Episode 16
Facing Gym Anxiety – How to Start When You're Scared
Published: 29/07/2025
Podcast Host: Rhiannon Cooper
Listen on YouTube: https://youtu.be/VXBcZPXBz-4
Episode Summary
This episode of the Not So Typical Fitness Podcast is all about gym anxiety – the fears, the what-ifs, the sensory overload, and the overwhelming pressure that can stop you from even walking through the gym doors.
Whether you're autistic, ADHD, highly anxious, or simply feeling unsure, this episode is your reminder that:
You are not alone
You are not doing anything wrong
And it is OK to start scared
I share my own story of walking into a gym while feeling sick with anxiety, the things no one tells you about gym culture, and how to build a plan that actually works for your brain and body.
What You'll Learn in This Episode:
What gym anxiety really feels like for neurodivergent and anxious people
Why the idea of needing to “look fit” before joining a gym is complete rubbish
Home workouts vs gym workouts: how to decide what’s right for you
Realistic steps to break through decision paralysis
Why you don’t need expensive gear to get started
The three things you can do today to take action
Free Resource: Download the Gym Anxiety Toolkit
If you're putting off starting because you're overwhelmed, download my free Gym Anxiety Toolkit.
This neurodivergent-friendly PDF includes:
✅ A quiet-time gym planner
✅ A sensory support checklist
✅ A beginner-friendly workout script
✅ An encouragement tracker
...and more!
Listener Homework
Decide: Would you rather start at home or in the gym?
Tell someone – or leave a comment to share your decision with me.
Schedule your first session in your calendar (even if it’s a YouTube workout or just a walk).
Let’s Connect
If this episode helped you, please share it, leave a review, or message me directly. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
And remember: You become confident by starting. One step, one rep, one choice at a time.
Show up. Stay you. Let’s get started.
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Rhiannon Cooper (00:00)
if that's you, take a second right now, take a second. And today, as you feel, would you rather go to a gym to do
your workout or would you rather go home to do your workout? Because there is an answer there. It's not about which one you want to do long term, just think today, which one would you rather do? And that is your answer.
Welcome to the next episode of the Not So Typical Fitness Podcast. I'm your host Rhiannon Cooper, and I am a qualified personal trainer with autism and ADHD. And I specialize in helping neurodivergent or anxious people get started on their own health and fitness journey. This is the podcast for people who feel excluded from traditional fitness spaces through
their anxieties or sensory overwhelm, or because they just don't know how to get started. So this podcast is for anybody who wants to learn how to prioritize your health in a way that works for you, because we are all different. And what will work for someone will not necessarily work for
This week, we are discussing gym anxiety and facing gym anxiety, because it's hard. It's hard when all you want to do is make change.
but everything inside yourself is screaming at you that you can't do it. It's the what ifs, the worries, it's the fear that you don't belong. And that is what we are going to work through today.
we are going to hopefully create a plan for you to move forward in this episode.
I start, I'm going to ask you to please share this with your
I want to help people. I want to help more people get started on their health and fitness journey. I have had a ⁓ fire put under me at the moment because I am being trolled horrifically online on TikTok and Instagram in because people look at my weight and my size and they say, you're not a personal trainer. You can't be a personal trainer. You're a fraud. Well, I am a personal trainer and I specialize in helping the people.
that are afraid of people like the trolls who exist within the fitness industry. And so today, if you don't do anything else, share some piece of this podcast, share a snippet, tell someone about it, because I truly feel that when we can remove this fear of fitness, we can improve our lives. I think fitness has saved my life and I...
would just implore you to share it with somebody in your life because you never know. Someone might look like they aren't suffering anxiety. They might look like they are confident and aren't afraid or fearful at the way they look. It's not always the case. We don't know how somebody is struggling, especially when it comes to mental health. And sometimes people need a push of gentle encouragement to start something.
that could make a huge difference to
Back to the main point though of today, which is basically what to do if all you want to do is join a gym or get started on your health and fitness journey and you just can't do
episode really is for anybody feeling stuck, overwhelmed, afraid, and just worried about all the things that we can't prepare for when it comes to going somewhere new.
