Master the Gym

Hit the gym for more focused and varied workouts that will leave you feeling physically and mentally strong

To really advance your strength training, going to a gym is a must. Partly because gym equipment is expensive, and once you start becoming stronger and fitter you’ll need more equipment at your disposal, as well as access a wider range of weights.

You’ll see in this feature we’re predominantly looking at conditioning equipment that provides more cardio‑focused workouts to complement your weight‑focused strength training. Not many of us will have the space or money to equip our homes with state‑of‑the‑art gym equipment, so finding a gym that you like is really the only option. If you are able to try a few gyms before making a commitment, then we’d recommend doing so. If you don’t like a gym, you probably won’t go. Plus, there are so  many different kinds of gym now, you are bound to find one that suits you.

Considering many of us have been working out at home during lockdown, going to a gym makes so much difference in comparison. Not just for your fitness levels, but also mental health and overall motivation. Having access to advice and encouragement as well as just chatting to other like‑minded gymgoers makes yourfitness journey so much more positive.

ROWING MACHINE

Your moves should always be: legs, arms, arms, legs.

An often‑overlooked piece of equipment, a rowing machine is actually more beneficial than you might think. Using a rowing machine will work around 86% of your muscles, giving you a full‑body workout. This means that it will help your endurance while strengthening and toning your muscles, making it a great piece of equipment to mix in with your strength‑focused routine. If you are using the rowing machine correctly, you’ll be predominantly working your pecs, upper back, arms, abdominal muscles and obliques, but also quadriceps, calves and glutes. Because the rowing machine is low‑impact, it is suitable for gymgoers of all levels, and is a really good alternative to running or using an elliptical machine. The rowing machine can give you a high‑intensity workout without putting stress on your joints in the same way that running might, and you can easily control your pace and the resistance can be adjusted to suit your ability.

1. Set the resistance to what you would like it to be. Then, make sure the feet pads are adjusted to suit you and you fasten the strap around the middle of your foot.

2. Now lean forward and pull the handle towards yourself. It is important to be aware that bad form can lead to injury or strain. Avoid rounding your shoulders. If you feel lower back pain then it is likely that you are not engaging your ab muscles.

3. Start with your arms extended in front of you, knees bent. With your back straight and core engaged, push back with your legs, then lean back keeping your abs engaged and pull the handle towards your body.

4. Make sure you extend your legs before you pull the handle towards your middle. And ensure you are using your upper back and not your arms. Now extend your arms back towards the base and bend your knees into the starting position.

We’d recommend that you keep things fresh and use a rowing machine in a variety of ways. Just rowing for 10, 15 or 20 minutes is great, but to stop you from getting bored consider incorporating it into your HIIT workouts, or just as part of your warm-up routine. 

ROWER WARM-UP

✢ 100M ROW

✢ 25 JUMPING JACKS

✢ 200M ROW

✢ 30 BODY-WEIGHT SQUATS

✢ 30 JUMPING JACKS

Your heart rate should be up by now, and your body will be warm and ready for the main part of your strength workout.

INTERVAL ON A ROWER

Get your heart really pumping with this interval workout. Here we’ll focus on three rowing paces: Base – something you could probably do for 20 minutes without stopping, Push – something you could do for three minutes without stopping, and Sprint – something you could do for 30 seconds or one minute without stopping.

✢ 1 MINUTE AT BASE

✢ 1 MINUTE AT PUSH

✢ 1 MINUTE AT BASE

✢ 30-SECOND SPRINT

✢ 1 MINUTE RECOVERY

✢ 1 MINUTE AT BASE

✢ 2 MINUTE PUSH

✢ 90-SECOND BASE

✢ 1 MINUTE SPRINT

✢ 1 MINUTE RECOVERY

✢ 1 MINUTE BASE

✢ 1 MINUTE PUSH

✢ 1 MINUTE BASE

✢ 1 MINUTE SPRINT

ASSAULT BIKE

Don’t underestimate how tough this bit of kit is, and don’t feel down if you can’t keep up pace for long. It will come with practice.

This piece of gym equipment is essentially a super‑charged exercise bike, and when used right will make even the most avid of fitness fanatics break into a heavy sweat very quickly. Unlike the traditional exercise bike, the assault bike adds in an upper body element to really help you step up your workout. The handlebars move forward and backwards independently to each other like they would on an elliptical machine as your feet pedal normally. You can also change the resistance to suit your needs. Like the rowing machine, the assault bike is a low‑impact exercise machine, so it is ideal if your ankles or knees aren’t up to running long distances, or as rehabilitation after an injury. The Assault AirBike is also great for metabolic conditioning and increasing your aerobic capacity without losing strength. 

