I have total workout fear. When I was marathon training over the summer I would be so embarrassed to walk on the popular running tra by my house. Then I realized that the only person who cared I I walked …. Was me.

I’m ’embarrassed’ right now. I know it sounds silly but, i just joined a new, smaller gym that is closer to my house and i’m scared to death to go in and lift weights in front of the guys. I’m guessing the only way i’m gonna get over it is suffering through it until i’m comfortable.

Furhusband and furwife? Hahahaha! Sometimes I call my dogs boyfriend and girlfriend, sometimes best friends, and sometimes brother and sister. I’m sure they have a complex.

I put off going to yoga for years because I feared humiliation, and then a friend invited me. It was love at first class- no one was judgmental at all. The other students were concentrating on their own practices and the teacher genuinely wanted to help. Now I go every week! You just have to make that first leap and realize it’s not that bad!

I really like to have someone else who already knows the ropes show me around or how to do something etc. I dont feel it so much when out running or in the pool or even in a class, but i DEF feel it in the gym, even if its a gym Ive been to before. I tend to get on a cardio machine and then try to surreptitiously watch the other people on machines etc to figure out how things work so I can walk up to it like I know what Im doing. And in general, I am NOT a self conscious person but dude the gym can be super intimidating!

Back stoke thought – be careful with your shoulders. Pros reach waaay the hell out there with their reach – you can too – but your shoulders might hate you for it! In freestyle and breast stroke your shoulders can warm up as you go – in back stroke, Ive found I need to make sure I have really warmed up and stretched my shoulders first otherwise they are tweaked by the end. 🙁

Practicing back stroke alone is great b/c you can bump off the bouys so that if you have to circle swim you will be more comfortable with it even if other people are in your lane.

Congrats on a successful foray in to a new stroke!! I’ve never been pregnant before, but I would think side stroke might be a good one to learn next! Its great for triathlons if you need to “take a break” but want to keep forward progress.

I get easily embarrassed too, especially since I can be really competitive while not necessarily showing it!

I feel like I’m the most awkward exerciser out there. I try not to focus on my odd behavior and just try to be me. Heck, I fell when we were in NY a few weeks ago. I thought I would have been embarrassed, but I got right up and moved on. I kinda like this being me thing.

I totally can suffer from workout embarrassment! I NEVER used to swim because I felt like the lifeguards were all making fun of me. Even now, I feel a little uncomfortable if I know I’m the only one in the pool. When I try new things at the gym and feel silly, I can understand why some newbies never make it to the gym in the first place…it can be intimidating! But your right, no one is watching you, they are too busy being silly themselves!

I’m a swimmer, and I can honestly say I have NEVER noticed anyone else’s swim mechanics unless they are sharing a lane with me. You get so involved in your own swim, paying attention to pacing, counting strokes, breathing, etc that the only time I notice other swimmers is it they are about to slam into me! Also, swimming doesn’t come naturally to everyone, but the more to get our there are work on it, the easier it becomes. Happy swimming 🙂

I exercise at home (er, well, I did until I fell off the exercise wagon and got run over by it forever ago…but my NY ressie is to get back on the wagon!) because my face gets REALLY RED when I do cardio. I get so red in the face that when hubby and I used the resort gym on our honeymoon, I had three people come over to ask if I was okay! I don’t know why it happens…I don’t feel like I’m breathing any harder than most people would when they exercise, and my heart rate is within a normal range; I think being fair skinned and of Irish descent has something to do with it (that’s what my Google searches tell me, anyway) but I get red faced enough that I don’t want to exercise in public because it just makes me self conscious and not want to exercise as hard. At least at home I can give it 100% and know that nobody is next to me wondering if I’m having a heart attack or something, lol. We have a treadmill and an elliptical at home, and I have lots of cardio DVDs and strength training DVDs so I can still get in a well rounded workout…once I get back on that wagon I mentioned earlier 😉

I like spinning in the morning when the instructors keep the lights off so it’s dark and no one can see how much I sweat!

I know exactly what you mean, but as someone who was a competitive swimmer for many years and also a coach of the pre team (kids under seven) I can honestly say that a) everyone runs into the laneropes periodically and b) no one will ever laugh at you!!! I was a competitive swimmer with many years of exregularly it backstroke was my weakest stroke and I regularly ran into the ropes. In addition to the tips you already mentioned you can also practice some “drills” to help your stroke and help you swim in a straight line. “six kick switch” is a good one – one arm by your side and one straight behind you like you’re frozen mid stroke, hold for six kicks and “switch” by completing the stroke and rolling to the other side. This helps practice rotating your body on the “long axis” for freestyle and backstroke. Focus on moving from your hips and keeping your body aligned from there, don’t “wiggle” from your waist (if that makes sense). Hope that helps!