I have made a gym anxiety toolkit. So if this episode resonates with you,
go and download that from the extended show notes. It's a, I think six page guide and it covers things like a checklist to get started, just going to the gym, things that you might want to consider if you're neurodivergent or anxious that might not be on other traditional checklists when you do a search online.
if you have been putting off getting started because you're waiting to be ready, you're waiting for the right time, well, the right time never comes. The right time never comes. So it's just about feeling able to start whatever your situation currently is.
as always,
this is a podcast that is full of real talk and does touch on topics that some people may struggle with. I talk about mental health and depression. So listener discretion potentially here. But as with all my podcasts, I try and keep them motivational. I don't like to dwell on the negative.
and challenges and rather we look forwards and we make a plan. So.
Gym anxiety is ⁓ real. mean, I know so many people. In fact, every person I know that's joined a gym, especially later in life, have all experienced gym anxiety of some level or of some sort. for some people, it might be the first few times they go, they're just feeling really nervous. It might be that they struggle to ask for
When you're neurodivergent or if you suffer with anxiety,
goes beyond that.
normal neurotypical level of anxiety to something that can actually stop you doing the thing you really want to do. So it is a blocker, a barrier, a challenge that sometimes stops you before you've even got going.
way in which we can
move forward is to acknowledge that our blocker is anxiety. When we acknowledge it,
we can then put steps in place to not combat it, but to prevent it from derailing our plan.
know how awful it can be to get started on your fitness journey.
Three years ago when I walked into a gym for the first time, I wanted to cry, I felt sick. I really didn't want to be there. It was awful. You can hear about my journey in a previous episode of the Not So Typical Fitness podcast. It just wasn't nice.
then I realized it's not that it just wasn't nice because it was new.
It was the sensory overwhelm of the noise of weights clanging, of people all being smaller than me and staring at me, of me not knowing how to do things, not knowing that actually I was allowed to be in the gym as well. And it sounds so trivial. Of course you can go in the gym. Of course anybody can go into a gym. And of course they can. We know that logically. We know that if we look at something and remove anxiety,
We know that we can go in a place.
But when you're struggling with your mental health, all of these things, they become this huge nightmare where you feel like every single person is judging you. Every single person is looking at you and you need to look like them in order to be in the gym. There's this weird philosophy, not philosophy, this weird just thing going around that says you can.
you need to lose weight before you join a gym. No you don't, you can join a gym whatever size you are.
feelings, not stereotypes but ingrained fears, they just rule over our logic brain.
you're not alone essentially is what I'm trying to say. If you suffer with anxiety, if you
are worried about the sensory overwhelm, if you're noise sensitive, light sensitive, if you don't like busy places, I know it to be true, I've experienced it a lot. And I would say all of my clients experience it too.
So even as a personal trainer, I can still struggle to go into a new gym, I can, a new one.
doesn't go away, but what I can do now is work around that anxiety, I can give it a name and I can put...
coping strategies in place essentially to not let it interfere and to stop me on my own health and fitness journey.
definitely get easier. It's just about learning how to...
Navigate it. It's about learning how to navigate it.
Some of you might be thinking, I want to start my health and fitness journey. I'm ready. The time is
You found a trainer that you like the look of, but you don't know whether you want to join a gym and have in-person sessions or work out from home. And I'll be honest, there are pros and cons to both. I started my weight loss journey at home and then I moved into a gym. It was to do with my confidence and my desire to try new equipment and machines that
I couldn't have at home. I couldn't buy a leg press and have that home. I don't have a home gym. I basically had a yoga mat and a pack of or a set of dumbbells from Amazon. I had a one, two and three kilogram pair and two kettlebells. And you can absolutely get started at home with minimal equipment. And to be honest, there are so many body weight movements you can do where you don't even need to go and purchase any weights.
