Getting started: the essentials

Getting started with a workout program for the first time can be physically and mentally overwhelming. The body and the mind have to adapt fast to many changes, and one way to make through it is the awareness of a very few, simple things I wish I knew before I started.

Here below I listed my top 7!

1. Get some good sport clothes. It might sound basic, but you’ll soon realise how important it is to workout with good fitting, quality clothes. You can’t focus on your workout if you’re worried for your leggings being see-through, having to pull your pants up and your shirt down all the time, or your shoes don’t fit. Quality sport clothes are expensive but the benefits are much higher, and long term.
2. Try many different activities. Doesn’t matter what, as long as you keep moving, am I right? You will develop and maintain a healthier lifestyle if you commit long term to healthy eating and exercises, and to do so, it’s fundamental to find an activity you genuinely enjoy. I, for one, I love weightlifting, as well as Crossfit, volleyball, and calisthenics. Try many different things, don’t stop at the first lesson, and you’ll make your workouts much less painful.
3. Don’t read too much stuff online. The internet is a never ending source of information, where everyone can have their word. The amount of information available on workout, diets, etc etc is so massive that you will only get confused. If you genuinely want to know more, try to understand whether the source is reliable (ex. a trained professional, a doctor), and read opposite arguments as well.
4. Where possible, hire a professional. I spent three years trying to figure out the best workout approach for me, and nothing ever worked because I knew I wasn’t following a path. Things changed when I hired a professional to create a custom training program for me; nine weeks in, I can already see good results. A professional cost money, true, but your time and health are the most valuable things you can always have.
5. Wireless earphones and Spotify premium. A total game changer!
6. A yoga mat. Great for morning stretch, working out at home if you don’t feel like going to the gym, cheap and can be stored anywhere.
7. My n.1 mental health rule: focus on progress, not on perfection. You will always be tempted to compare yourself to others, while you should only compare yourself with your self before starting.

All of these require investment, I’m aware; but if you don’t pay now be sure you’ll pay later, in therapy, medicine, and fixing all those little pains that could go away with a healthier lifestyle.

And you? What do you wish you knew before starting?