By Vince DelMonte

Now that you’ve made the commitment to starting a workout program, the next step is choosing a gym that you will feel comfortable going to on a regular basis. If it isn’t, chances are you aren’t going to stick with any type of regular plan and will eventually just stop going altogether. By being sure your gym is a good fit for you, you help take yourself one step further to realizing your health and fitness goals.

Keep in mind that if a traditional gym isn’t for you, you can definitely set up a home gym where you can get complete workouts all in the privacy of where you live. There are a number of home gym systems out there that include all the equipment you need to perform all the key lifts that should be included in any workout program.

1. Location

Who really wants to spend twice as long driving to and from their gym as it takes them to do their workout? After a long day of work you are not going to want to spend a good hour fighting traffic, another hour working out, and then another half an hour driving home. Think about either choosing a gym that is located close to your house or else on the drive to or from work. This is a great option since if you have to pass by it every day, you’ll be reminded of the fact that you should be working out if you choose to skip it.

2. Membership Cost

Gym memberships can really vary in costs so it’s a good idea to shop around before making that final commitment. Also consider how long you are signing the contract for as this can vary too. Many gyms like to rope you in for years and if you aren’t quite sure it’s going to be a long-term arrangement, you’re better off finding something that is more short-term.

Additionally, if you can wait until around late summer or New Year to sign up, you will find that often many gyms will have special promotions going on at this time.

3. Membership Demographic

Another factor to consider is the membership demographic that goes to the gym. Some women will prefer going to an all-ladies gym as it increases their comfort factor. For others, a mixed gym is the perfect solution because half of the reason they go there is to socialize and perhaps even find a date.

Whatever your needs, make sure you enquire about this and take it into consideration.

4. Additional Benefits

You will want to ask if the gym offers any additional services or benefits along with your basic membership and if there is a fee for these. Such examples would be daycare services, physiotherapy, massage therapy, nutritional counselling, and fitness testing.

5. Operating Hours

Always be sure to check the hours of operation of the gym. If you are an early morning exerciser you will want to be sure they are able to cater to this preference. Additionally ask about their holiday policies. Many people enjoy working out on the holidays because it is a relaxed day for them when they can really get in a good workout. If you are looking forward to this and then go and find out the gym is closed, you are going to be more than disappointed. Similarly there are some people who prefer working out late at night so you need to be sure that if this is the case you will be able to do that.

6. Personal Training Services

Having some good, qualified personal trainers on hand is critical to helping you realize your full fitness potential. Even if you are fine with your program right now, consider that in a year down the road you might be plateauing and in need of a ‘check-up’ so to speak on your current regime.

Having the option available of knowledge staff cannot be stressed enough. Unfortunately many gyms hire almost anyone who has a basic interest in fitness, so be sure to enquire about the actual certifications these trainers hold.

7. Group Fitness Classes

Be sure to ask about all the various group fitness classes that are offered at the gym you are considering. Often, when boredom kicks in on your workout plan, this is just the thing to get you going again.

These days there are currently thousands of different fitness class styles available, so there is sure to be something that suites your interest.

When checking up on this, again inquire if there are any additional fees associated with it so you are prepared for when you go to sign up.

8. Cleanliness

One very important factor you want to look for is the cleanliness of the gym. You do not want to be working out on equipment that is not clean as gyms are a place where germs can be in high concentration. Also make sure they have towels and spray bottles in various places around the gym to clean up after workouts, and have a look at the bathrooms and change rooms to make sure they are up to your standards.

9. Type/Quality Of Equipment

Looking at the type and quality of the equipment offered in the gym is another thing you must factor in. If you prefer free weights, make sure there is a large number of dumbbells present because during rush hours, these could be hard to come by.

Likewise, if you prefer doing your weight training on guided machines, you’ll want to be sure they have enough variety that you can work all the necessary muscles on your body. If you find yourself doing a lot of cardio training as part of your workouts you will want to be sure there are ample machines available.

Nothing is more frustrating than getting to the gym after work to find out that there is not a single machine in sight available for you to use. Ask if they offer a sign-up list where you can write your name and time down to reserve a machine. This is a great solution that many gyms have now come up with to make sure their members can get their workouts in.

10. Cancellation Policy

Finally take a look at the gym’s cancellation policy. If you sign up for a 3 year membership and then end up moving after a year due to work, are you going to be partially refunded? It will be a bad situation if they offer no refund or transfer membership.

Some gyms are good about this and some are not so you will have to weigh the likelihood of your cancelling among other things that are discussed above when making your decision.

So, be sure you are considering all of these essential factors when choosing gym. Overlooking just one could lead you to being less than happy with your workout facility and this could end up being the reason why you do not stick with your program.

