Activ8 Advice: Getting Back to the Gym

By PCYC Dalby Fitness Professional, Sally Mauch – with thanks to our PCYC Dalby partner, Arrow Energy.  

We are nearly there – nearly ready to return to the gym. There are so many questions that will be circling in your mind. How am I going to go? Will I be able to lift as heavy? Will I be able to row as quick as what I did before the gym closed?

There are so many things to consider before you do that first bench press!

Will you be able to lift as heavy? The simple answer to this is no. While you’ve had to have this forced time away from the gym, you will have lost some muscle mass. But don’t despair, the news is not all bad. While you may have lost some strength, we are blessed in the fact that our muscles have memories, more correctly called muscle memory. So, this will lead to being able to regain your strength quicker than you anticipate.

While you might regain your strength quicker than you expect, you also need to remember to be patient yourself. It will take time to get back to where you want to be. You don’t want to push yourself too hard, too quickly or you will be opening yourself up to injuries. And give yourself time. Don’t rush back into doing everything you were doing before you stopped. You probably won’t be able to get through as many reps and sets that you previously did. But that’s ok! Be realistic about what is achievable!

One last thing to remember is if you haven’t been training for a while and haven’t been consistently doing workouts at home – on your return to the gym you will be sore. It’s a natural thing to expect. But if you have a good warm up (between 7-10 minutes in length) and a proper cool down, this will help you with your muscle soreness and speed up your recovery time. And don’t be afraid to get on that roller! Remember that it is your friend and not your enemy.

If you have any questions or concerns, make sure you ask your trainers for help and guidance. We are here to help you and guide your fitness goals and we can’t wait to welcome you back!

 

PCYC Dalby is proud to have had the support of Arrow Energy for almost a decade. Arrow Energy continues to be a proud supporter of PCYC Dalby through the Braking The Cycle Program, Ignition Program and Activ8 in 2020.