A word on continuing physical education.

Most of us have been to school before. From the very beginning, we’ve learned basic skills like reading, writing, basic math, and even typing. Somewhere in your schooling, you likely had a PE class, standing for, of course, Physical Education.

Like the rest of the subjects we have in school, you can get far advanced in physical education. Like the rest of the subjects, you can find a career that relates directly to physical education. If you became an engineer or a writer or a pilot, does that mean you left physical education in high school?

I hope not.

Having a sufficient knowledge about your body and how to exercise, maintain your strength, and get stronger can pay you dividends throughout your life. But most people don’t take the time to learn about the gym, or fitness in general, and get stuck because they don’t see the progress or change they want to see.

The first (and biased) answer I give to this dilemma is to work with a trainer. Trainers, like the amazing training staff at the JCC, know how to help you reach your goals and can take away almost all the guess work for you, making sure you get what you’re after in the gym. They can educate you on best practices for your future routines and goals.

The second (and unbiased) answer is that working with a trainer might not be for you. Whether it is time, money, or fear, there are other solutions on learning what must be done to lose the weight or gain back the mobility without working with a trainer. YouTube and other sites are free and have a wealth of information on exercise. Your library probably has a book or two on resistance training that you could use to steer yourself in the right direction.  Even if you don’t want to pay for a trainer, asking a worker in the gym or even a friendly looking gym-goer who looks like they know what they’re doing can go a long way to help you learn more.

The JCC even has free workshops each quarter, where one of the professional trainers teaches about health and fitness concepts.

The one thing a trainer, YouTube, and even your jacked buddy at the community gym can’t do for you is the work. If you want to change, but don’t know where to go, seek the knowledge that’s already out there, and try applying it for yourself. Knowledge is power, and the more you know, especially in the gym, the faster you will grow.