Now when you go to a gym, you get access to a lot more in terms of the equipment, the weights, the size, the space that you can use. You'll have dedicated areas for different sorts of exercises. But obviously you've got the added cost of a gym membership. You've got fuel, parking potentially, travel. Then you've got other people. And it's a toss up between the comfort of home, but more limited.
access to equipment or an unfamiliar gym with potential triggers, noise, smell, lighting. And it can be really hard to make a decision. As a neurodivergent person, I know I've spoken about this before, we get decision paralysis. It's like we cannot make a decision. So we can, I always use the example of where to go and eat if we want to go out for food. So I want to go out for food.
enjoy a meal out, but I cannot make a decision. I have to defer to somebody else. And for some of you, the thing holding you back is that decision because the time is as right as it will ever be. We know that there's no perfect time, but you just can't make that decision. Do you go to the gym or do you stay at home? And when you're at home, you've got less pressure. You've got more control. There is less distractions.
or maybe more distractions depending on how you look at it. No commute, but you've got such limited access to equipment. When you go to the gym, you've probably got all the equipment you could want. If you go to a big 24 hour gym, you will have most things. Most things will be there. But then you get the concern over the amount of people, the busyness, you have the potential to be overwhelmed and all of those what ifs.
This can be a really simple decision sometimes because you find a personal trainer and they only do in-person sessions. Great. It's simple answer. They're in person. That's what you do.
My approach and other personal trainers approach can be both online or in person in a gym, or it can be online coaching for somebody remotely who then can do it at home or in a gym. There's lots of decisions to be made.
The most important thing though, is that if you're in that place where you're ready to make a change, you just need to commit to one or the other. It will never be the perfect decision because there'll always be the grass is greener on the other side, it costs more or it's more distracting, it's less distracting. But what I would advise you to do is chat with the person that you want to train with.
and the right place is going to be whichever one you go for, provided you actually start. Because I know people that have been umming and ah-ing over this gym or home for six months, and we're six months down the line, and they've not been able to start. And I always come at my clients from a
a place of care, I want them to feel safe and secure because that is how I can then push them to see progress. But none of that matters if you can't actually get
So
take a second right now, take a second. And today, as you feel, would you rather go to a gym to do
your workout or would you rather go home to do your workout? Because there is an answer there. It's not about which one you want to do long term, just think today, which one would you rather do? And that is your answer. Because the right place to start
is wherever you are actually going to start.
And then in six months time, you're six months into your programme as opposed to being six months down the line without being any further along.
So if you chose home, that's great because we've made a decision. So yes, fantastic. Now, obviously all of those things, all of the worries about equipment and about getting it right, you do not need expensive stuff to start. You do not need it. Whether you're at home or the gym, you don't need to buy the most expensive set of trainers. You don't need a matching gym outfit from Gymshark. You just need to be comfortable.
Benefit from doing exercise at home, for instance, is it doesn't really matter what you wear. Nobody's looking at you, just you, no one. And in a gym, to be honest, we think people are looking at us, but they're not. They're so focused on themselves and their own progress that they are not paying attention. But if you need a list, you just need a good pair of trainers, supportive trainers. You want...
comfortable clothes, maybe a moisture wicking top. So this is from Sainsbury's, it's not expensive. I think I got it in the sale for three pounds. And for those of you that are just listening, I'm wearing a light blue, active wear tank top, vest, I don't know what it's called, piece of clothing on my upper body. It's not expensive, but it does the job.
Headphones would be good too. If you're going to a gym and you want to be able to tune out distractions, then some good quality headphones would not go amiss.
Now, if you're at home, the only equipment you really need is you, to be honest. It's you and being motivated to do something.
I just want to highlight that this isn't about having the perfect conditions. It is just about starting.
And this isn't one of those things
Nike says where it's like, just do it. I'm not talking about just do it because that's pressure and that's not the place I come from. But what I am talking about is you cannot see progress unless you start. So you need
by step work through what you need to do to start.
So the what ifs and the fear of the gym. Yes, it's crippling anxiety sometimes and there are so many fears. What if you're judged? What if somebody laughs at you? What if somebody calls you a horrible name?
What if you fall over? What if you trip over? What if you don't do something right? What if you pick up something wrong? What if you do something wrong? What if you can't keep up in a class? What if you pass out? What if you have a panic attack? There are so many things. But a lot of these fears come from how we are perceiving other people to be judging us.
