After you join a gym, you may be offered a new member orientation. You might be tempted to skip it, but don't...you can learn some valuable information, even if you're a veteran exerciser.
In this scheduled appointment, a personal trainer or expert will give you a tour of the club and give you the basics of how things work. Other things that may be included:
- A health assessment
- Body fat analysis
- Instructions on how to use basic strength training machines
- Help in choosing exercises, reps and sets
- How to use different cardio machines
- Heart rate and intensity information
- General workout guidance
These sessions aren't personal training sessions, so you won't necessarily get a full workout created for you. But, this is a great way to learn the basics of how things work. Too often, new members skip the orientation either because they already know what they're doing or because they want to avoid a sales pitch for personal training (and a sales pitch is always a possibility, since that's how trainers get their clients). But, even if you already exercise, an orientation will show you where things are, how to adjust the machines and it will also give you a familiar face at the gym. It's nice to have someone you can go to for help if you need it.
