Free guide · Dermo Training

Overcome gym anxiety, build your confidence lifting and in the gym.

A free PDF guide for people-pleasers who struggle with gym anxiety and consistency. Squat rack setup, deadlifts, incline press — plus the tools to actually manage the anxiety that comes with all of it.

"I'm not a gym person." "I can never be consistent." "I'm just lazy."

When you step into an unfamiliar gym, your nervous system goes into protection mode — scanning for judgment, checking if you belong. There's a name for a lot of what you're feeling. This guide walks you through it, and gives you the actual setups and tools to move through it.

Sound familiar?

You say yes when you mean no, then wonder why you're exhausted.
It's all-or-nothing — one missed session and the whole week's written off.
You've broken enough promises to yourself that you've stopped fully believing the next one.

Gym anxiety rarely shows up on its own. For a lot of people it's tangled up with people-pleasing — overextending for everyone else, and running on empty when it comes to your own word.

What's in the guide

Real training progressions, plus the tools for what's happening in your head.

Squat rack setup

A five-step progression from dumbbell goblet squat through to the full barbell back squat.

Incline bench press

Rack height, bar path, and a deadstop progression so you're not guessing at the setup.

Deadlifts

Kettlebell through to barbell and Romanian deadlift, including when to use straps.

Managing anxiety in the moment

A breathing tool, cognitive defusion, and building a more compassionate inner voice.

Who this is for

Men and women who want to build confidence lifting and stop feeling like an outsider in the gym.

Any starting point, any fitness level — ready to start now, not once you're "fit enough."
You've tried before and it didn't stick, or this is genuinely your first real go at it.
You recognise the people-pleasing pattern — saying yes when you mean no, overextending for everyone but yourself.
You want tools for the anxiety itself, not just another training plan.

Full contents

Six sections. No fluff.

How to set up the squat rack

The full progression — dumbbell goblet squat through to the barbell back squat.

How to set up an incline bench press

Rack height, bar path, and a deadstop progression to build confidence first.

Squat progressions

Five steps from bodyweight to a full barbell squat, at your own pace.

How to deadlift

Kettlebell through to barbell Romanian deadlift, plus when to use straps.

Tools to manage anxiety in the moment

Breathwork, compassionate mind, and cognitive defusion — actual tools, not just "don't worry about it."

Proactive things to build motivation

Structure and tracking, so showing up stops relying on willpower alone.

Why I put this together

I've felt this too — just not in the gym.

I experienced real anxiety myself when I started BJJ — walking into a class not knowing anyone, uncertain what to do, getting thrown around by someone twice my size in the first five minutes. It didn't help when a stranger told me I probably shouldn't be wearing blue. I kept going anyway, and now I train three to four times a week. I've been coaching since 2014, and I help people-pleasers stop pressing the fuck it button and start trusting themselves again. This guide is the starting point.

Real people, real change

This isn't theory. Here's what it's actually done for people.

Caroline · in-person client

Held off starting for a long time — believed she could never be consistent, based on patterns in other areas of her life. We started slow, no pressure, and built confidence session by session. She now trains consistently every week, and gym anxiety is no longer a factor.

Caroline

Sean · fully online client

"My energy is through the roof, my confidence is up, and I handle tough situations a lot better. What I'm most proud of is that I've consistently shown up for myself. Week by week, I've chipped away at training and my weight."

Sean

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