And if somebody laughs at you, that's somebody else's action. Now, when people go to the gym, they are going to improve themselves. They're not going to watch other people. If they are, they're awful people and you need to report them. But most people are going because they want to improve their body. They want to improve their health. Actually, everybody is going for the same reason as you. And I can bet you when people first start at the gym, everybody has felt those same, what if, I do it wrong, what if.
somebody laughs at me. People don't. It is actually quite supportive once you get going.
comparison, I've said this a lot this week, comparison is the thief of joy. You do not need to compare yourself to the person on the bench next to you. You do not need to compare yourself to your friend that joined a gym a year ago. You do not need to compare yourself to a personal trainer. You do not need to compare yourself to anybody else in that gym. Why? Because you go for you. This is a decision.
that you make to prioritise your health in a way that works for you, for yourself. And if other people compare themselves against you, let them. They can do that. We can't stop other people doing that, but what we can do is we can try and reframe our thoughts into the only person I am doing this for is myself.
You are allowed to go at your own pace. There's no rule. Yes, some personal trainers out there will be quite militant in their approach and they'll tell you to push harder. They'll say two more reps when you are doing the 12 that they've already said two more. And if that works for you, great. If it doesn't work for you, there's no shame in it. There is no shame in doing things slowly, in doing things in a way that feels manageable and sustainable.
It's your journey, your journey. No one else's. It's not your PT's, it's not your gym owners, it's not your gym buddy. It is your journey and your journey can look like whatever you want it to look like. If you want to do one session a week, do one session a week because that is more than doing nothing. And then you could build up to two a week and three and four and you find a balance that works for you.
It's your journey.
And remember, you're allowed to make the gym work for you.
all gyms are gonna have busy peak times. So try and go in a quieter time. Go when it's later and the after work crowd has died down or go in the middle of the day, but try and set yourself up to feel safe and comfortable. We don't need to feel uncomfortable and.
insensory overwhelm because, everybody goes to the gym after work. You don't need to be everybody because you are you.
Now you need to start now because you can spend the next six months just stuck in research mode
it can prevent you from making positive changes to your health.
But what you can do is make one small action today.
And if you don't start now, what might happen is your future self is still waiting. And in six months, in a year's time, you're the same as you are. And to me, I avoid the word failure because I don't think you can fail in life. I think that life gives you challenges and you have to navigate them. And often they're unexpected. But if you...
are struggling to get started
The only wrong decision that someone can make right now is by not starting at all and not making a decision.
are three things that I want you to do today. First of all, I want you to go look at the extended show notes and get yourself a copy of my gym anxiety toolkit
It's going to break down for you what you need to be considering before you even join the gym. And it will give you some tips and tricks to avoid sensory overwhelm. I want you to make a decision over whether you're going to start at home or at the gym. So do that thing, take a second. If you have to go do exercise now, do you want to go and do it at home or do you want to go and do it at the gym? That's your answer. Tell somebody. Tell somebody that then is making a commitment to yourself.
because you've let someone else in on your thoughts, on what you want to do that makes it real.
And if you've got no one to tell, leave a comment here about whether you're gonna do it at home or at the gym, and I will be your accountability person. You don't need to pay me, you don't have to be a client of mine, I just want to help you get started and get over the initial hurdle of decision paralysis that's preventing you from improving your health.
number three is...
schedule in your calendar, in your diary, in your phone, however you plan your time, schedule one session, which could be some yoga at home. It could be a YouTube video and you could do search terms like beginner, no equipment, home-based workout, no jumping. That's what I used to look for until I got the dumbbells. But there are so many workouts to find on YouTube. Or it might be that you're gonna go to the gym.
and you're gonna go for a walk on the treadmill. That's all you need to do, but it's a start. And what it does is it gets you in the environment and it starts to get your mind to identify the gym as a commitment. It's in your diary. Therefore you're going to go and do it.
It is okay for you to feel scared and
okay to still feel that way but be taking action.
check out the free gym anxiety toolkit.
But most importantly, just remember...
You become confident by starting.
and you can do that one step, one rep, and one decision or one choice at a time.
So until next time, show up, stay you, and let's get you started on your own health and fitness journey.
Quote of the Week
You don’t need confidence to start. You build it by starting scared.
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See you next week for another not-so-typical episode. 🩷
Permission to Not Be Perfect
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About Rhiannon:
Rhiannon Cooper is a qualified personal trainer with autism, ADHD, and a passion for making fitness accessible to neurodivergent people. She offers online and in-person training in Wolverhampton and runs the Not So Typical Fitness community.
Connect with Rhiannon:
Listen to the full episode: click here or watch the video below.
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We share both victories and challenges, supporting each other in ways that work for our unique brains and bodies.
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