Men of reddit, what made you start going to the gym?

48 comments

1. Wanted to be a muscular hunk ever since I was a kid. Achieved the dream.

2. I like being lean, I don’t mean stage lean though. I fluctuate between 10-15% on my cut/bulks. But when I started, it meant that I’d be too skinny without enough lean mass. Now I love it and it’s for life. I want to gain as much size/strength my genetics will allow.

   Plus it forces you to eat nutritiously, which will keep your energy levels high, hormones raging and skin looking its best.

3. Want to lose weight

4. I was 300 pounds, lost 140 of it with diet and a bit more activity.

   Lost too much muscle mass, had to go to gym to get it back.

5. Tfw no gf

6. (pre)anemia and the desire to hit hard and explosive while boxing 🥊

7. Wife is nearly 10 years younger than me, so, ya…

8. Started back in highschool with friends. I keep going because I own a mirror and recognize I have reasonable control on what I see reflected back. I also like to be fit enough to do anything I want to do (hike a mountain, go snowboarding, fit in a airplane seat, etc.) and want to continue to have the ability to do physical things for as long as absolutely possible. 

9. I wanted to get laid.

10. Group of friends from work wanted to sign up and asked me to join. They quit after 2 weeks but I stuck with it.

11. My Initial reason and current reason are completely different.

    At first I wasn’t happy with my body, looked too scrawny and young. I wanted to be more attractive to the ladies and my own self. So I worked on adding muscle and eating better. Overtime, I achieved everything I wanted. After awhile, the feelings just kept reminding me of my kid self. Realized from a young age that challenging physical activities made me feel alive and happier, also loved the competitive feeling of improving. Sports, running, teaming and competing with friends is the true joy. Gym feels the same. We’re animals after all, we get grumpy when we become couch potatoes. I can feel the negative effect on my body and mind of taking a long break from any physical activities. It’s like i’m less sociable and an asshole

    I get more respect socially, I look good in clothes, hot naked, more baddies wanna talk to me, i feel stronger and optimistic, I have more energy, more confidence which means more sociable and positive.

    There’s literally no cons

12. I was tired of being overweight for years and saw a life ahead of me that seemed very depressing. I was in a miserable relationship with someone overweight at the time and knew that if I continued down this path I would be in this relationship forever. I lacked so much self confidence and decided that if I was going to talk to girls and get the girls I found attractive then something needed to change. So I started lifting brah.

13. Tbh becoming more attractive and wanting a healthier lifestyle.

14. Age

15. Got dumped by a very long term partner, which sent me into spiraling depression. So I started prioritizing my physical health while working on my mental health. I needed to be in control of something and needed something to keep myself busy in a constructive way.

16. So I could be hot for my wife. She’s so hot, I have to match her!

17. I got increasingly self conscious of my scrawny runner build and being the smallest guy everywhere.

18. Fat

19. It’s where my wife isn’t.

20. I was addicted to adderall then meth for over a year. One day I looked in the mirror and hated what I saw, I stood on the scale and I was down to 140lbs at 6’2 from 190lbs (played HS football so I had a fair amount of muscle). I quit meth and started going back to the gym that same week. The gym basically saved my life and I’m still bodybuilding 13 years later.

21. Was underweight, sickly.. didn’t like how weak I was, didn’t like how thin I was.

22. Try to get a hot body for revenge on my ex gf thinking she could find better. Alright girl, go find better ✌🏻

23. I’m fat and I don’t want to be anymore.

    Specifically, I’m a dad now and I want to be around for my kid as long as I can. I already quit smoking. Losing 30-40lbs and getting in shape is my next challenge.

    Plus I want to look good in pictures.

24. Happy place

25. Break up. Had to move back with my parents. Needed something to do occupy myself plus wanted to “invest” in myself

26. I am skinny, plus needed something to do when I got sober. I had all these energy from not drinking and woke up early. It was a nice “waste of time” to go the gym. Plus you start to feel really good about yourself and I loved the way my body felt. I was also going through a divorce so it helped with coping with my emotions and keeping me from being depressed.

27. My health and physical appearance

28. Wanted to look good naked. But no one wanted to see me naked so I stopped.

29. Divorce

30. I joined the rugby team in high school, but I was a 6’2″ 140lbs beanpole and I wanted to put on some size

31. My uncle had a heart attack and he isn’t that much older than me so I figured it was time to worship the pump

32. I’ve always been active and used to be a regular lifter but got content like 3-4 years ago and stopped working out. Dropped down to 111 lbs last year from just being too lazy to eat. I’ve never been that light in my adult life so it freaked me out. 8 months later after consuming 3000-4000 calories a day, working out 6 days a week, and watching Sam Suleks channel, I’m now 153 lbs and counting. My old clothes are starting to not fit me anymore, I’ve blown all my previous maxes out of the water, and people compliment me every day about my transformation. Highly recommend. If you’re in a rut or just lost, its simply the best thing you can do for your conscience. I also want to add that Sam Suleks video’s have really allowed me to hold myself to a higher standard and his personality is my vibe so I think his videos are a pretty big factor. There’s also some really good info you can get from him if you don’t know much.

33. I hate myself

34. Hating the man in the mirror.

35. Saw a picture of myself with family and my weight was getting out of control. Didn’t want to end up 300+ lbs like them

36. I wanted to be treated like a sex object by shallow women.

37. Originally to get stronger. Now it’s because if I don’t get my endorphins from workouts I start feeling suicidal again

38. Heartbreak

39. I legitimately want to be the cool grandfather to my future grandkids who physically plays with them when/we visit. My grandfather played with MY kids at the park when we visited until he was 85.

40. I was referred to as bean pole and got picked on. I graduated HS at 5’8, maybe 135lbs. I’m now 5’11, 235.

41. I was underweight, like bad. 113lbs, I was gaming like 9+ hrs. Eating is not so good, of course. Fast forward 10 year’s. I can’t go without a workout, and I’m up to 170 lbs. And it helps with mental health, too. It’s never too late, people.

42. Started working out after I got cheated on and was horribly depressed. It helps.

43. I started working out with my dad as a teenager. I had low self esteem as a kid and my confidence got a massive boost when I started to see results from the work I was putting in.

    Friends noticed, girls looked at me different, I even looked at myself different.

    The gym is too much for me nowadays though. Between the obnoxious culture and tripods everywhere…I’m not trying to be a part of someone’s TikTok of themselves filming their ass crack while they do squats. I just wanna get in, do my thing, and leave.

    I invested in a home gym. Best decision I ever made.

44. My cousin forced me right after high school. After 2 months of mediocre training, I gained over 15 pounds of muscle (i was really underweight at the time). Once people started pointing out my gains, I became a gym rat. 16 years later, I still lift and love it even more. Also, it has never gotten me laid. But it has boosted my confidence thanks to compliments from the gym bros and gay dudes.

45. My wife.

    She said I couldn’t pee in the sink anymore so I do it at the gym.

46. Was fat and insecure. Went to the gym. Lean and muscular now, but insecure.

47. I lost over 100 lbs after deciding I wanted to see what my body could actually do.

    In weight loss I realized that you don’t get others to like you by looking better. You get others to like you by liking yourself.

48. A close female friend told me I would be irresistible, if I just worked more on my physical form.. That one motivation from her, has made me really hit the gym hard, lol.