Feeling Insecure in Vegas

Hustle Fitness

My wife and I went to Las Vegas for the wedding of two Hustle members, Beth and Eric (congratulations!!!). We had a blast celebrating the union of this strong, supple, and toned couple—but I needed to remind myself that partying at weddings can sabotage any nutrition and exercise plan. And let’s not forget this was in Sin City of all places!

Luckily, my wife and I stay pretty active during our vacations, and we have some really good habits in place to help us stay on track during travel. These habits include supplementation (currently taking exogenous ketones by Pruvit to encourage ketosis), early workouts every other day (to help balance out your indulgences), and negotiating the splurges as they come.

If you consider that most of us go on vacation to take a break and feel better, a good workout will always help your day improve.

For the wedding, we stayed at the Tropicana, which was pretty nice for a budget hotel on the Strip. The gym, however, was not the most desirable place for a workout. It was essentially a hallway with several pieces of equipment arranged at seeming randomness throughout. While it wasn’t super crowded (maybe four people on some treadmills or stationary bikes and three others by the weight rack), you couldn’t move around without bumping into something or someone.

Now, this might sound strange coming from me since you’ve all known me to be a personal trainer for so long, but I felt insecure as I began my warm-up there. Perhaps it was the small, awkward space, or the fact that I was rehabbing a shoulder injury I suffered in a jiu jitsu tournament, or perhaps it was the fact the area was foreign to me.

Whatever the reason, as I was warming up, I felt like people were watching or judging me.

It might be strange for a trainer to admit this since there’s a good chance I had more experience than everyone in that room. In addition, I meet almost daily with people who feel skittish about starting a fitness program and help them work through this anxiety—but I felt similarly in front of these three strangers!

Nevertheless, I persisted, and as my workout progressed, I got the chance to interact with some of the other people working out. They all ended up be extremely friendly, and one of them was very encouraging, commenting on how we’d all “still get the job done” despite the small space.

I found it interesting how insecure I was at the beginning of the workout contrasted with how I grew more comfortable with the space, and those strangers who were super friendly and willing to share with me.

‘Is this how someone feels when they come into my gym for the first time?’ I wondered. ‘Do they feel this similar insecurity and fear, and are they unsure of what is going to happen? Do they doubt themselves and their abilities, and are they desperate for change but not sure exactly how to achieve it?’

The experience in Vegas was a great reminder as to what it felt like to be working out in a new space around new people. Even though the insecurity and anxiety exists at first, it’s worth it to know that most—if not all of it—exists only in your head.

I believe Hustle Fitness is a community of people just like these strangers I worked out with Vegas. They’re friendly, non-judgmental, and helpful, as well as concerned with their own workouts. This was a great reminder to me that we all create situations in our head which are much scarier than they really are but if you push through it will most likely be very rewarding!

Remember this the next time you’re working out while traveling. And when someone new stops by Hustle, remember how you felt your first time here, then smile and say something friendly!

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