1.Adjust the seat height and overall positioning so that you can comfortably reach both the pedals with a slight bend in your knee and the handlebars.

2. Now adjust the resistance to suit your ability. If it’s your first time on the bike then start low, as you can always increase it if it’s too easy.

3. Now it’s time to get to work! Start pedalling and moving the handlebars at the same time. Once you are comfortable, pick up the pace and hit it hard!

Similar to the rowing machine, there isn’t really a rule on when to tackle the assault bike. An intense session once a week between strength workouts will probably be enough. Try to increase the resistance as you build endurance  and increase the length of time you go on it, too – as with any exercise, don’t aim for too much too soon as you won’t achieve it and are more likely to give up. Set realistic goals and, most importantly, don’t underestimate how tough the assault bike can really be.

To start building aerobic capability, try 30 seconds on as fast as you can, then 30 seconds rest, 10 times. It might not seem like much, but believe us when we say that 30 seconds on will feel like 60 or more!

SKIERG

Don’t hold your arms in the top position for long as you’ll lose the resistance of the flywheel and lose rhythm

Another amazing piece of equipment to add to your strength training routine is the SkiErg, as it will work your full body. It will help you to build strength and endurance by working the body in a rhythmic motion. Like the rower and assault bike, the SkiErg is also another low‑impact exercise that you can adapt to your own abilities and has the potential to give you a high‑calorie‑burning workout. You can adjust the resistance on the machine, and also the harder you pull, the more resistance you’ll feel, too. It predominantly works your upper body – you’ll feel it on your lats, abs, arms, back and shoulders all at the same time. You will need to somewhat engage your lower half too, but it won’t give you that ‘leg day’ burn.

1. Stand in front of the machine with your legs shoulder‑width apart, and now grab hold of the handles so your arms are above your head with elbows slightly bent.

2. Pull the handles down in front of you, bend your knees and push your hips back as if you were cross‑country skiing.

3. Pull your arms right down until your hands are right by your thighs and arms parallel with your torso.

4. Now, reverse the movement so your arms are back to the starting position and you are on your tiptoes. Immediately pull back down on the cables and repeat.

Once again, there’s no hard and fast

rule as to when you should do this exercise, just try to mix it in somewhere to complement your strength training. You’re heart rate will go up after just a few seconds of using the SkiErg, so build up the length of time you use it for. Try setting yourself a target and time it, then work towards beating that time. Start with seeing how fast you can do 500m, once your time has started to improve, move the target to 1000m then 2000m. Or simply add short blasts of the SkiErg into your interval workouts.

Try the workout on the right…

✢ 10 SQUAT JUMPS

✢ 10 BURPEES

✢ 10 MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS (EACH LEG)

✢ 20 JUMPING JACKS

✢ 2 MINUTES FLAT OUT ON THE SKIERG

✢ REPEAT THIS CIRCUIT 4 TIMES.

CABLE MACHINE

Start with lower weights until you have mastered the moves.

This is a great piece of kit, but on first glance can look intimidating – especially when there’s a huddle of ‘gym bros’ watching one another use it. The cable machine provides resistance in order to work the muscle you choose depending on the movement you do. The great thing is that it can be totally adjusted to suit your abilities. The cables are attached to weights and the whole thing works as a sort of pulley system. There are usually a wide range of attachments that will complement different moves and you can pull in any direction you want. You can be creative with the moves you do on this machine, but great ones to start with include tricep pull‑downs, standing cable rows, bicep curls and standing chest presses.

1. To do a standing cable row, attach the rowing attachment to one of the cables (it will have two rigid handles).

2. Now set the weight you’d like to pull. Remember, as always, it’s safer to start lower than you think until you know you have mastered the move.

3. Take hold of the attachment while facing the machine and take a few steps back. Keep a slight bend in the knees.

4. Keep your arms right out in front of you and step back until the weight unracks and then pull the weight using your arms towards the centre of your chest. Your shoulder blades should be retracted during the motion.

You can do a whole range of different moves with the cable machine, so you are probably best to choose four or five different moves and then do three sets of 10 per exercise.

