How can a beginner exercise at a gym without a coach?

If you want to do strength training without direct guidance from an instructor, the first thing you need to do is create a workout plan. The more thoroughly the plan is prepared and developed, the more effective and efficient the workout results will be. From this article, you will learn how to train correctly without a coach, as well as what types of exercises should be done.

Which workout program should you choose?

For beginners, daily workouts are not the right choice. If you go to the gym every day, your body will be prone to muscle fatigue, overtraining, and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) which usually appears within 48 hours. This pattern actually hinders progress, makes it difficult for the body to adapt, and can even kill motivation to exercise.

The best option is to train two to three times a week, taking one or two days off to rest. This time is sufficient for muscle fibers to recover fully. It’s important to understand that muscles grow through the recovery process from micro-tears that occur during weight training. With just one day of rest, muscles can be ready to train again.
At the gym, there are two common workout patterns:

Full body workout – trains all muscle groups in one session.
Split workout – focuses on specific muscle groups in each session.

The choice of program depends entirely on your preference. Both are equally effective for strengthening and building muscles. The only difference lies in the rest pattern: full body workouts usually require one to two days off between sessions, while split workouts can be done more frequently because when one muscle group is being trained, other muscle groups are resting.

How to create a workout plan?

A crucial step in creating a workout plan is determining your gym visit frequency. If you plan to exercise several days in a row, then a split workout method is more appropriate, as you can focus on different muscle groups each day. However, if you can only train with one day off (e.g., every other day), then a full body workout will be more suitable, as all muscle groups can be trained simultaneously in one session.

Full Body Workout

Full body workouts should not be done every day because the body needs twenty-four hours of rest to recover muscles and prevent overtraining. With this rest pattern, muscles have the opportunity to recover, repair tissues, and adapt to the load, while also allowing for variation in movements to keep the program from becoming monotonous. For example, a full body workout program can be run three times a week.

On Monday, exercises could include back squats, dips, chest pulldown, hyperextensions, seated toe raises, and abdominal crunches.
Then on Wednesday, vary it with deadlifts, leg presses, barbell presses, dumbbell flies, bent-over barbell rows, and leg raises.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the workout can continue with pull-ups, standing calf raises, bench presses, side and regular planks, Romanian deadlifts, and Bulgarian split squats with dumbbells.

With this pattern, all muscle groups are trained balanced and get enough recovery time, so that strength and muscle mass development can proceed optimally.

Split Training

An excellent option for those who want to exercise immediately without rest, i.e., the next day. This is achieved by isolating muscle groups:

Day 1: To train triceps and chest muscles, do bench press, abdominal crunch, dumbbell fly, overhead and cable dumbbell pushdown, and dips.
Day 2: To train shoulders and legs, do pull-ups, arm curls while holding dumbbells, leg raises in a supported position, block pulls to the chest, dumbbell raises in an incline position, and barbells in an incline position, while holding the barbell with an reverse grip.
Day 3: To train biceps and back muscles, do planks and hyperextensions, back squats, standing barbell presses, bent-over and standing dumbbell flies, and Bulgarian split squats with dumbbells.

This complex is designed so that on each day of split training, exercises are performed to train the abdominal muscles.

How to warm up?

Workouts, regardless of whether you go to the gym without a coach or with an instructor, always begin with a warm-up. Unwarmed muscles contract poorly, and after the workout the next day or even longer, they will feel very sore and painful. When lifting heavy weights, cold muscles can cramp, and this carries a risk of injury.

The ideal option is a three-stage warm-up:

Muscle warm-up with a massage roller. The tool is moved as slowly as possible.
Five minutes of cardio on a stationary bike or elliptical machine.
Joint and dynamic warm-up, for example, “frog” movements, “insect” movements, lunges with twisting.

You can choose your own warm-up exercises. The important thing is that they are as dynamic and warming as possible. Static movements are only suitable for cool-down to consolidate results and should not be done before a workout.

How to perform the exercises?

For uncoached gym workouts to be effective, each exercise must be performed with proper technique. It is advisable to watch videos beforehand and learn how to perform specific movements. Learning the rules for using various types of exercise machines will also not be excessive.

Main recommendations:

Use only exercise equipment that is in good working order.
Choose the right weight.
Barbells and dumbbells should always be behind your head at the top point, not in front.
You should not let your back round or your heels or lower back lift off the bench during bench press exercises.
Spreading movements and similar exercises require chest straightening.

When exercising without a coach, make it a habit to record your first workouts on camera. This will help you avoid potential mistakes.

How to choose the right weight and number of repetitions?

The main problem of training at the gym without a coach is choosing the right working weight and the number of repetitions. Excessive weight can lead to overtraining and a high risk of injury, while inadequate weight can reduce the overall effectiveness of the workout.

The weight is chosen in such a way that the last repetition is given with physical effort. Don’t confuse this with pain, which indicates the need to finish the exercise. The accuracy of weight selection is checked by performing three sets of 8-12 repetitions.

In the initial stage, it is always better to use the minimum weight, both for barbells and dumbbells. Initially, this is the ideal weight for beginners. If the exercise feels too easy without compromising technique, they will gradually start increasing the weight.

For abdominal muscle exercises (leg raises, crunches, hyperextensions, etc.), it is recommended to do 3-5 sets, each with 20-25 repetitions. Planks are held for 30 to 60 seconds. Rest between sets should be 1-2 minutes. For strength exercises, the break can be increased to three minutes.

Muscles adapt to loads over time. To continue progressing, gradually increase the workload. Of course, you cannot do this indefinitely, so after a few months, some exercises may feel more difficult.

What to do after training?

Experienced athletes highly recommend not delaying cooling down. If time is limited, you can go straight to the changing room. However, when planning to exercise at the gym, you should plan your workout schedule with a little extra time.

Skipping cool-down won’t cause harm, but it will help alleviate delayed muscle soreness. This is especially true for beginners, as muscle discomfort will be felt the next day. Rolling on a massage roller is a great way to cool down.

Static stretching after a workout allows you to move freely the next day after a strenuous workout. Just do 2-3 exercises, holding the position for 30-40 seconds in each exercise.

With the right approach, training at the gym without a coach will yield results. The key is to create a workout plan beforehand. If you come to the gym without thinking about what exercises to do, an uncoached visit will be in vain. By following a well-designed plan, you can quickly achieve desired results without an instructor.