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Related: About this forumLevity time: How many of you know at least 10 of these jerks at the gym?
When I was a personal trainer in college, I ran into all of these types of people. I started going to the gym to rehab a major shoulder injury from baseball. . .23 years later, I still go religiously five days a week after work. It's my stress relief.
stonecutter357
(12,682 posts)polly7
(20,582 posts)My little gym is nowhere near as interesting as this one but I do recognize three or four of these humanoid types.
3catwoman3
(23,812 posts)...to the young man who runs the workout classes we go to. He will love it.
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)Hotler
(11,353 posts)The ones that occupy a station, a bench or machine for a half hour at a time, taking 5-10 minutes between sets to read their phone and then give you stink eye if you ask if they are done there. I see people that come in and do nothing but fuck around doing arm curls and bench press all with no intensity and poor form. What you don't see is those people hogging the squat rack or the area for deadlifts because they are pussies. Which is good for me because my first exercise each training day is a brutal set of squats and deads later. I train Author Jones/Ellington Darden high intensity style, I'm in and out of the gym in a half hour if i don't have to wait for people.
Feeling the Bern
(3,839 posts)I have no time for monopolizers and I will voice my displeasure immediately.
nolabels
(13,133 posts)It's not even a conscious ego thing they do but more of an instinctual ritual. Male only / female only was much better back in the day. The free-weight flashy females are some of the more humorous ones. You go in the place to work out and to get some stuff done. Then sometimes while your working out these over-done gals then come into the place trying to strut their stuff and all that then at that point you have all these hormone and ego driven males tripping over each other and acting strange.
Feeling the Bern
(3,839 posts)and I told them in no uncertain terms that I am married and to get certain body parts out of my face because I wasn't interested. When I get the huff and puff that they are too good for me and my wife is probably ugly, I point her out and they seem to get quiet because apparently my wife is hotter than they are.
I don't mind people in there to work, but attention seekers who have no gym etiquette bother me. I am not at the gym to make friends. I have goals I have to reach and "you, madame" and "you, sir" are a distraction to MY goals.
I love when my wife does her weights (which isn't much because she is a small petite Chinese woman of 5'1" and 110 lbs) and these strutting peacocks come over to "help" her. She tells them that her husband will do it, then points at me (6'2" and 250 lbs) and the peacocks turn into chickens and run away,
I hate meat market gyms. Sadly, the closest one to my apartment here in KL is a damn meat market/yuppie/rich person place where people go all for the face. They even have a soda fountain in the damn lounge. Work out, then drink Pepsi!
The stupid, it burns!
nolabels
(13,133 posts)Fortunately for me, i have a job that facilitates that too. At 5'8" and 180 it's much easier just to go around you. At age of 57 trying impress is at a lower rung for me also. Staying healthy and injury free is where i'm at. After all these years i can somewhat see how it's all paying off. Often i find it easy to stay up with guys twenty years my junior, i hardly ever get sick and never need to miss a day at work.
Here's to your continued good health and long life
Feeling the Bern
(3,839 posts)I naturally say no because I have nothing to prove, but they have to do it. So, whatever I do, they try to do 5-10 more KG (with shitty form) to prove to their friends they are better than the big guy.
nolabels
(13,133 posts)The less noise, the smoother the motion, the more complete the extension and or contraction, this all helps me concentrate on what i am doing. It often attracts less attention and when others do come around they seem follow the lead to act more in control also. I equate banging the weights and machines around with someone who doesn't understand what they are doing or is kind of new at it.
Really though, i find if i need to compare any of my stuff to others, it then indicates i am going in the wrong direction and not fully concentrating on MY workout. Forgetting anybody or everybody else is there and just doing it gets me farther faster.
And nice chatting with you
Ned_Devine
(3,146 posts)That sums it up for almost any gym between 5-7pm Monday through Friday. As a former athlete, I also enjoy staying in shape and have a very healthy diet, but these birdbrains of the gym (of both genders) are enough to make me not want to go at all. I choose to go during an earlier part of the day when there aren't so many people there.
Skittles
(152,964 posts)I would not set foot in a gym - I don't like being around sweaty people I do not know
why would I pay to do free weights when I can do them a home, with equipment no one else has sweated on? To hell with "wiping it down" - it would have to be hosed with LYSOL before I'd use it
Blue_In_AK
(46,436 posts)and the Coastal Trail in the summer.