Exercising in the gym has never been more popular. Even 10 years ago, it was not commonplace to see these venues so full. With the ever-growing popularity of social media, people get an insight into top athletes like never before. However, most of us need to get the basics down before attempting anything more.

Starting in the gym requires planning and preparation to ensure that you get the most out of your workouts. When starting out, it is important to consider factors such as strength, endurance, mobility and nutrition in order to achieve your goals.

Building strength requires a combination of exercise and rest. Resting anywhere from 30 seconds to 3 minutes is normal, depending on the movement. Compound lifts, which involve multiple muscle groups working together, such as a deadlift or squat, tend to require more rest (depending on the weight you use). Where as smaller movements, such as a bicep curl, tend to require less. Building strength comes in the 4-8 rep range, work on adding an additional repetition until you reach 8, then adding weight and dropping back down to 4. You can build strength and size in the 8-12 repetition range as well.

Improving your cardiovascular fitness is one of the most effective ways to improve your overall health. These are exercises that increase your heart rate and breathing, such as running, swimming, cycling, and even walking. Additionally, lifting weights in the higher rep range can elicit this response. To begin with, you want to try and be out of breath but still be able to hold a conversation. This is the best starting point for building cardiovascular fitness.

Improving your mobility is essential for staying healthy and injury-free. To make stretching more effective, it can be useful to have a partner who can help you stretch in the correct positions and hold them for 30 seconds or more. 30 seconds is the time with which muscular tissue starts to lengthen and this should be done at the end of a workout.

Lastly, nutrition plays a key role in providing fuel for your workouts and aiding recovery afterwards. By taking into account all these components when starting the gym, you can maximize your results and stay motivated on your fitness journey.

When planning a program, in the beginning, aim for equal parts strength training, endurance and mobility. This can look like a 10 minute warm up with gentle mobilising of the joints and increasing the heart rate, 20 minutes strength training, 20 minutes cardiovascular training and a 10 minute cool down stretch.

In compound movements, start in the 4-8 rep range, building strength and control. For smaller movements, aim for 8-12 reps. Think about pushing, pulling and carrying. If all these are built in your will have a well rounded capacity for movement. Get 20 minutes of running/ rowing/ cycling in to the point where you can just hold a conversation. And stretch for 10 minutes before and after the session. Doing this 2-4 times a week is a great place to start.

Heal > Adapt > Evolve