When asked, when will there be enough women on the Supreme Court? RBG famously replied, “when there are nine.”
In a grassroots, locally actionable kinda way I feel the same about squat racks at the gym. When women occupy all the squat racks.
I posted this idea recently in my Instagram feed. It’s dedicated to all the heavy lifting women in my life—y’all inspire me every day. Here’s the thing though. Occupying space at the gym with confidence can be a challenge for anyone, of any gender.
Getting comfortable in the gym comes down to many factors, and involves breaking down a lot of barriers and limiting beliefs. Two big pieces I feel passionate about are also two things I’m pleased to hold within my expertise and scope of practice.
They include education and learning by feel.
1. EDUCATION
- Gaining basic understanding about the different types of equipment available at the gym and the when/why/how of choosing one piece of equipment over another
- Learning and refining a few foundational movement patterns. I preach day in and day out about these six: Push, pull, carry, hinge, squat, and lunge
- Having some general programming guidelines to follow that keep you on track with what to do, when, how much, and how often
This stuff isn’t rocket surgery. I think most beginners can pick up the requisite foundational knowledge for effective independent gym workouts in about 6-8 lessons around 40-60 min each. I know this because I’ve seen it happen
2. LEARNING BY FEEL
- I have a long history with mind-body / embodiment practices like yoga, somatics, meditation, conscious relaxation, and self-massage
- Combine that with the somatosensory (literally means bodily sensations) elements of physical therapy and pain science that I’m endlessly passionate about… truly this material will never cease to set my heart on fire… and I’ve got a lot of tools for guiding myself and others down the path of learning by feel
- This is an enormous, and too often overlooked, element in building a confident, sustainable, effective (dare I say joyous?!) independent gym experience
Getting a grasp on the basics of strength and conditioning is time and money well spent, I believe. The opportunities it opens up and the independence it offers later in life are priceless. I know because I’ve seen this happen too!
If you wanna learn some of this stuff one-on-one, I offer movement coaching visits in person and online. Just CLICK HERE to Schedule a movement coaching session, or CLICK HERE to schedule a free discovery call to discuss your goals with me. These sessions are different from physical therapy treatment. No pain or injury required, though we can certainly work with that too!
️ My online/in-person hybrid class membership includes a continuation of this Foundational Strength material in a weekly Thursday evening class + a Sunday morning active recovery session to roll, stretch, massage, and soothe the previously worked body regions.
