At the end of a recent Zumba class, a woman I’ve spoken with before but don’t know very well came up to me and said she follows me on Instagram, and that watching me train makes her feel sort of like she’s doing it along with me.
I thanked her, then asked if she’s lifting weights now too, in addition to doing cardio classes.
She said, almost sheepishly, “Well, yes, but nothing like you. I’m only using dumbbells.”
(I’ll add parenthetically here that most of my training right now is on dumbbells or machines—very few barbells in sight, and when they do appear in my program, the weight is very light. But that’s beside the point.)
“That’s great!” I told her. “Everybody starts somewhere, and dumbbells are the perfect way to do that. The point is that you’ve started.”
I said that, and I meant it. But I also understood where she was coming from, because I very much know the feeling of being intimidated by people who are more experienced or stronger. I feel that quite often, in fact.
