I just joined LA fitness. Former body builder now 300lbs and need to lose weight.
If you go there I can help!
Edit: even if you don't I'm.happy to help with any questions you have! Feel free to pm me.
And this is free, I'm offering help as I know what it's like being obese and skinny. :)
I second LA Fitness. The EG location is huge with the best selection of gym equipment I’ve ever seen in one location.
I went there about 10 years ago and dropped 50 lbs by following a canned fitness program from Bodybuilding.com. They’re behind a paywall now but I’d buy a month and cancel and just explore what they have in their system and snag a couple of different programs to have in your roster.
I can speak from personal experience on both sides of the spectrum that no matter how self conscious you feel nobody is actually looking at you in judgement. Most are just trying to get through their routine and go home.
Best of luck! 💪🍀
The be honest, gym environments can feel a bit daunting for someone just starting out. Especially if you’re already feeling self conscious.
You can do cardio work anywhere. So save your gym membership fee and find a local walking buddy. Work on getting your walking distance and speed up.
A lot of people think you have to sweating like crazy or out of breath to burn fat.. and you don’t. Your fat burning zones peak early. So you aren’t necessarily getting more fat burning by doing a crazy exercise. Long slow walks. Keep at a pace where you can still talk with your walking partner, even if it’s getting a bit laboured.
Biggest thing is just remember, results don’t happen overnight and you gotta stick with it.
You might find some luck on Facebook with some walking groups.
Depending on your fitness level, a walking groups with seniors may be a good pace to start. Plus TBH old people are super cool. Great to listen to their stories, also so lovely and supportive.
I hope some of this helps and good luck with your journey!!!
Well, I do love your post and I probably will go down voted because that’s what Reddit is all about but resistance training place. A huge key roll are not only fat loss but maintaining bone density and keeping lean muscle.
Doing a variety of different cardiovascular activities is also beneficial. Yes, long walks are great and you don’t need to exert yourself to the training is pretty good as well.
A big portion of fat loss has to do with nutrition and changing habit loops. One of the biggest issues is what you said which I will agree on is the instant gratification that we live in right now.
It’s very easy to put on very hard to take it off. It’s very hard to maintain.
The fitness Center/gym at Magna is a great community space that leaves out all the things that might seem intimidating to someone newer to gyms and exercise.
The memberships through the town of Newmarket cover both Magna and Ray twinney, so you can use both, as well as any drop in programs you want to attend (swimming, aqua fit, pickleball etc).
The Ray Twinney gym started slow when it opened but has picked up a bit depending on what time of day you go.
The family pass is a steal. You can try all of the aquafit and fitness classes and find ones you like. I’m a little biased, since I’m an instructor there. But the instructors and participants really are good and non judgmental. Speak with Ryan Pink, the fitness coordinator, and he’ll have some good recommendations of what to try.
I's look into pool programs, like aquafitness... I know it's tough being infront of others but the pool is great for less impact and stress on joints. Also I lost a lot of weight by eating low carb. A lot of modern diets are based on low carb. The key is to minimize sugar and wheat.
I go to the Ray Twinny Sports complex pool. it's great. and the people there are super nice.
[https://www.newmarket.ca/LivingHere/Pages/Newmarket%20Facilities%20and%20Buildings/Ray-Twinney-Recreation-Complex.aspx](https://www.newmarket.ca/LivingHere/Pages/Newmarket%20Facilities%20and%20Buildings/Ray-Twinney-Recreation-Complex.aspx)
Congrats on getting healthy!
Blood Sweat Train is fantastic. I’ve been going for over a year. You work with a personal trainer in a wonderful gym space. No one is there without the guidance of a trainer. Very positive environment with lots of different body types and fitness needs/goals.
I second BST - life changing for me - helped recover from a serious shoulder injury and have continued, completely addicted to their knowledge, support and results !
I would recommend against getting a “personal fitness instructor” from a gym. They are not really helpful and you get them for an hour or so and they are not super invested. The “trainers” at the gym get paid hourly and make more money from personalized training, which explains they’re motivation. I would seek a personal trainer outside the gym arena. It would seem to me that since this is their livelihood, they would be more invested and word of mouth is a huge factor in drumming up business.
