Personally, I am a big fan of gym workouts over home workouts.

This is for a variety of reasons, but I want to start by saying that doesn’t mean you can’t get results by working out from home.

I also truly believe it depends on your availability of home workout equipment. If you basically have a full home gym, you should be totally fine.

If you have just a few dumbbells and bands… I think your potential is going to be limited a lot.

Variety of equipment

This is the main reason that I think having a gym membership is much better than a home gym.

Every 4-8 weeks, you should be switching up your routine/exercises. It’s pretty hard to come up with new exercises/variations of an exercise when you only have a limited amount of equipment available.

I am also personally a big fan of machines. They provide stability and allow you to lift heavier.

In my opinion, it is best to incorporate machines, DB’s, barbells, bands and cables into your routines for the best results possible.

Each piece of equipment will help you target parts of the muscle differently, even if it is the same exercise.

Motivation and environment

Sometimes working out with people around helps to inspire us and motivate us to do better, lift heavier, or work harder.

Being in an environment where everybody is busting their butts can uplift your energy and make you want to work harder.

Let’s call it.. peer pressure but in a good way!

You may also find a gym crush which will motivate you to keep going back and work harder in the gym.

Can’t be slacking when gym bae is around.

Even if you are in a relationship, you can still have a gym bae OR MAYBE YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER GOES WITH YOU AND IS GYM BAE.

No action is to be taken OF COURSE if it isn’t your significant other but you can still look. That is ALL.

You may also find some friends at the gym, or people you enjoy “shooting the shit” with there.

Even if you are a home body like me, it is good to go out into the world and get a little social interaction here and there.

Networking at the gym has helped me some in my career and can potentially help you as well even if you aren’t a trainer.

People need all sorts of services.

Help from other members

If you are struggling with an exercise, you can ask someone for help whether its another member of the gym or a trainer there.

You can also ask for a spot when lifting heavy weight which is something you may not be able to do from home if nobody is home (or capable).

You may pick up a gym friend that you can learn from (for free) instead of hiring a trainer ($$).

So don’t afraid to chat it up briefly with other gym members.

Piggyback off of last week

If you keep up with my blog posts and podcast episodes, you’ll know that last week I did a post on “5 reasons to hire a personal trainer how to pick the right one for you”.

Now, this may be contradictory to the statement I just made, which was you can learn from a friend or other gym members for free.

I do think both are great options but you need to make sure your friend actually knows what they are doing.

Your friend likely won’t give you the same nutrition support and accountability as your trainer will but of course it is a much more price friendly option.

I find a lot of times when people come to me, they are specifically shopping for a trainer based on price alone, which to be fair, is a HORRIBLE mistake.

Generally speaking, the less you pay for a trainer, the less they are going to care about you and your results.

Not to mention, the less you pay, probably the less accountability, support, and educational materials, etc. you’re going to recieve from your trainer.

This is usually true of all online training programs. Some people will offer you really cheap programs if they are just getting started with getting clients, simply because they haven’t had many clients so you may get lucky in that aspect. You also have to bargain with the fact that they are new and they don’t have testimonials and you may not really know that they can get you the results you want.

In person training is really the only time where it’s MORE expensive than online training and you get less of EVERYTHING but some people need that in person guidance so it makes sense to go with an in person trainer if you need that.

I am pretty biased since I am an online only trainer haha, but all I am saying is that before you shop for a trainer based on price alone, find out what they are offering you and if it is truly worth skimping out on price just to have a trainer for the sake of having a trainer.

You don’t just need a trainer, you need a GOOD trainer that is going to help you.

You will be better off paying a little more for a trainer who is going to put the energy into you to get you the results you want.

Some trainers will charge you through the roof and still not care about you and your results so I would honestly vet your trainer. Question them. Make sure they are really going to be a good fit for you and that you’re not just another paycheck to them.

This is as much about you figuring out what you need in a trainer as it is them figuring out what they need in a client in order to have a successful partnership.

So again, if you are thinking about hiring a trainer…

Make sure to come back to this post and the post I made last week so that you can find the right trainer for you.

*Insert self promo*

I do still have some availability in my 1:1 coaching program, so if you would like to work with me or “vet” me, apply here.

Until next time,

Coach Emily