UPPER BODY WORKOUT

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 STANDING SINGLE ARM CABLE ROW

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 TRICEP ROPE PUSH DOWN

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 BICEP CURL

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 LATERAL RAISE

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 CABLE CRUNCH

FULL-BODY WORKOUT

✢ REST 30 SECONDS BETWEEN SETS

✢ 3 SETS OF 15 CABLE SPLIT SQUAT

✢ 3 SETS OF 15 CABLE PULL-THROUGH

✢ 3 SETS OF 15 SEATED ROW

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 STANDING SINGLE ARM CABLE ROW

✢ 3 SETS OF 10 STANDING

CABLE CRUNCH ADVANCED

✢ 4 SETS OF 10-15 PALLOF PRESS

✢ 4 SETS OF 10-15 FACE PULL

✢ 4 SETS OF 10 STANDING CABLE SQUAT ROW

✢ 4 SETS OF 10 STANDING CABLE STEP UP

✢ 4 SETS OF 10 PLANK WITH SINGLE-ARM CABLE ROW

HOW TO BEAT GYM ANXIETY

Gyms can seem like scary places, but we promise they are not! Here’s our tips to get you through the door…

If you’re feeling really anxious about going to the gym, it’s often mainly the fear of the unknown. Before you sign up for a membership, ask if you can be shown around the gym. We can’t think of a gym that wouldn’t do that for a prospective new member ‑ and if even that initial meeting still fills you with dread, ask a mate to go with you, even if they aren’t going to sign up. Most gyms do also enforce an induction for your first session, so make sure to book one and actually go. While you are on the induction, ask as many questions as you need. Ask what all the machines do and if you can try them in front of the trainer.

So, now you’ve had a tour of your new gym and been formally inducted you should be feeling pretty good about smashing your first workout, right? If you’re not, don’t worry as this is totally normal. We’ve all felt the dread of doing something new and it’s often worse if it’s a solo pursuit. Before you go, make a plan of what you will do once you are there. Is it leg day? Or are you going to focus on upper body or just do a bit of cardio? Making a plan will help to give you direction and purpose for when you get there and make you less likely to panic your way off-course. Don’t forget, also, many gyms will happily help you to create a plan within the services that they offer, so if you do want extra guidance (or even a personal trainer), ask at your induction.

Finally, remember that it is likely that everyone in the gym has something that they are self‑conscious about. Plus everyone has been the gym newbie at some stage. Most importantly, we’re sorry to say, nobody is watching you. Everyone is there for a reason and that reason is not to watch you. You do all share one thing, however, you are all there for some form of self‑improvement and that is such a beautiful thing. A room full of people just trying to be a little bit better. Embrace that and enjoy the experience

GYM ETIQUETTE

Fill your gym bag with a few essentials Make sure you don’t get on the wrong side of trainers and other gymgoers with these dos and don’ts

DO 

1. Ask for help if you need it. There’s nothing more frustrating for trainers at the gym than watching people using equipment incorrectly. You might hurt yourself and you probably won’t actually be getting the benefits you think.

2. Clean equipment after you use it. Even before a Covid world, it was best practice to wipe down equipment after you use it. There’s nothing worse than sitting down on a sweaty seat

3. Put equipment away. You might be doing a series of moves and require multiple pieces of equipment, but if you aren’t using something, wipe it and put it back.

4. Stay off your phone. Try to limit your distractions wherever it is possible. You won’t be totally focused on your workout if you are busy checking messages and notifications.

DON'T

1. Drop weights. Dropping weights can damage equipment and if they are free-weights, you’ll have no control of where they’ll fall when you do send them clattering to the floor. Broken toes and bruised shins are not desirable.

2. Hog a machine. If you’re visiting a gym at peak hours, limit yourself to 15 minutes on a machine as there might be people waiting to use it. You can always go back to it later.

3. Stare at people. Even if you aren’t selfconscious, other people in the gym might be. By all means chat to people if they want to engage but don’t gawp at people as you might put them off.

4. Walk behind someone wielding a heavy weight. You should give most people a wide berth, but if you breeze past someone squatting with a heavy barbell, they could hurt you or themselves.

WHAT TO BRING

Fill your gym bag with a few essentials

Water bottle

Most gyms have water dispensers, but you’ll need to take your own bottle to fill up. It is so important to have a drink before a workout, and also to stay hydrated throughout. You’ll have much more energy and your muscles will probably recover better.

Towel

We’d like to hope you’ll be getting nice and sweaty while you are at the gym, so a towel is a good idea to wipe your dripping face. They are also handy to wipe your hands on if they are sweaty when you are trying to lift weights to help with grip.

Smart watch

Track the calories that you are burning and also keep your eye on your heart rate when you work out. You only have one heart, so take care of it, and remember to ask your doctor for advice before upping your workouts and cardio – especially if you have a history of heart conditions.

Earphones

Sometimes the music in the gym is banging and you won’t want to listen to your own music, but for times when you need full focus on your workouts, having your own headphones to hand is a great idea. Or for when you don’t need to hear Karen and Janice’s work drama over on the static bikes.

Notebook and pen

This might feel like a strange one, but if you are taking your weight training seriously, then having the ability to record the weight and reps you are lifting is important. You can also just use it to write down your workout plan for the day to keep you on track.