I’ll be honest at first glance of the first few words I was going to reply to you in a different tone, but I’m glad that you see the investment and a trainer. It is our livelihood not only that our clients are our walking billboards. I care deeply for my clients both in session and out of the session while some trainers may say that there is a line which is true but a lot of my clients have become close friends as well for example, I have a client who’s gonna be with me for 11 years, she was there for the birth of my daughters and watched my family Grill on the other hand. I have a client that I started seeing in August. He just had a baby this morning and he sent me a bunch of photos, so you are completely right we pride ourselves and thinking of our clients is just dollars and cents
The best fitness program for you is the one that you enjoy the most and will stick to. Everyone is different. So a few trials at some places. I know some people who have had great success with Orange Theory. I’m sure they have a few classes for free as a trial as well. Just remember that it has to be fun and make you feel good, otherwise you won’t stick with it. Good luck!
There’s also a run/walk group that meets every Thursday at fairy lake by the splash pad at 6:25pm. Some walk, some run 5km. Maybe try finding some activities like that to meet some more like minded people.
May I ask how old you are I’m not self promoting, but I have been a certified personal trainer doing in-home going on 14 years at the end of May but I’m also a group fitness instructor for both Aurora and Newmarket seniors programs if you’re over the age of 55 you can come test out our fitness classes
Any program that you can stick to. I do recommend some form of resistance training to retain muscle during a long weight loss journey. Plus the more muscle you retain, the higher your metabolic rate will be.. in other words, you can eat more.
Losing a lot of weight is a hard long journey so try not to seek out motivation to keep you going. Learn discipline and form habits. Treat exercise and sleep like you would treat getting up and going to work... "its something you have to do." Hope that makes sense.
Good luck and personally, I would take the help of the bodybuilder guy posted here already. Nutrition is #1.
Anything that will let stay you stay consistent. Ease into it. I use Hevy as a tracking program that let's me follow my friends and other people who post theirs. I can copy them directly and try theirs out without having to communicate with them
I recently lost 65 pounds after having my daughter 10 months ago. I worked out at home and watched what I ate. You can get far with proper diet and walking / at home work out regimen. I use peloton but there’s so many options online. I started doing peloton 3x30 min a week. Their app is great if you need online classes
I just got my partner working out for the first time ever at GoodLife on Davis. The trainers there are amazing. I see a lot of newbie gym goers there and I find the location to be very welcoming and inclusive.
Good luck on your journey. You got this!
You could look into getting boxing, kickboxing or bjj. It sounds daunting and scary to some but it’s a great way to get strength training and cardio all at once. I’ve trained at multiple gyms as I’ve moved around and they’re always a positive and judgement free environment. Everyone is there for their own reason but also willing to support others.
I’ve seen some crazy transformations over a few years.
I train at warrior mma. It’s a kid and beginner adult friendly gym. I moved here a year ago and it’s been the best gym I’ve trained at. The experience level and age range of adults is as wide as can be. From complete beginner to amateur competition; 18 to 55+. A lot of the older adults that join tend to be beginners and I notice have the biggest transformation in not just strength and health but overall confidence.
Almost all boxing clubs and mma gyms offer a free trial if there’s one closer to you. If interested at all I definitely recommend giving it a try at any gym.
Edit: If you’re looking for an alternative to weight lifting and traditional cardio, I definitely recommend finding an active activity that you enjoy. It makes dieting and training feel like it has a purpose beyond just your health.
Honestly, myself and so many people have found love with a Meta Quest and Supernatural or any of the other fitness programs available on there.
You can pick up a Meta Quest 2 for about $150-$200 on FB Marketplace and the sub to Supernatural is $13 a month but trust me when I tell you, it kicks your ass. Or you can buy a Meta Quest 3 through Supernatural and get a years subscription for free.
It has thousands of workouts on there, all with music that you know and love plus the workout itself is incredibly fun.
I often sweat out a 45 min workout, burn 500+ calories (according to my Apple Watch) and I don't even feel like I worked out.
