Phase Twenty of “appropriate behavior at the gym: the do’s and don’ts, according to a guy with an opinion about anything and everything.”
Ok back on track now. Here is another do and don’t entry about something that I tend to think does in fact have an effect on others around you.
Don’t: rest on equipment that you aren’t using
I don’t know how many times I have curtailed or rerouted my workout because I thought someone was on the machine that I wanted to work out on next, when in actuality they were either resting on it or using it as a seat to talk with a buddy on a machine next to them. In the good spirit of Peter Griffin, this is something that truly “grinds my gears.” Why am I altering my work out because you are using a piece of equipment as a seat or a conversation medium when others around you want to use it? This just doesn’t quite make much sense to me. I mean yes I could ultimately confront them and ask if they are using that piece of equipment or I can stop being anti-social and attempt to work in with them instead of just avoiding the machine all together, but why should I have to do that? If I am in a zone and am in that “ok what’s next mode,” I am going to look for the next available machine and if the one I want is being occupied I am going to go to the next.
It’s almost like extreme loitering in the sense that if you have a couple of “Jay and Silent Bob ” like loiterers outside of your store people are more inclined to avoid using your store especially if there is one right down the block that is loiter free. Which ultimately seems like it is fine to do but what if that store is the one place within a mile radius that has the Slurpee flavor you want and you are so put off by the fact that these people are always there that you simply skip out on that tasty treat, in which you are most certainly entitled to, because it is not an absolute necessity.
That is really how I feel when this happens at the gym. Sure, I went and used another piece of equipment that did the same thing, but the piece of equipment that I wanted to use originally just works the muscles so much better. This also becomes a problem for people who are very non-confrontational (even if the confrontation is a positive one). I tend to get into this mode every now and then, so I thought that it might be kind of beneficial to ask around and see if this was a problem for some people. About 3 quarters of the people that I spoke to said that they would just ask to work in or ask if the person was using the machine. But that other quarter did not even want to take that route. They just avoid almost all confrontation or interaction with others while at the gym (which made it rather difficult at first but manageable in the end to speak with them). They get to the gym, do their thing and then they are out. Which means that a simple laziness factor on the part of others around them deprives these gym goers from making the most out of their time at the gym.
Do: walk around, stand or simply rest on your equipment
There is not much to say about the do’s, they are pretty self explanatory. If you are doing an exercise that requires you to stand, walk around after you do a set. Gets the blood going; it is actually much healthier to do this than to sit down. Don’t finish lifting and because you do not have a seat go sit on another piece of equipment and rest. If you are trying to have a conversation with someone while they are working out, stand by them out of the way and talk to them. Once again don’t just plop down on a machine and use it as a seat. Now I’m not saying that if you are only one of four people at the gym that it is not OK to sit down on another piece of equipment. I bring this issue up because I see it happen quite a bit during rush hour at the gym. And if you absolutely must use machinery (that you are not in fact using), as a resting bench be observant of your surroundings. If you see someone approach or kind of hesitantly hover around this said piece of machinery or bench that you are using a temporary throne, ask them if they want to use it or say oh “I’m not on this one, it’s all yours.” Don’t just be a “pud” and sit there or say that you are really using the machine (and “half-assing” some kind of motion on it) so that you can continue a conversation. What do you all think? Do you think I am being too anal retentive on this one or are you in agreement? Once again this is simply my opinion, take it or leave it.
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We were pleasantly surprised with the great flavor of 
Can’t help it, I think the 
With both of these two clothing prototypes, we will call the first one the AC Slater and the second the 50 Cent, I find it hard to find the purpose behind them. A regular tank top or wife beater or an old tee with the sleeves cut off, are all perfectly acceptable at the gym. For the AC Slater I can see that a wife beater or a regular tee might be too tight on the body not allowing it to fully breathe, but a tank top or an old tee with the sleeves cut off allows for optimum air flow throughout the body, much like the Portuguese fishing net parka that you prefer to wear. As for the 50 cent look, the whole point of the sleeveless shirt (other than its vanity roots) is to curb overheating while in the midst of exercise. Something that is pretty much tattooed to your body is not going to do that instead it is going to further perpetuate overheating, so really there is no point to it. Both of these prototypes, to me, seem to exist purely out of a branching form of narcissism – but that is just my opinion. There are plenty of other options that make more sense, a regular tee shirt being at the top of that list.
1. When your trainer can’t remember if it’s an arm or leg day.
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