My litteral second time at the gym 😐 embarrassed...

[JoseSkelly]

So I've been working out for over a year. Today I started going to the gym and I could only bench press 95 pounds ........ Does noticeing the single 25 pound plates on each side make people laugh? Because I mean the bar itself is 45 ummmm yeah I feel really ****in embarrassed....for some reason.

I forgot to mention that that was incline bench I could do 35 and 35 and the bar on flat bench.
I'm not 49 btw I'm 22 I don't know how to change the age on here.

[LactoseTolerant]

I won't lie. Way back, I had a set of weights at home and I made sure I could bench 135lbs. before I ever stepped into a gym. Now I don't care what other people do unless it's really impressive.

[smokinal]

We all started somewhere

And no one really pays attention anyway. Go do your thing for you man

[gcoulson]

Nobody cares.

[Crsk]

For all they know you're doing a warm up, a deload, getting a pump etc [add 1000 other things here]. Nobody will care what anyone else is doing.

[Heisman2]

Truly nobody cares. I've been in gyms for 15 years now. I've never seen anyone get made fun of or pointed at for using light weight. As long as you are using semi-decent form nobody is going to look at you unless you are doing a really unique lift or are quite strong.

[sooby]

nobody really cares, and if they care, why should you care what they think?

I recently signed up for a month at a powerlifting gym. My lifts in a commercial gym are probably better than 95% of people. However in this gym my lifts aren't chit and I'm probably one of the weakest people in there. There are guys 150 lbs squatting 400+ lbs with ease while I struggle to do 315 for more than 5 reps. I also didn't know how half the equipment worked in there so I didn't hesitate to ask for help.

Point is don't be afraid or embarrassed, you're first few days in a new environment is probably going to be uncomfortable, just like with anything. Over time you get comfortable. It literally only takes a few months on a good novice program and effort/dedication in the gym to out lift half the people that go there. Lifting 95 lbs on the bench shouldn't last very long. Before you know it you'll be benching 135, 185, 225, etc as long as you are smart and keep at it.

[MrCarrot]

It really doesn't matter. It doesn't matter how strong you are, there will always be someone stronger.

I'm more impressed when people use light weight and good form, rather than lifting their ass off the bench and having their partner upright row half of their bench press weight for them.

[Rexotein]

nobody really cares, and if they care, why should you care what they think?

I recently signed up for a month at a powerlifting gym. My lifts in a commercial gym are probably better than 95% of people. However in this gym my lifts aren't chit and I'm probably one of the weakest people in there. There are guys 150 lbs squatting 400+ lbs with ease while I struggle to do 315 for more than 5 reps. I also didn't know how half the equipment worked in there so I didn't hesitate to ask for help.

Point is don't be afraid or embarrassed, you're first few days in a new environment is probably going to be uncomfortable, just like with anything. Over time you get comfortable. It literally only takes a few months on a good novice program and effort/dedication in the gym to out lift half the people that go there. Lifting 95 lbs on the bench shouldn't last very long. Before you know it you'll be benching 135, 185, 225, etc as long as you are smart and keep at it.

I’ve had the exact same experience lol. Just yesterday dude squatting 5 plates for reps, I was mirin hard. Only thing semi impressive about my lifts at a PL gym is bench, even then it’s still embarrassing. No fuarks given but you truly don’t understand strength until you get into a PL gym. They’re crazy ass strong mofos. Point being it actually motivates me, use that as a strength.

No one cares, everyone does their own thing. Rip my rest time being longer cause I was mirin ppls squats/deadlifts. It’s truly impressive af.

[bLinkMoore]

Personally, when I'm in the gym, the only people I judge are the ones quarter-squatting 400 pounds with their friends in cut-off tanks hyping them up and slapping them before every lift.

If you're over there benching 95 pounds for good, clean reps, I really don't care. Don't stress about it

[JoseSkelly]

Thanks

[DCSpartan]

nobody really cares, and if they care, why should you care what they think?

I recently signed up for a month at a powerlifting gym. My lifts in a commercial gym are probably better than 95% of people. However in this gym my lifts aren't chit and I'm probably one of the weakest people in there. There are guys 150 lbs squatting 400+ lbs with ease while I struggle to do 315 for more than 5 reps. I also didn't know how half the equipment worked in there so I didn't hesitate to ask for help.

Point is don't be afraid or embarrassed, you're first few days in a new environment is probably going to be uncomfortable, just like with anything. Over time you get comfortable. It literally only takes a few months on a good novice program and effort/dedication in the gym to out lift half the people that go there. Lifting 95 lbs on the bench shouldn't last very long. Before you know it you'll be benching 135, 185, 225, etc as long as you are smart and keep at it.

Yeah, I switched gyms a while back and went from hero to zero real quick. But its better to lift with the Titans.

[stev0n]

When I walked into the gym I was nearly 350lbs with nearly half of that being fat. I was weak. And I had no idea about proper form of anything.

Almost 5 years later, I have people ask me lifting/nutrition advice on a semi-regular basis.



LESSON: We all started somewhere. Anyone who is truly into fitness would never laugh. And usually the people in the best shape at the gym are the friendliest/most helpful - because they understand the hard work & dedication it takes

[RBxxx]

I first started benching in the gym with just the bar to make sure I had the form down. Nobody looked twice.

As others have said nobody cares that much about weight and will just think you're warming up/recovering from injury etc. etc.

