Ladies gym
- Thread starter AzndawL
- Start date
I live in the metro area. I was a member at LifeTime Fitness for a couple years. I currently do not have a gym memebership. I am now deciding where to go. I've never been a memeber of an all girls gym. I think the main difference in a lot of them is the machines. some of them only have the hydrolic ones. Which personally I don't like. If I come across any in my search I will let you know. 
I've never belonged to an all-women's gym. The only ones that I know about in my area are Curves.
My one friend joined Curves and she hated it because there were no men. She absolutely needed the interplay with men to keep her motivation going and nothing else quite cut it for her. So she joined a franchise type of co-ed gym, where she'd get revved about going on nights when particular guys were there. The male-female interaction, to her, served as motivation and got her to the gym more frequently. Without it, she found herself not going as often. She's stuck with it, using that as motivation, for a couple of years now.
My one friend joined Curves and she hated it because there were no men. She absolutely needed the interplay with men to keep her motivation going and nothing else quite cut it for her. So she joined a franchise type of co-ed gym, where she'd get revved about going on nights when particular guys were there. The male-female interaction, to her, served as motivation and got her to the gym more frequently. Without it, she found herself not going as often. She's stuck with it, using that as motivation, for a couple of years now.
^^^My neighborhood has a studio for yoga and pilates and it's very, terribly trendy and attracts mostly women. I think the place is likely fairly expensive--judging by the way the people dress for the classes (earthy-looking clothes and sandals that coordinate with roll-up mats and mat covers--stuff like that).
Anyway, I think it can be intimidating for some women to step into a full-blown, co-ed gym. A woman that I work with had never been to a gym before she was 50 or 55. She was overweight and wanted to start exercising. Just walking wasn't cutting it for her, so she started with Curves because she was self-conscious about the way she looked in sweats and because she didn't know how to use any of the machines in the more upscale gym in her neighborhood. At Curves, she was surrounded by other women who were in similar situations and it made her feel comfortable. It got her into exercising very gradually and after about a year, she 'outgrew' it and joined a regular gym, where she's happy. She wouldn't have been able to have done that without using Curves as a stepping stone.
Anyway, I think it can be intimidating for some women to step into a full-blown, co-ed gym. A woman that I work with had never been to a gym before she was 50 or 55. She was overweight and wanted to start exercising. Just walking wasn't cutting it for her, so she started with Curves because she was self-conscious about the way she looked in sweats and because she didn't know how to use any of the machines in the more upscale gym in her neighborhood. At Curves, she was surrounded by other women who were in similar situations and it made her feel comfortable. It got her into exercising very gradually and after about a year, she 'outgrew' it and joined a regular gym, where she's happy. She wouldn't have been able to have done that without using Curves as a stepping stone.
I guess it takes people a lot to realize that their weaknesses are completely self-preceived. A lot of wasted time, energy, and money, that is.
Some of it is, no doubt, but some of it is imposed by peers--maybe early in life, maybe later on. Either way, it can be hard to shake that if you don't know how to. Like you said, it'll eat a lot of you up if you don't do something to get past it and it'll just keep coming back over/over to knock you down and it'll hold you back in all kinds of ways.
I think it's hard to find the right balance--hard to find a way to get past it without overcompensating and converting it to other things--like self-righteousness/indignation or anger, bitterness, jealousy.
I would say start with Curves if you are a bit nervous or afraid you will be intimidated by the whole gym scene.
I belong to Gold's and love it because they have so many locations and bunches of cardio and weight machines, freeweights, bosu balls, mat areas - pretty much cover any type of exercising you want to do. Most locations have a "women's only" room (but you'll have to steal weights heavier than 20lbs from the free weight area then return them when you are done), and lot's of classes from pilates to body pump (which tend to be mostly gals) to spin (very co-ed).
I have been going to the gym for years and have had guys (albeit not often) try to "muscle in" on my weights or my "space." I can see how a gal who is not entirely certain of herself would just relent or want to avoid the situation.
However, contrary to the picture of a bunch of roided no-neck Schwatzneger types, most of the guys at the gym are great and they are there for the same reason I am.
I belong to Gold's and love it because they have so many locations and bunches of cardio and weight machines, freeweights, bosu balls, mat areas - pretty much cover any type of exercising you want to do. Most locations have a "women's only" room (but you'll have to steal weights heavier than 20lbs from the free weight area then return them when you are done), and lot's of classes from pilates to body pump (which tend to be mostly gals) to spin (very co-ed).
I have been going to the gym for years and have had guys (albeit not often) try to "muscle in" on my weights or my "space." I can see how a gal who is not entirely certain of herself would just relent or want to avoid the situation.
However, contrary to the picture of a bunch of roided no-neck Schwatzneger types, most of the guys at the gym are great and they are there for the same reason I am.