You can increase your fitness in many different ways. You can go to a gym and do some classic strength training to increase your muscle strength, but you can also train by bouldering or swimming. Find something that you enjoy because this will motivate you to stick with it.

Here’s a selection of sports that you can try out:

Find a studio or gym where you feel comfortable

When you start exercising, you’ll be going to the gym regularly. The atmosphere must be right. Get to know the staff, the community, and the coaches. At most gyms, you can arrange a trial session, so you can check it out and get a feel for it without committing to anything.

Why the gym should be nearby

If you exercise several times a week, long routes are not ideal. You exercise in your free time – the only effort should be the exercise itself. So it’s best to find a gym near  your home or place of work. There are plenty of gyms around, and you’ll certainly be able to find one where you feel comfortable.

2. Come up with a suitable training plan

Start with whole-body exercise

Whole-body exercise means that you use all the muscles in your body to ensure balanced exercise. You can achieve this both in the gym and with a combination of different sports. For example, bouldering trains lots of different muscles and serves as a whole-body workout. Make sure that you equally train legs, chest, abdomen, back, arms and shoulders during an exercise session. Here you can find out what steps you should take to create your first training plan.

Pay attention to reps, sets, intensity and breaks

Those who are just starting out with strength training are often confused with the terms “reps” and “sets”. Reps indicate how many times in a row an exercise should be carried out, while a certain number of reps strung together is known as a set. The number of reps depends on whether your goal is to build muscle or increase endurance.

At the beginning, keep the intensity low (50 – 60% of the maximum weight) and the frequency high (12 – 15 reps). The maximum weight is the highest weight that you can manage for one rep. It’s best to get help from a coach to determine what yours is. Your body must be prepared for your next workout. Ligaments, joints, muscles and bones must get used to the strain gradually. For this purpose, endurance training two to three times a week is a good option. To avoid injuries, it’s best to start with machines. Your coach will create your first plan for you. It’s also important to think about breaks between sets and exercise sessions. This will give your body time to recover.

Getting started with fitness – choose the right exercises

Unless you want to wander aimlessly through the gym, you should choose exercises that you can complete at every workout. The exercises will help you know which stations to go to. We also recommend that you keep track of your progress, so you know which weight you have used for each exercise.