Proper Gym Etiquette

[stewaat]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Or are just people without massive sticks up their asses who feel the need to tell everyone else what to do when it doesn't effect them. Like your lady's #1 rule - "posing". Who cares if someone is checking themselves out in a mirror. if they're not blocking your view, then it's of absolutely no concern to you.

With some of your points - great. It's pretty obvious that you should put your equipment back, wipe everything down, not hog things - etc, those are all fine and dandy, and anyone not doing them is a douche.

But carrying around a water bottle that you deem too big? Or wearing tight clothing? Or wanting to use their phone? Or looking in the mirror at themselves? Please...

#1- It only bothers people when it blocks their view. It is looked down upon to pose in the mirror even when you're not blocking anybody though. It's just one of those unwritten rules of a gym.
#2- It's not obvious that people need to put back weight. Every damn day I see them laying around. There's a 25lb DB in between two 35lb DBs even though it's clearly labeled on the rack. People are lazy and it wastes my time trying to clean up after them.
#3- People hog things all day. They just sit on the machine after they finish using it and rarely let you work in.

The water jug you're right.
The phone has no place in the gym unless for work/emergencies. First off it could very well get broken and second it wastes the time of others when you use it on a machine, which frequently happens.
The tight clothing guideline is to help people not attract unwanted attention.

I just think it's silly when other people feel the need to tell other people how to act, when it has nothing to do with them. Unless it's directly disrupting your ability to work out then they're not doing anything wrong.

I 100% agree. But the gym is a public place where some people don't know how to conduct themselves. Several of the things I've listed directly disrupt my ability to lift.

Can't wait til I build my own home gym and not have to worry with people who don't know how to properly conduct themselves in the gym.

[stewaat]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

You might want to take your own advice.

I was giving him an example!

[stewaat]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

How about the people that feel the need to yell at you for motivation. Um, dude, i dont know you, and you screaming "Cmon man, one more" doesnt make me want to do anything but drop kick you in the face.

Yea that would piss me off. A stranger yelling at you for motivation?

I got a dude at my gym that had a marines T shirt that's two sizes too big. He took a scissors and cut out the sides, so he's practically shirtless except he has a collar. He looks like a tool.

I also have way too many guys wearing spandex shirts. Their nipples scare me.

I used to work out at a place where a regular sleeved t shirt was mandatory. Othewise people sweat all over the equipment. This place had real big dudes. Where Im at now, most of the dudes are not that big, and most have awful form. They have no idea what "full range of motion" means. ANd they try to wear as little clothing as possible.

A lot of them also think the mirror is not to check form, but to stare at themselves between sets.

Thank you. Somebody else goes to a gym and notices the terrible practices by some.

There's one other rule, sort of put in there but not as its own rule:

- Girls are there to work out, that's it. They are unconsciously trying to catch your attention, but they do not want to be bothered, hassled, or even talked to. Do your business and let them do theirs, unfortunately. Let's just say this is coming from multiple personal experiences.

If somebody has an iPod in you do not talk to them, period. The problem is that if you're a gym-goer the girls who are at the gym are probably your type. It's a slippery slope.

[CMH]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

I heard that there's a gym that pretty much preaches a lot of the things that bother most gym members.

Something about them ringing a loud bell/alarm whenever someone grunts too loudly or slams a weight hard onto the floor (that's a rule right there that you forgot. Dropping the weights like everyone wants to hear that you just lifted 60 pounds in dumbbells) thus putting you on the spot for being an annoyance or distraction.

Anyone know the gym?

[KingV2k3]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

No long, loud conversations between members...esp. while on ajoining cardio machines...

No long, loud conversations on your phone in the workout areas...

Don't use a single piece of cadio equipment for more than 25 minutes...if you have to go longer...switch it up...esp. if you see others waiting...

Don't mess with the radio or TV stations unless you are the only person in the room...

Observe a reasonable distance from others in both the workout area and esp. the locker room / sauna / steam, etc...

DO NOT SING ALONG WITH THE CRAP YOU LISTEN TO ON YOUR MP3 PLAYER!!!

[stewaat]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

I heard that there's a gym that pretty much preaches a lot of the things that bother most gym members.

Something about them ringing a loud bell/alarm whenever someone grunts too loudly or slams a weight hard onto the floor (that's a rule right there that you forgot. Dropping the weights like everyone wants to hear that you just lifted 60 pounds in dumbbells) thus putting you on the spot for being an annoyance or distraction.

Anyone know the gym?

It's called Planet Fitness. It's the "lunk alert" haha. I like the rules, but the gym wasn't very good.

When I first moved to Charlotte I signed up there because it was really cheap ($10/month).

It is mainly targeted towards females.

DBs only went to 70 lbs
No squat racks
Eleventy billion cardio machines

Fortunately a Peak Fitness opened up and I made the switch.

[Cebby]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Girls in workout attire = awesome.

Therefore, I disagree with #3.

Except that 95% of the girls in the actual weight lifting part of the gym are hideously ugly.

