Afraid of the dark, afraid of scary movies, afraid of weight training? It’s the spooky season so there’s no better time to talk about your fear of picking up some dumbbells. We know there’s a lot of reasons out there, but we wanted to address the three most common fears when it comes to weight lifting: fear of getting hurt, fear of getting bulky, fear of doing it right. We’ve had the privilege of meeting a wide range of people on different journeys and at different stages of their lives, but most that reach their performance and/or their body composition goals have overcome their fear and implemented weight training. It’s a great way to reduce injury risk, along with the best way to create lean mass and maintain it over time.

Afraid of Getting Hurt While Weight Training

This goes along with a fear of doing it right, but a lot of people are intimidated to weight train because there’s a fear of getting hurt. This can come from a past experience and got hurt doing a movement. This could also be something you were told and read somewhere that weight lifting will get you hurt. And yes, you can get hurt doing movements outside your ability. This includes doing too much weight, doing a new movement without proper instruction, or doing too much when you’re fatigued. However, weight training is essential to building and maintaining lean mass. With proper instruction, weight training is safe and effective for people of all ages. While social media provides plenty of awesome instruction, it can also be dangerous to try something you see someone else doing on instagram. This goes along with watching others in the gym near you and trying to match what they’re doing. Keep your weights, resistance, intervals, etc. in line with your goals, experience and ability. Stepping outside your wheelhouse is where injuries can occur. Starting weight training for the first time or revisiting after some time off, don’t hesitate to reach out to a personal trainer or physical therapist to get a starting point that’s correct for you.

Afraid of Getting Bulky with Weight Lifting

We frequently hear that people avoid weights because they don’t want to get “bulky”. Trust us, it takes MUCH MORE time and commitment to diet and weights to get “bulky” like a body builder. People that you come across that appear that way have spent countless hours, repeated days, months and years on end to attain that image. Implementing 30 minutes of weight training 2-3 times per week won’t get you anywhere near that. Most of the same people that say they’re afraid of getting bulky, also want to lose fat. Weight training is the most effective form of training for fat loss, getting substantially quicker results over cardio centric approaches. Overcome your fear of getting bulky and commit to a weight training program for 3 months. You’ll see the results you’ve been searching for!

Afraid of Not Doing it Right When it comes to weights?

This is a very common question and has some “weight” to it (pun intended). Not knowing what you’re doing when weight training can lead to injury. Trying difficult variations when you’re unfamiliar with basics isn’t a recipe for a success. However, starting in a class, with a personal trainer or physical therapist is a great place to get started. Kicking off a new program in these atmospheres allows for proper instruction, advancement and modification so you can learn the basics and progress at a proper rate. You don’t have to know thousands of exercises to have a great weight training program. You can very simply rotate between 10-12 different exercises and shed fat, lose weight and build muscle, but it all comes down to the education between the movements. Start your journey with a place or person that’s right for you and get the confidence you need to weight train.

Whether it’s a fear of getting hurt, a fear of getting bulky or a fear of no knowing what to do, weight training is too beneficial for the body to avoid. Start your journey with a place or person that is right for you so you can feel confident with your approach. There are plenty of safe movements, variations and progressions to challenge all ability levels and get the results you desire.