Starting a new exercise can be daunting and exciting at the same time. There is a lot of information to take in and a lot of changes to take note of in your body. To make it easy, we have come up with specific steps you can take to ease into some of our favourite exercises.

Pull-Up
A pull-up is something we all wish to do with ease, however, it is a lot tougher than meets the eye. But fear not, let's take a look at how to set you up for your first pull-up.

Prep: Now you may just want to jump straight to the bar but unfortunately for you to get to that point, you need to make sure your body is ready for the exercise by doing other exercises in preparation. These include bent-over dumbbell rows which target the muscles in your back needed for a pull-up.
Progress: Now that you have reached the point where you are familiar with dumbbell rows, it's time to move to inverted bodyweight rows. You can use a barbell for this at the gym. This will get you close to a pull-up whilst still having the support of your heels on the ground. After this, you can also begin to try assisted pull-ups with a partner or with a resistance band.
End Goal: Once you are comfortable with the motion of a pull-up, this is where you can approach the bar for a real one. At this stage, you will be ready for advanced exercises such as bar hangs, top holds, negative pull-ups, and a real pull-up.

Deadlifting
One of the best and most popular exercises is the deadlift. Be careful though, without the proper technique, it's easy to hurt your lower back. Follow these steps to start:

Prep: The number one thing to know about deadlifting is that form is everything. Keeping your back flat, your core engaged and your knees slightly bent will give you the strength to make the lift.
Progress: Before doing a proper deadlift, start by learning to perform hip hinges without the bar. Once you are familiar with that, you can include the bar with no weights to do your first lift.
End goal: Now that you know how to do a deadlift, the only thing left to do is fit it into your workout and make small, consistent improvements. If you are unable to perform the movement without your form breaking down, you will know the weights you have chosen are too heavy.

Yoga
Yoga is a practice anybody can participate in at any skill level which makes this a great choice for beginners.

Prep: Joining a yoga class is your first step. We have many classes to book from on our class timetable. To prepare for your first class, make sure you bring a sweat towel, water bottle, and yoga mat if you would prefer not to use one supplied by the gym.
Progress: Choose a short, beginner class so you can get a feel for the movements and breathing techniques used in the practice.
End goal: Yoga benefits the mind, body and soul - and because you're in control of your practice, the risk of injury is lower than in more high-intensity classes. You will also benefit from becoming more connected to your body, how it moves, and where you need to focus on to improve your strength and flexibility - over time your body will tell you!

Don't get left wondering and guessing what it would be like to try these exercises, just follow these tips and give it a go!