Iâve always wanted to be strong and fit, ever since I was little.
I used to watch things like Gladiators and Xena Warrior Princess and I wanted to be like those women.
I started training with weights in my bedroom when I was 12. My sisterâs boyfriend used to have some dumbbells at our house, and I nicked them and had them in my bedroom.
I wanted to be strong like Jet from Gladiators, so at school, I did things like shot putt, as well as athletics, hockey, rounders and netball.
As soon as I was old enough to get a gym membership, I did. I used to go in and not really know what to do. I spoke to a few people and picked up a few tips and would watch things on YouTube to learn what to do.
But coming to UP and doing a 12-week transformation has taught me how to train with weights properly and effectively to get results.
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The only thing I would change from when I started was that I would have done it a lot sooner. I would have started years ago if I’d have known it was going to be this much fun and I would have felt this good.
Now at 32, Iâm stronger and fitter than ever â and itâs down to lifting weights and eating well.
I think so many more women could benefit from this kind of training once that initial fear factor of weights and gyms is broken down.
It’s a good era now for women. We’re doing a lot of stuff and weight training should be one of them.
The best place to start is to get advice from a professional personal trainer. This will show you your starting point.
You know your fitness levels, you know your limits and you donât have to go in all guns blazing.
Thereâs one thing I always say â âyou donât have to be great to start, but you have to start to be greatâ.
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Even if itâs just a 20-minute brisk walk on a treadmill and youâve not done any exercise for years, thatâs a start.
Everyone has different forms and different levels of fitness, I think the thing to do is find something you enjoy, and youâre more likely to stick to it.
The thing I enjoy most is lifting weights. Iâve had friends come along with me and theyâre now really enjoying it and getting into it too.
Women shouldnât worry about lifting heavy weights. Iâm now lifting far heavier than when I first started.
I think women think lifting heavy is going to make them big, bulky and muscular, but they havenât got the testosterone for it.
If youâre adding testosterone supplements in an unnatural way, then, of course, you will get bigger.
But if youâre not, then you wonât. I think women see female bodybuilders and think âall they do is lift heavy weights, but thereâs a lot more to it than that.â
For me, itâs about lifting as heavy as I can, as natural as I can, and as safely as I can.
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Strength is all relative and individual to each of us. Thatâs why lifting weights that are right for you, safely and properly, is the way to get results.
As soon as your form starts to go, then thereâs no point doing it. Youâre better off lifting lighter, keeping your form correct and actually feeling the muscle working.
Itâs something common with guys – they think itâs competition to lift the heaviest weights and you see them doing it completely wrong and the week after theyâre hobbling around injured.
Youâve got to train smart rather than just going heavy.
Training heavy will help you get stronger and challenges the body. But equally, even with a relatively lighter weight where youâre focussing on the muscle, you will get the benefits.
We finished on 3kg dumbbells the other week and someone said to me âthose arenât heavyâ in a comment on social media.
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It was the end of my session, we went to failure, there was an overload and they really felt heavy to me â my muscles were aching the next day.
This shows that itâs not always about the size of the dumbbell, itâs what you do with it that counts!
Itâs form and technique, for me, over weight, every time. You can feel the muscles working properly when you have a weight thatâs challenging but not too heavy.
When people go too heavy they end up not working the muscles they want â you see them swinging the weights, bouncing them off the bottom, and they will not be getting the maximum benefit from each rep, but they will also end up injured.
Youâve got to know your limits and know how to push them safely. Stick to your own goal, donât follow what anyone else is doing in the gym and be tempted to lift way too heavy.
I always try to improve and get stronger in each session. Iâm always looking to do better today than I did yesterday.
Whether thatâs 1kg heavier, one more rep, less rest time or not feeling as fatigued at the end of the session. Those are the things I take into consideration most when Iâm training, and if I achieve any of those things from one session to the next, then I know Iâm improving and itâs a good feeling.
Catch up with Gemma’s Week 1 blog and how she lost 5lbs in just seven days weight training at UP.Â
Itâs not about losing X amount of weight each week. Itâs more that I want to be stronger and fitter every day.
Each session I try to do a little bit more. This is whatâs called âprogressive overloadâ, and itâs something Iâve learned here at UP.
If youâre not progressing in the gym, then you wonât get the results you want.
There have been times when Iâve left UP thinking âI could have done a little bit more but Iâm so tiredâ. But then you think âno, youâre in the gym for 45 minutes. If you canât give 100% for 45 minutes, then youâve not done yourself justiceâ.
Youâve got to get that mentality in your head.
Make every rep, every set and every session count. Thatâs how you get results.
My best advice to anyone starting weight lifting is just be patient with yourself. Be consistent and be persistent â itâs not going to happen overnight, youâve got to build yourself up gradually and keep progressing.
Donât give up after a week if you donât see results â it will come. It will happen.
Small gains add up to big changes over the days, weeks and months. Patience, persistence and consistency will pay off. Iâm proof of that.
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