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of No Nonsense Muscle Building: Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain found at http://www.VinceDelMonteFitness.com

He specializes in teaching skinny guys how to build muscle and gain weight quickly without drugs, supplements and training less than before.

jon pall sigmarsson

Jón Páll Sigmarsson (April 28, 1960 – January 16, 1993) was a strongman, a powerlifter  , a bodybuilder and a weightlifter  from Iceland  who won the World’s Strongest Man Competition four times (1984, 1986, 1988, 1990). In 1984 Sigmarsson won the Icelandic bodybuilding  title in the +90 kg. class. His achievements in powerlifting also include Icelandic records in the bench press and the squat, but his best performances were usually in the deadlift  event, in which he set the European record many times and multiple world records in strongman competition deadlift variations, such as the rectangular handled wheel and one handed deadlift.

A famous quote from him is “there is no point in being alive if you cannot do the deadlift”. In a tragic irony, he died at the age of 32 while performing this exercise in the gym. He knew he had serious heart problems in his family and was aware of this weakness.

Once in a Strongman competition, someone in the audience called him an eskimo, then he shouted back: “I am not an Eskimo, I am a Viking!” Two other famous quotes are, “I am in seventh heaven” which was his translation of an Icelandic saying, and “Ekkert mál fyrir Jón Pál” which roughly translates as “It is no haul for Jon Paul”.

Competition history

Strength athletics

* World’s Strongest Man
o 1983 – 2nd
o 1984 – 1st
o 1985 – 2nd
o 1986 – 1st
o 1988 – 1st
o 1989 – 3rd
o 1990 – 1st

* World Muscle Power Championship
o 1985 – 1st
o 1986 – 1st
o 1987 – 2nd
o 1988 – 3rd
o 1989 – 1st
o 1990 – 1st
o 1991 – 1st
o 1992 – 3rd

* Europe’s Strongest Man
o 1983 – 3rd
o 1985 – 1st
o 1986 – 1st
o 1987 – 3rd
o 1988 – 2nd
o 1989 – 3rd
o 1990 – 4th
o 1992 – 4th

* Other contests
o 1982 Scandinavian Strongest Man – 1st
o 1985 Le Defi Mark Ten (Canada) – 3rd
o 1986 Le Defi Mark Ten (Canada) – 2nd
o 1987 Le Defi Mark Ten (Canada) – 5th
o 1987 Ultimate Challenge Competition – 1st
o 1987 Japan Grand Prix – 2nd
o 1987 Pure Strength – 1st
o 1989 Corby Great Eccleston (England) – 1st
o 1989 Iceland’s Kraftur Contest – 1st
o 1989 Scottish Power Challenge – 1st
o 1990 Nissan Power Cup – 1st
o 1990 European Muscle Power Championship
o 1991 European Hercules – 2nd
o 1992 European Hercules – 6th
o Iceland’s Strongest Man winner – 1985, 1990, 1991, 1992
o Finland’s Strongest Man winner – 1989, 1992

Powerlifting

* 1980 European Powerlifting Championships – 2nd
* 1981 European Powerlifting Championships – 2nd
* 1981 World Powerlifting Championships – 3rd
* 1983 European Powerlifting Championships – 1st

Highland games

* 1986 Carmunnock Highland Games (Scotland) – 7th
* 1986 Commonwealth Highland Games (Scotland) – 1st

Death

Jon Pall Sigmarsson died on the 16th January 1993 of a heart attack. He was working out in his gym in Iceland when he suffered the heart attack, caused, it is thought, by a torn aorta which was related to a weakened heart, a problem that was known to exist in his family.

Geoffrey Lewis Capes

Early life

Capes was born and brought up in Holbeach, Lincolnshire, one of nine children, and went to the local secondary school, George Farmer. He became a member of Holbeach Athletic Club where he was coached by Stuart Storey. After school he worked as a coalman and an agricultural labourer, being able to load twenty tons of dauphinoise potatoes in twenty minutes. He joined Cambridgeshire Constabulary in 1970, and remained in the police for ten years.

Competitive participation

Capes represented his country many times over 11 years, winning two Commonwealth Games and two Indoor European Championship titles, and put the shot 21.68 metres (71 ft. 3.5 in.) to gain the British and Commonwealth record. He is probably Britain’s best-known shot-putter. Geoff Capes is also the most capped British male athlete of all time, receiving 67 International caps, and returning 35 wins. At the 1980 Moscow Olympics he finished 5th in the final of the Shot put a result that left him numbed with disappointment. He also competed at the 1972 and 1976 Olympics at the latter, coming sixth having qualified for the final in the bronze position. Additionally he was a winner of 17 national titles and on top of his 67 GB vests wore 35 England vests. Capes ran 23.7sec for the 200m.

Capes turned professional in 1980 and went on to win five World Highland Games titles and other British and European contests. His positive image continued to grow with his outstanding performances in the World’s Strongest Man competition and other international strength athletics competitions. He was particularly known for his incredible hand and arm strength, easily tearing London telephone directories in half and bending rolled steel bars measuring over 1 inch in diameter and three feet in length.