[TarHeelMan]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

I go to Planet Fitness... Mainly because it's 10 bucks a month and right across the street from my house. You're right about the overkill on cardio machines. The lifting area is woefully small. But fortunately I work out at night, so it's never packed, and I can pretty much navigate my way around. But in the time right after work, that place is jam packed. I like Anytime Fitness, too, just for the fact that each cardio machine has cable TV.

[ehh]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Planet Fitness is the worst gym I have ever seen.

In terms of:

- Equipment
- Clientele
- Cleanliness
- Staff

And their free pizza in the afternoon and free bagels in the morning is just priceless. "Hey, come work out, then eat like **** so you can maintain or gain weight so you'll have to keep coming here!"

I was a member there for three weeks and that was it, you can build a better home gym in your basement.

[stewaat]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Planet Fitness is the worst gym I have ever seen.

In terms of:

- Equipment
- Clientele
- Cleanliness
- Staff

And their free pizza in the afternoon and free bagels in the morning is just priceless. "Hey, come work out, then eat like **** so you can maintain or gain weight so you'll have to keep coming here!"

I was a member their for three weeks and that was it, you can build a better home gym in your basement.

One thing about Planet Fitness is that they aren't all governed the same. Whoever manages the gym can do what they want.

The one I used was okay. It was clean and well taken care of, they also only gave out pizza once a month.

I checked out another one and it was better, but still not good.

[ehh]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Yeah that makes sense.

The staff at the one I belonged to was a joke. It was a buncha HS girls who worked there just so they could get free tanning. They sat in a back office a majority of the time and left the front desk empty. It got to a point where I didn't even bother waiting for them to come up and check me in anymore, I'd just walk in the door and go straight to the locker room. Anyone coulda walked in off the street and worked out in there.

There was also only one bench in the entire place (and one Smith machine) and it was hopeless to use it. Seven guys would hang around it shooting the **** with each other and every five minutes or so one of them would bust out a set. I asked one time if I could hop in for a set and one of them gave me a dumb look and said there were five people in line ahead of me. And like you said, since the dumbbells only went up to 70 lbs I basically couldn't do chest at this place. And there was no point in complaining to the staff, they weren't going to do anything.

The only people who should go there are girls who want to do cardio. Other than that it was a disaster.

[CMH]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Ok, so no on Planet Fitness.

[KG]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

There's one other rule, sort of put in there but not as its own rule:

- Girls are there to work out, that's it. They are unconsciously trying to catch your attention, but they do not want to be bothered, hassled, or even talked to. Do your business and let them do theirs, unfortunately. Let's just say this is coming from multiple personal experiences.

Some gyms now have a seperate area where only ladies can work out. I peak in there and try to give them the look that says "why are you working out in here, no one wants you".

I am guilty of eating at the gym. I occassionaly take a banana or some kind of granola bar in there. You're right on with the spandex though. I see some guys who come straight from a spinning class sit their sweaty a** down on a machine and wet it all up.

Stew, you didn't even touch on the gym lockerroom ettiquette. There are so many wrong things going on in there I don't even know where to start.

[ehh]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Some gyms now have a seperate area where only ladies can work out. I peak in there and try to give them the look that says "why are you working out in here, no one wants you".

I did belong to one gym that had a ladies-only section. While I know you were joking with the line about nobody wanting to hit on them, a buncha the overweight/noobs females would go in there because they were so self-conscious. If they were 250lbs they didn't want men to see them attempting to exercise.

I have never even tried to hit on a girl at a gym. If she comes up and talks to me then fine, but I'm not going to make the first move. You'll get shot down 99.9% of the time from what I've seen and heard from other dudes.

[Trevytrev11]

Re: Proper Gym Etiquette

Here's another few:

1) Don't use the weights right in front of the rack. It bothers me when someone picks up the weights off the rack and then goes right into a set of 25 right there, blocking anyone else from using a wide range of other weights...Keep a solid 3 foot buffer between your curls and the weight bench so others can enjoy as well.

2) Don't be the guy who spends half his time at the gym checking out his tri's. Get a quick peak after your set or while your doing your set, but don't sit there and stare at it for 15 minutes after.

3) Don't do the Arnold walk. You just put up 200 two times on bench, don't walk around like your Comando all of a sudden.

4) If you've got the farts, stay away from heavy lifting. With all the focus lifing one muscle group, anothers going to relax.

5) Use a spotter. Don't try to be He-Man and not make it and then force someone sprint over to pull the bar off of your throat.

6) Unless it is obvious someone is just completely clueless, don't be the guy that is in other people's ear correcting them on everything or telling them how much better another excersise that you do would be better for them. Unless your a licensed physical trainer, your advice may not be wanted by everyone. People will ask someone that appears to know what they are doing if they need help.

7) Don't try and talk to someone in any form of detail with headphones on. Obviously they are listening to music and don't want to be bothered. It's annoying to have to stop what your are doing, put down your weights, pause your music becuase someone wants to say hey...just give them a head nod.

My others have already been covered-people not racking their weights and people not wiping down their equipment.

We have a gym at work that is probably 500 square feet (25*20) with limited weights, but everytime I go in there, they are scattered everywhere. We also have a roll of wet wipes to wipe down the equipment, but sure enough every time I go to use the bench, I can see someones oily/sweaty back of the head print.