I think I was quite lucky in that when I first searched for an exercise to start up, I ended up finding one I really enjoyed, something I know some people find hard to do and it might take more than one go at. For me, I enjoy resistance training because it allows you to set multiple goals and challenges you in different ways with every session. Building muscle is something that gives me great empowerment and I find it really exciting to see how I can sculpt my body (it also means I need to eat more food in order to fuel my body - a win-winright?). Currently I don't have a set workout split, last university term I stuck to quite a rigid 5-day workout routine with only two rest days a week. This term I'm training for sustainability and enjoyment, I aim to go to the gym the 4 days of the week that I am on campus, however if I don't feel up to training I won't, or if I feel particularly in the mood to train on one of the three days I'm not on campus, I will. I’ve actually recently this term, started taking ‘bodypump’ classes on a Tuesday which are completely new to me, they use light weight resistance training for long periods of time (something I usually do the opposite to). I’ve decided to stick to these classes because they switch up how I train for one day of the week and they push me to not take quite so many breaks (whoops). It’s all about how I'm feeling this term, I find a lot of the time you go through phases with motivation in the gym but this is why I love my kind of training because it is so flexible and interchangeable, you can set different goals daily and it’s always so rewarding and enjoyable no matter how small the goal.

Finally, one thing I'd like to add is how important nutrition is, you won't see results if you don't teach yourself the basics of nutrition - something that I can go into more detail with another day as there's a lot to be said about that too (but deffo not a nutrition expert). During the past year I cut down almost completely on my alcohol intake and I make all my meals from scratch, mostly due to enjoyment but I will go into more detail about that another time.

Anyhow that's a little bit about my gym story, how I got into it and where I am at now. If people want me to go into more detail about what I get up to (exercise specific) then let me know. I also have an instagram (@potatoemilywaffles) which I dedicate (let's be real) mostly to porridge (lol) but also with a few shameless high endorphin-ed gym selfies thrown in there too.

Hope this post has been interesting, there might not be a blog post next weekend as my parents are coming down to Falmouth for my Dad's Birthday (yay) but if I have time to write something in the week then I will!

Thanks for reading, I really appreciate it, in the meantime here are some gym appreciation pictures.

Emily x