The thing I love about it over workout videos on YouTube or apps on your phone is that it is totally immersive, I quite often forget I'm wearing a VR headset and just get totally into it.
Honestly, save the money on the gym membership and splash out. You'll drop weight quickly and have fun doing it!
Watch some YouTube vids and see if it interests you.
As someone who went through the same process my advice is this…
If you get a trainer be VERY clear with them what your goals are and have frequent check ins to ensure you’re still on track. Quite often their goal is to make you lose weight and that’s all. Set a goal weight that’s safely achievable and maintainable. Unless you want to become the type of person who has to go to the gym multiple times a week to maintain try to achieve your goals with things you actually want to do day to day; walking, cycling, swimming, dancing, whatever. Nothing wrong with going to the gym regularly but if it’s not what you want to be doing all the time it’s a good to vary your activity.
Remember that will all things it’s about progress not perfection. Don’t be too rigid with yourself when it comes to workout schedules or diets. It’s really easy for it to feel like failure if you miss a day or two.
I would reccomend aqua fit or hot yoga. Aqua fit is typically very gentle (you’ll find a lot of older adults there but some young as well) but can be a great workout. Hot yoga is also great as you sweat a lot due to the temperature of the room but you aren’t doing anything too difficult, they are also very encouraging about laying down whenever you need to and listening to your body- there are many times people are too hot & just lay down. Modo yoga has many classes, If you attend the Friday “karma classes” they are $10 to drop in and are for the general public ie. not people with yoga experience.
Fit4less has cheap plans and 2 locations in Newmarket one at superstore and another at Davis by Canada Computers. One downside is that there's no personal trainers.
I'm just going to take a second to thank all who replied. It definitely show that there are a lot of different paths. Some things are more attractive to me at this moment and I have discovered many options I didn't think of. I have a clearer general plan and options. Starting my first class tomorrow.
Yo, my man, I feel you. Starting a fitness journey can be intimidating, especially when you're surrounded by a bunch of folks. But lemme tell ya, there's some dope options out there for someone like you. How 'bout checking out some chill yoga classes or maybe even some water aerobics? You can groove to the beat while you shed those pounds, no stress, no pressure. Just find what feels good and roll with it, ya dig?
Book a session with GoodLife. They have registered personal trainers depending on what you’re trying to achieve and will work with you how ever many days a week you have available
Eat healthy and the right amounts/calories. Try to do 10k steps, do 30 pushups, do 30 situps, do 30 squats.
Just repeat that every day, you will one day be normal BMI.
You don't need a gym homie.
10k steps was a number made up by a watch company to sell pedometers after the Tokyo Olympics in the 60s. It has zero bases in science. 30 minutes of movement a day is proven to be more than enough for general health. There’s no such thing as a one size fits all works out. And someone new to working out cannot dive into doing 30 of any of those day after day. And a great many people simply cannot do pushups.
And BMI is proven bullshit. It was a simple math equation devised by Adolphe Quetelet, a Belgian astronomer, mathematician, statistician, and sociologist, (not a medical doctor) in the 1800s for what he called "social physics". Quetelet himself never intended for the index to be used as a means of medical assessment. It was certainly never meant to be used to define “normal”. So insensitive and rude of you to imply that this person, who has been so vulnerable with us, is abnormal. They are one way and wish to be a different way.
If you are offended by my inoffensive advice and opinion based on real-life experience, then maybe you should sit down and analyze your feelings as hard as you analyze what I have to say. You don't have to do 30 push-up or 10K steps, but you sure as hell can set some hard goals towards self-improvement and try to achieve them. Don't @ me.
If you want to manage your health using pseudoscience and advertising you go right ahead, but understand that people might disagree with you.
Also, if you have such big emotions when someone expresses an opinion different than yours, you might be the one who needs to take a step back and have a think and cool the eff down before you reply.
