Ever wanted to do weight training at the gym but feel a bit clueless as to what you’re doing? How do you know which exercises to put together to balance which muscles are being used? How do you know that you’ve got the form correct? How do you know what the right amount of reps is? Or what is too much? Cue: nobs gym guide.

It’s called nobs as in no bullsh*t and what they mean with that is there’s none of that calorie counting, exercise as punishment, hating your body bs. The idea is that training should be healthy for your body, both physically and mentally, so it doesn’t put insane amounts of pressure on you or pretend that real life doesn’t exist. Things will probably get in the way of a set plan but that’s okay, ’cause you’re doing your best!

The guide itself is simply about the training (although there is a nutrition guide you can read if you’d like to). You download an app which shows you clearly what to do with handy video guides. As you work your way through the exercises you can check them off. I found that really helpful in knowing the balance of my work out duration and I also found it motivational on my more sluggish days because I just had to make it through all my tasks before giving up and leaving the gym (which happens sometimes if I don’t have a plan).

So speaking of life getting in the way (lol) it definitely did for me on this 12-week training guide which I started in November *face palm*. There were injuries, moving house, laser eye surgery, holidays, super busy work weeks and the bloody coronavirus which meant time off-plan but, eventually, I found a way to finish the plan from home with my makeshift equipment and some exercise alternatives. So, it took me ages and I felt a bit down about that til my friend reminded me that the whole pressure thing is kinda the point. Life happens, people!

So here’s what I really liked about nobs gym guide 1.0

• I like being told what to do in my work out – it’s too much effort/I don’t know how to vary my gym activity / how much is enough / what is an even balance of exercise for your different muscles
• I like having a specific quantity of reps I must complete before checking it off the list and leaving the gym, it means I don’t slack when I can’t be bothered
• I like how easy the app is to use and that there are videos for each exercise if you get stuck on what your form should look like
• It taught me a lot of new exercises and led me to use gym equipment that I probably wouldn’t have touched without someone to help me
• I like that it was flexible and on my own terms, like yes, I followed the plan but also, as you can see from the above when life got in the way I didn’t lose out on my money or ruin the plan, I could just pick it up again when things settled
• It’s good vibes and following nobsguides and its creator Lucy on Instagram was helpful to remind me of that (she also puts some free workouts up on Insta so worth checking those out!)
• There’s no restrictive or vilifying approach to food, which is great because I love food, I don’t believe in restricting yourself and can’t be arsed counting calories
• It’s great value for money – the guide costs £45 in total and since it gives you 44 workouts, that’s basically £1 per workout – even better really because it’s a one-off payment and you could go through the plan again and again if you wanted to

There’s also a second gym guide available as well as a home guide which will help you to work out without even needing a gym – which I’m definitely considering now we’re in lockdown for the foreseeable. Thank you Lucy – I’m a proud Nob!

UPDATE: I did the nobs home guide 1.0 – read about it here!

Find out more about nobsguides here.