As a consistent gym attendee I have found myself to have garnered a few pet peeves that I must confront. These pet peeves didn’t come into actuality until I joined a gym without some type of team structure. Gym Etiquette will be a two part series, with part 2 dealing with gym attire.
What Not To Do!
Equipment hog: There is nothing worse than someone who disrespects fellow gym goers by hogging certain equipment for long periods of time (Especially when they are just playing on their cellphone at a gym that costs $20 or less per month).
Emit a plethora of body odor: It may be tough to not give off any type of odor because if you’re not breaking a sweat that means you’re not working hard, but no one wants to smell you as soon as they enter the gym. If body odor may be a major problem for you, I suggest to shower in the locker room before working out and use enough deodorant.
Act as if you are still lifting with your high school teammates: We are no longer training in gyms that are exclusively for athletic teams. Extra grunts, loud noises, and excessive dropping of the weights is no longer necessary. It intimidates no one. It only annoys other gym goers and causes unnecessary embarrassment on your behalf.
Be a lazy dumbbell user: I know working with dumbbells may be exhausting, but there should still be enough energy left in the body to place the dumbbells back where they were found … ON THE RACK!
Jump rope in close vicinity to others: I appreciate this form of cardio training, but I’m not necessarily fond of it nor am I fond of getting hit with a rope. There are designated spots in the gym for such things, but they may not be in a place where one can show off, but one can deal.
Sing out loud to the music in your head: Just like people in the street are annoyed with people who choose to sing along LOUDLY to the music that is ONLY in their headphones, most gym goers feel the same. If you’re not Beyonce or Drake, keep the live singing to a private setting.
Pressure or rush a fellow gym goer to move from a machine: If a person isn’t hogging a machine or area, please do not stand there with an annoyed face to intimidate that gym goer to move along without properly finishing their routine.
Leave a machine or bench with your sweat: Everyone should clean after themselves when using a bench or machine. Everyone sweats, but not everyone likes to lay or work out in others sweat.