World’s Strongest Man results

* 1980 – 3rd
* 1981 – 2nd
* 1982 – 4th
* 1983 – 1st
* 1984 – 3rd
* 1985 – 1st
* 1986 – 2nd

Life outside of sport

A persistent story about Capes is that in 1979, he stood in for friend and fellow strongman David Prowse to play the part of Darth Vader in several scenes during filming of The Empire Strikes Back  while Prowse recovered from an elbow injury. During an interview on BBC Radio Cleveland on 31 January 2007, Capes was asked about this and he stated that it never happened. Another story, told on Youtube by former wrestler Mark Rocco, is that John McEnroe picked him up and threw him to the ground after Capes challenged him to ‘wrestle’ on a training ground.

In 1985, the game Geoff Capes Strongman was released on the Amstrad CPC, the ZX Spectrum and the Commodore 64. The game featured truck pulling and tug-of-war, and allowed control of each muscle group.

Geoff is a former member of the Air Training Corps. He also appeared in the Tyne Tees Television programme Supergran in the episode “Supergran Grounded”.

After retiring from strength athletics in 1987, Capes continued his involvement; acting as a referee at strength competitions in the UK.

In 1998 he became a Justice of the Peace.

Geoff appeared on the fourth series of Shooting Stars, alongside Patsy Kensit, where he threw a bomb at Johnny Vegas.

In 2007 he became the face of Cadbury’s Wispa relaunch, appearing on bilboards and magazine advertisements, and is the patron saint of SELOC.

He now breeds budgerigars and has had much success (a former world champion) on the show bench with his Recessive Pieds. In 2008 he assumed the role of president of the Budgerigar Society, along with Mick Widdowson who is also a keen Budgie breeder and friend. He frequently appears in the pages of Cage & Aviary Birds.

Personal life

Capes currently lives in Chesterfield, Derbyshire and has a daughter Emma who was English Schools shot put  champion and Youth Olympics bronze medallist. His son Lewis played American football for the London Monarchs. He has four grandchildren. His Step-Niece currently attends Stanchester Community School and came 1st place two years running in the Shotput on Sports Day.

Bill Kazmaier

Strength Sports

In 1978, Kazmaier won the American powerlifting championship and the IPF world powerlifting championship. He won the IPF world championship again in 1983. In 1981, Kazmaier became the first person to bench press 300kg in competition. The 1981 event was the same competition in which he totaled 1,100 kg (2,425 lb). Best lifts= Squat-925lbs (done without a suit) 661Lbs bench press, and an 887Lbs. deadlift.

Kazmaier won the World’s Strongest Man title three times, in 1980, 1981, and 1982. After these victories, Kazmaier chose not to compete in the 1983 WSM due to it being held outside the USA, but after this was not invited back to compete in the WSM contest again until 1988, when he finished second to Jón Páll Sigmarsson. He finished fourth in his final WSM appearance in 1989.

Pro wrestling career

Kazmaier wrestled during the 1980s for promotions such as Stampede Wrestling and Continental Championship Wrestling. His biggest national exposure came when he debuted for World Championship Wrestling in 1991 at Halloween Havoc. He received several shots at Lex Luger’s WCW World Heavyweight Championship but failed to win the title. He also briefly teamed with Rick Steiner, only to lose to The Enforcers in a tournament final for the WCW World Tag Team Championship.

Life after competition

After his WCW days, Kazmaier opened a fitness club in Auburn, Alabama. The gym closed in 2005. After Kaz Fitness Center in Auburn, AL closed in 2005, Kazmaier opened, and continues to operate, S.W.A.T. gym in Opelika, Alabama. In recent years, he has appeared on ESPN as a commentator on World’s Strongest Man broadcasts.

Achievements

Professional Competitive Record – [1st (14),2nd (3) ,3rd (3) - Out of Total(21)]
Performance Metric – .967 [American - .970 International - .966]

COMPLETED CONTESTS

* United Kingdom Pure Strength 4 Team Challenge – winner (1990)
* United Kingdom World’s Strongest Man – 4th place (1989)
* Scotland Pure Strength 3 Team Challenge – 2nd place (1989)
* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1989)
* Iceland World’s Strongest Man – 2nd place (1988)

World Strongman Challenge – 3rd place (1988)

* United Kingdom Pure Strength 2 Team Challenge – winner (1988)

World Muscle Power Championships – winner (1988)

* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1988)
* Scotland Pure Strength – Ultimate Challenge – 2nd place (1987)
* Canada Le Defi Mark Ten Challenge – winner (1987)
* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1987)
* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1986)

World Muscle Power Championships – 3rd place (1985)

* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1985)
* Scotland Scottish Power Challenge – winner (1984)
* United States World’s Strongest Man – winner (1982)
* United States World’s Strongest Man – winner (1981)
* United Kingdom Strongbow Strongman – winner (1980)
* United States World’s Strongest Man – winner (1980)
* United States World’s Strongest Man – 3rd place (1979)