[ThacherLifter8]

Besides people who are yelling and throwing the weight around, everyone ive seen has been supportive or doesn't really give a ****

[Sqweebo]

Don't really care here. Only people I really notice are those with bad form or top heavy lollipops,who are massive above but walk around with chicken legs from all the leg skipping

[gelllyfish]

I started in the gym doing like 65lbs benches. I saw everyone else lifting 135lbs or more and I kinda felt weak and silly as well. But I just did my thing and now I can do 110lbs. If I see someone doing lower then I just think of how I was back then so no judging there.

[Millz12323]

For me personally I look at people that are new with a tonne of respect. It takes a lot to get in the gym and start a new habit. Getting started is the hardest part in my up opinion. As long as they're not doing stupid stuff that's dangerous to their health.

Like trying to use heavier weight than they should be using. I have way more respect for the dude benching 95 or 65 or just the bar trying to learn the excersise than the guy walking in on day 1 and slamming the bar off their chest, with their butt way off the bench trying to push a 1rm at like 135.

I often times want to help but I never approach anyone myself and give advice but always happy to share my thoughts if someone asks.

OP nothing to be embarrassed about. Just be safe in there... Nothing will detail your fitness more than getting injured badly in your first month. Use weight that you can handle with good form. Don't test your 1 rep max for a while. Learn the lifts and progress slowly over time.

[Nubygaines]

gotta start somewhere. lighten the load nail your form add 5 lbs every time you do the lift until you can't anymore

[blazy4lyfe]

We all have embarrassing moments at gym, lifting light weights is not embarrassing at all. We all started with light weight. But if it's embarrassing moments, it should be like me on Monday. I was so out of it and zoned out that I forgot to add on one 45 lbs plate on one side of the barbell for squats and just threw on a 35 lbs. So, one side had two 45 lbs plates, and a 35 lbs plate, while the other side only had one 45 lbs and a 35 lbs on it. Everyone I saw in the mirrors in front of me was just looking at me like "wtf is this guy doing?" while I'm setting up under the barbell, not realizing one side was missing a plate. It was when I tried to get the bar off the hooks that I realized it because one side went up a lot easier and I was like "oh ****, wtf!". I felt super embarrassed, but I kept trying to play it cool and acting like nothing happened lmao.

Another time I didn't realize that my converse had no more grip on the bottom, and when I tried to split the floor during sumo deadlifts, my feet just slid out of position on the rubber mats on the gym floor, I just quickly dropped the barbell, ended up stumbling backwards and fell on my butt, and people were laughing at me because it was funny.

[thatmanspence]

i would be embarrassed if I benched that much so I'm glad I don't lol. but I didn't always. personally I respect it if someone is lifting really light weights with good form and not ego lifting. If some twig is trying to squat way more than they can and it shaking all over the place and their forms all junkie, thats when I judge. So just try and ignore it, most people will respect the work tryna put in

[Flhomeschoolmom]

First of all, I'm not 49 either...I'm 40 and can't change the age thing I decided to respond to you to say THANK YOU for helping me get over something I have been embarrassed about since I was 15 that involved lifting...or rather not lifting. At the time, the gym coach for my class was out having a baby, so they got the football coach to substitute for her. He was a nice person, everyone liked him, but he didn't know what to do with a mixed class of 9th graders...so he sent us to the football weight room day after day. I wouldn't say that he "taught" us anything, more like supervised a bunch of students playing in the weight room and if someone asked him something then he would "help out". Well, one student got the bright idea to dare (for lack of a better term) everyone to bench 100 lbs. I looked at the bar and laughed and said, "There's no way, that's more than I weigh". I weighed like 83 pounds at the time. I WANTED to get out of the "dare", but I couldn't easily do so. Then one of the football players who was actually sort of my friend said, "She's right, that's more than she weighs and she's the smallest person in here. It would only be fair to her if she benched the bar empty". Everyone agreed, and I THOUGHT that I could do it...after all, how much could an empty bar weigh? I couldn't do it...I couldn't budge it. I had 30 some people around me and over 1/2 of them were hysterically laughing. Thanks to you, I now know the weight of that stupid bar!

As for people laughing, MOST adults wouldn't laugh no matter how much or how little you're benching (ok, *maybe* if you couldn't lift an empty bar). Most likely, the majority won't really notice you or pay much attention to you. I don't currently go to a gym, but on the occasions when I have, what I've noticed is that people are either minding their own business or one person who is lifting a heck of a lot has gotten everyone's attention. My advice to you, and this comes from age and wisdom, is the same thing I tell my sons..."Don't pay attention to what other people think, don't dwell on what you believe they think because neither is important." You are young, and you are trying and improving, so keep going. Don't compare yourself to someone else, you aren't them. And hey, you're benching more than I weigh

[Burgerbuger]

It's normal for most people to feel uncomfortable in a new environment and surrounded by people. But eventually you will get used to it.

When I was 16 I was in the same boat as you. I did not step a single foot in a commercial gym until I was doing close to 2 plates years down the line.

As others have said here most people won't even pay attention to what you do.

[Hadian]

Not everyone is in the gym to lift heavy like a power lifter. People do different things for different results.

I benched the same weight for only two reps the other day, but that was at the end of an hour long session with a lot of arm/chest training.

Nobody knows your program. Nobody cares.