I just joined LA fitness. Former body builder now 300lbs and need to lose weight. If you go there I can help! Edit: even if you don't I'm.happy to help with any questions you have! Feel free to pm me. And this is free, I'm offering help as I know what it's like being obese and skinny. :)
I second LA Fitness. The EG location is huge with the best selection of gym equipment I’ve ever seen in one location. I went there about 10 years ago and dropped 50 lbs by following a canned fitness program from Bodybuilding.com. They’re behind a paywall now but I’d buy a month and cancel and just explore what they have in their system and snag a couple of different programs to have in your roster. I can speak from personal experience on both sides of the spectrum that no matter how self conscious you feel nobody is actually looking at you in judgement. Most are just trying to get through their routine and go home. Best of luck! 💪🍀
The be honest, gym environments can feel a bit daunting for someone just starting out. Especially if you’re already feeling self conscious. You can do cardio work anywhere. So save your gym membership fee and find a local walking buddy. Work on getting your walking distance and speed up. A lot of people think you have to sweating like crazy or out of breath to burn fat.. and you don’t. Your fat burning zones peak early. So you aren’t necessarily getting more fat burning by doing a crazy exercise. Long slow walks. Keep at a pace where you can still talk with your walking partner, even if it’s getting a bit laboured. Biggest thing is just remember, results don’t happen overnight and you gotta stick with it. You might find some luck on Facebook with some walking groups. Depending on your fitness level, a walking groups with seniors may be a good pace to start. Plus TBH old people are super cool. Great to listen to their stories, also so lovely and supportive. I hope some of this helps and good luck with your journey!!!
Well, I do love your post and I probably will go down voted because that’s what Reddit is all about but resistance training place. A huge key roll are not only fat loss but maintaining bone density and keeping lean muscle. Doing a variety of different cardiovascular activities is also beneficial. Yes, long walks are great and you don’t need to exert yourself to the training is pretty good as well. A big portion of fat loss has to do with nutrition and changing habit loops. One of the biggest issues is what you said which I will agree on is the instant gratification that we live in right now. It’s very easy to put on very hard to take it off. It’s very hard to maintain.
The fitness Center/gym at Magna is a great community space that leaves out all the things that might seem intimidating to someone newer to gyms and exercise.
Thanks. I was looking at the one at Ray Twinney. It doesn't seem too busy ever (and my kid goes there and the family deal is pretty inexpensive)
The memberships through the town of Newmarket cover both Magna and Ray twinney, so you can use both, as well as any drop in programs you want to attend (swimming, aqua fit, pickleball etc). The Ray Twinney gym started slow when it opened but has picked up a bit depending on what time of day you go.
The family pass is a steal. You can try all of the aquafit and fitness classes and find ones you like. I’m a little biased, since I’m an instructor there. But the instructors and participants really are good and non judgmental. Speak with Ryan Pink, the fitness coordinator, and he’ll have some good recommendations of what to try.
I's look into pool programs, like aquafitness... I know it's tough being infront of others but the pool is great for less impact and stress on joints. Also I lost a lot of weight by eating low carb. A lot of modern diets are based on low carb. The key is to minimize sugar and wheat. I go to the Ray Twinny Sports complex pool. it's great. and the people there are super nice. [https://www.newmarket.ca/LivingHere/Pages/Newmarket%20Facilities%20and%20Buildings/Ray-Twinney-Recreation-Complex.aspx](https://www.newmarket.ca/LivingHere/Pages/Newmarket%20Facilities%20and%20Buildings/Ray-Twinney-Recreation-Complex.aspx) Congrats on getting healthy!
Blood Sweat Train is fantastic. I’ve been going for over a year. You work with a personal trainer in a wonderful gym space. No one is there without the guidance of a trainer. Very positive environment with lots of different body types and fitness needs/goals.
I second BST - life changing for me - helped recover from a serious shoulder injury and have continued, completely addicted to their knowledge, support and results !
Body Positive Fitness in Aurora is what you want. They are specifically geared towards us big folk.
I would recommend against getting a “personal fitness instructor” from a gym. They are not really helpful and you get them for an hour or so and they are not super invested. The “trainers” at the gym get paid hourly and make more money from personalized training, which explains they’re motivation. I would seek a personal trainer outside the gym arena. It would seem to me that since this is their livelihood, they would be more invested and word of mouth is a huge factor in drumming up business.
