Starting a fitness program involves a 'reality check'

Morning North7:11Wellness column - getting started at the gym

We're kicking off a new wellness column on Morning North. Our first installment looks at what you should know before you start up at the gym. The CBC's Jan Lakes met up with Brian Woods a wellness coach and trainer YMCA Sudbury to get some advice.

The New Years resolutions start to wear off and reality starts to kick-in, but for many, the determination is still there.

YMCA trainer and wellness coach Brian Woods says you have to get real about yourself first, something the trainers do with new recruits when they enter the door.

"Most people come in with pre-conceptions, based on what they've read in a magazine, what their friends are telling them," he said.

"Give yourself an honest evaluation, clarify your goals and intentions, then come in."

Woods said he hates to hear about someone going too far. He said young men tend to want to build their upper body strength before their core and lower body areas are ready.

"I've seen a gentleman — who was told specifically not to do bench flys over a certain weight — completely destroy his shoulder when lost control of a very heavy dumbell," he said.

Sometimes, said Woods, he has to dispel some myths and be a wet blanket.

"I like to give people a little grounding on what they can expect to do, which is typically no more than a pound or two a week for instance in weight loss," he said.

That first month or so is very difficult for most people said Woods.

But he said good results will still come "with a realistic approach, based on the amount of time they actually have available and the reasonable expectations of what they can achieve."