I get asked quite often about where to start when it comes to working out. What all should you do? How often should you go, and what weights should I use? These are all really valid questions, but the question I actually want to zoom in on this week on our blog is: which is better for a beginner, a home gym or an actual big-box gym?

Let's begin by defining our terms. Home gyms can really fluctuate depending on how much money you have to spend and how many years you've spent building it up. For example, when I say I have a home gym, I mean I have a fully functioning squat rack, Smith machine with cables, TRX straps, dumbbells, and an adjustable bench to use, along with some other miscellaneous supplies. Others say they have a home gym, and what they actually have is two 5 lb dumbbells and a yoga mat. I'm not saying that the latter is bad, but this is often the equipment that most beginners have access to.

With that in mind, here's my honest take on where you should be if you're new to exercise.

The first thing to consider is that something is always better than nothing. Simply moving your body a few days a week by going on walks or doing some air squats is phenomenal, especially if you aren't currently doing anything. If, however, your goal is to build or at least protect your muscle mass, I think that the vast majority of people can benefit from being in an actual big-box gym. The reason for that is pretty simple: big-box gyms have exercise machines that you will never have in your home.

For example, one of my absolute favorite pieces of equipment for someone who's new to the gym is a machine chest press. Unlike a barbell bench press, this machine doesn't require you to lay flat on your back, which is extremely helpful for someone who may be overweight or older.

Another benefit of this machine is that it forces you to move in a very fixed plane of motion, so you can think more about pushing the machine and less about balance and coordination. Not that those are bad things to focus on. You should eventually work on those as well, but for most beginners, my primary focus is simply trying to make them a little bit stronger before trying to make them more coordinated and athletic, to build confidence and consistency in showing up for their exercise way before doing anything overly complicated.

Another reason a big-box gym will be very helpful for most beginners is that it will make it so that the first few workouts you do won't require you to be super huffy and puffy. You can simply pick one chest exercise, one back exercise, and one leg exercise, do two or three sets of each of those, and then maybe go on a brisk walk on the treadmills before going home.

You should be able to do all of this in about 30 to 45 minutes, depending on how long you walk for. The feeling you should have leaving the gym is that you definitely did something, but by no means are you a puddle of sweat on the floor questioning your life choices. You're not trying to be super sore the next day, you aren't trying to relive your high school or college workouts, you accomplished your goal, which was to show up and move.

While I could continue to make an objective case for why a big-box gym is really useful for beginners, I think it's also important to recognize that there's quite a bit of anxiety and fear for a lot of people when they think about going into a gym. They worry about looking dumb because they don't know where the machines are or how to use them. They worry about feeling uncomfortable in workout clothes around other people. A lot of the times, there is a fear of simply not being "worthy" to be in a gym because they are so out of shape.

If this is you, I want to speak directly into that fear. As your brother in Christ, I would invite you to do an examination of conscience as to the root cause of that fear. Is there a wound from your past? Is it simply your pride getting in the way of something potentially very good for you? What's the actual reason you don't want to go?

My goal here isn't to shame you into going to the gym or to make you feel like your home workouts aren't enough. That's not what I'm saying. I'm simply arguing the point, which I truly believe in, that a lot of beginners can really benefit from a big-box gym setting.

Now to the next question of how do you pick a gym? Most gyms will offer a day trial pass (along with them trying to sell you some personal training package). Here's what I tell my clients when they're shopping around for a gym: find two or three that are relatively close to you and try them out for a day at your preferred workout time. Pro tip: most gyms will be packed anytime after 4 p.m., so just know that going in.

If you do try a new gym and find that the culture isn't for you, that's okay. Try the next gym out and see what you think. If you only have one gym that's reasonable to get to, and you don't love the culture (but it's not awful), this is when I would suggest you wear a ball cap and throw some soundproof headphones on so you can just lock in and get your work done.

The last practical piece of advice I would give is that most people at the front desk of a gym are usually decently nice people. If you're on our app or have some kind of game plan going in as to what exercises to do, but you don't know where the equipment is, simply ask. Show them the app and the exercises you want to do, and ask them if they can point you in the right direction and show you around the gym before you commit to your workout. This helps you feel a little less awkward in the gym because you know exactly where you need to be.

At the end of the day, my most pressing concern is that you're doing something rather than nothing. If you have a decent home gym setup with some adjustable dumbbells and an adjustable bench, you can get fantastic results with just that, as long as you show up consistently. If you don't have those things and aren't willing to invest, or maybe you do have those things but the balancing coordination piece is a little bit off or they've been collecting some serious dust, then consider getting to a big-box gym, laying in a foundation, and then going in from there.