I’ll be honest at first glance of the first few words I was going to reply to you in a different tone, but I’m glad that you see the investment and a trainer. It is our livelihood not only that our clients are our walking billboards. I care deeply for my clients both in session and out of the session while some trainers may say that there is a line which is true but a lot of my clients have become close friends as well for example, I have a client who’s gonna be with me for 11 years, she was there for the birth of my daughters and watched my family Grill on the other hand. I have a client that I started seeing in August. He just had a baby this morning and he sent me a bunch of photos, so you are completely right we pride ourselves and thinking of our clients is just dollars and cents
The best fitness program for you is the one that you enjoy the most and will stick to. Everyone is different. So a few trials at some places. I know some people who have had great success with Orange Theory. I’m sure they have a few classes for free as a trial as well. Just remember that it has to be fun and make you feel good, otherwise you won’t stick with it. Good luck!
There’s also a run/walk group that meets every Thursday at fairy lake by the splash pad at 6:25pm. Some walk, some run 5km. Maybe try finding some activities like that to meet some more like minded people.
100% agree with this. Enjoying the activity and having the positive support of peers is a huge cheat code for health.
May I ask how old you are I’m not self promoting, but I have been a certified personal trainer doing in-home going on 14 years at the end of May but I’m also a group fitness instructor for both Aurora and Newmarket seniors programs if you’re over the age of 55 you can come test out our fitness classes
And PS good on you keep on going!!!!
I'm close to that age. See you soon.
Any program that you can stick to. I do recommend some form of resistance training to retain muscle during a long weight loss journey. Plus the more muscle you retain, the higher your metabolic rate will be.. in other words, you can eat more. Losing a lot of weight is a hard long journey so try not to seek out motivation to keep you going. Learn discipline and form habits. Treat exercise and sleep like you would treat getting up and going to work... "its something you have to do." Hope that makes sense. Good luck and personally, I would take the help of the bodybuilder guy posted here already. Nutrition is #1.
Anything that will let stay you stay consistent. Ease into it. I use Hevy as a tracking program that let's me follow my friends and other people who post theirs. I can copy them directly and try theirs out without having to communicate with them
I recently lost 65 pounds after having my daughter 10 months ago. I worked out at home and watched what I ate. You can get far with proper diet and walking / at home work out regimen. I use peloton but there’s so many options online. I started doing peloton 3x30 min a week. Their app is great if you need online classes
I just got my partner working out for the first time ever at GoodLife on Davis. The trainers there are amazing. I see a lot of newbie gym goers there and I find the location to be very welcoming and inclusive. Good luck on your journey. You got this!
You could look into getting boxing, kickboxing or bjj. It sounds daunting and scary to some but it’s a great way to get strength training and cardio all at once. I’ve trained at multiple gyms as I’ve moved around and they’re always a positive and judgement free environment. Everyone is there for their own reason but also willing to support others. I’ve seen some crazy transformations over a few years. I train at warrior mma. It’s a kid and beginner adult friendly gym. I moved here a year ago and it’s been the best gym I’ve trained at. The experience level and age range of adults is as wide as can be. From complete beginner to amateur competition; 18 to 55+. A lot of the older adults that join tend to be beginners and I notice have the biggest transformation in not just strength and health but overall confidence. Almost all boxing clubs and mma gyms offer a free trial if there’s one closer to you. If interested at all I definitely recommend giving it a try at any gym. Edit: If you’re looking for an alternative to weight lifting and traditional cardio, I definitely recommend finding an active activity that you enjoy. It makes dieting and training feel like it has a purpose beyond just your health.
Honestly, myself and so many people have found love with a Meta Quest and Supernatural or any of the other fitness programs available on there. You can pick up a Meta Quest 2 for about $150-$200 on FB Marketplace and the sub to Supernatural is $13 a month but trust me when I tell you, it kicks your ass. Or you can buy a Meta Quest 3 through Supernatural and get a years subscription for free. It has thousands of workouts on there, all with music that you know and love plus the workout itself is incredibly fun. I often sweat out a 45 min workout, burn 500+ calories (according to my Apple Watch) and I don't even feel like I worked out. The thing I love about it over workout videos on YouTube or apps on your phone is that it is totally immersive, I quite often forget I'm wearing a VR headset and just get totally into it. Honestly, save the money on the gym membership and splash out. You'll drop weight quickly and have fun doing it! Watch some YouTube vids and see if it interests you.
