Fitness Tips for Introverts
By Sara Butler
Some people love the gym because it's their happy place. But what if your happy place is at home, alone, where you don't have to talk to strange people? For introverts, the idea of joining a gym or a group fitness class may strike terror in their hearts. Shyness and social anxiety do not make a fun gym experience. So, what should you do if you're an introvert who needs a workout routine? Here are some tips to help.
Grow Into It
No one says that you have to dive right in on your first day at the gym and try all the things. It's important to stay in your comfort zone at first, opting for a machine or exercise that is familiar to you and then slowly expanding from there. Once you've gotten used to your surroundings, then you can challenge yourself to try things that take you a little outside of your comfort zone.
The Spotlight
Introverts usually don't want to exercise in public because they feel as if people will be watching them. You can work to overcome this by remembering that it's a human's natural response to assume that everyone is watching them, but in reality, that's not what is happening at all. In your mind, you're very focused on yourself and what you're doing, so you see the world through that perspective. Chances are, everyone around you is focused on their own workout, not what you're doing.
Go for Short Workouts
Introverts can become exhausted by being out and about in public for long periods of time, which is why you should focus on high-impact, short workouts at the gym.
Go for a high-intensity 30-minute workout that can let you focus on one type of exercise, then leave. You will have gotten your daily exercise in without pushing yourself too far out of your introverted comfort zone to be in public.
Go Off Peak
This one is simple: Don't go to the gym when it's the busiest time of the day. The less crowded gym is, the more comfortable an introvert is likely to be. Peak hours tend to be the two to three hours before and after the workday.
If you do end up at the gym when it's busy, try to go for a machine at the end of the row so you're not surrounded on all sides by people. This way you can avoid small talk and carve out your own little comfort zone.
Introverts don't have to avoid the gym, they simply have to know how to make it work best for their health and fitness goals!
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Fort Mill, S.C.