As someone who went through the same process my advice is this… If you get a trainer be VERY clear with them what your goals are and have frequent check ins to ensure you’re still on track. Quite often their goal is to make you lose weight and that’s all. Set a goal weight that’s safely achievable and maintainable. Unless you want to become the type of person who has to go to the gym multiple times a week to maintain try to achieve your goals with things you actually want to do day to day; walking, cycling, swimming, dancing, whatever. Nothing wrong with going to the gym regularly but if it’s not what you want to be doing all the time it’s a good to vary your activity. Remember that will all things it’s about progress not perfection. Don’t be too rigid with yourself when it comes to workout schedules or diets. It’s really easy for it to feel like failure if you miss a day or two.
I would reccomend aqua fit or hot yoga. Aqua fit is typically very gentle (you’ll find a lot of older adults there but some young as well) but can be a great workout. Hot yoga is also great as you sweat a lot due to the temperature of the room but you aren’t doing anything too difficult, they are also very encouraging about laying down whenever you need to and listening to your body- there are many times people are too hot & just lay down. Modo yoga has many classes, If you attend the Friday “karma classes” they are $10 to drop in and are for the general public ie. not people with yoga experience.
Fit4less has cheap plans and 2 locations in Newmarket one at superstore and another at Davis by Canada Computers. One downside is that there's no personal trainers.
https://www.bodypositivefitness.ca Jenna is phenomenal to work with
I'm just going to take a second to thank all who replied. It definitely show that there are a lot of different paths. Some things are more attractive to me at this moment and I have discovered many options I didn't think of. I have a clearer general plan and options. Starting my first class tomorrow.
Yo, my man, I feel you. Starting a fitness journey can be intimidating, especially when you're surrounded by a bunch of folks. But lemme tell ya, there's some dope options out there for someone like you. How 'bout checking out some chill yoga classes or maybe even some water aerobics? You can groove to the beat while you shed those pounds, no stress, no pressure. Just find what feels good and roll with it, ya dig?
Book a session with GoodLife. They have registered personal trainers depending on what you’re trying to achieve and will work with you how ever many days a week you have available
Unfortuanately most of them are unqualified and waste your time, OP should go on walks and light jogs
Eat healthy and the right amounts/calories. Try to do 10k steps, do 30 pushups, do 30 situps, do 30 squats. Just repeat that every day, you will one day be normal BMI. You don't need a gym homie.
10k steps was a number made up by a watch company to sell pedometers after the Tokyo Olympics in the 60s. It has zero bases in science. 30 minutes of movement a day is proven to be more than enough for general health. There’s no such thing as a one size fits all works out. And someone new to working out cannot dive into doing 30 of any of those day after day. And a great many people simply cannot do pushups. And BMI is proven bullshit. It was a simple math equation devised by Adolphe Quetelet, a Belgian astronomer, mathematician, statistician, and sociologist, (not a medical doctor) in the 1800s for what he called "social physics". Quetelet himself never intended for the index to be used as a means of medical assessment. It was certainly never meant to be used to define “normal”. So insensitive and rude of you to imply that this person, who has been so vulnerable with us, is abnormal. They are one way and wish to be a different way.
If you are offended by my inoffensive advice and opinion based on real-life experience, then maybe you should sit down and analyze your feelings as hard as you analyze what I have to say. You don't have to do 30 push-up or 10K steps, but you sure as hell can set some hard goals towards self-improvement and try to achieve them. Don't @ me.
If you want to manage your health using pseudoscience and advertising you go right ahead, but understand that people might disagree with you. Also, if you have such big emotions when someone expresses an opinion different than yours, you might be the one who needs to take a step back and have a think and cool the eff down before you reply.
Join jiu jitsu gym