# Gym annoyances **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 15, 2009, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573 "2009-05-15T21:23:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![crazyjoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@crazyjoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crazyjoe)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/141 "2009-05-21T20:02:12Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > They tell you to wear deodorant? How would they even know? I get pretty sweaty with or without it when I wok out… Deodorant doesn’t keep you from sweating, it keeps you from stinking. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/142 "2009-05-21T20:05:03Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > **Shot from Guns** , I think that **crazyjoe** was agreeing with us, albeit using hyperbole to do so. You’re right–I completely misread it. Knee-jerk defensiveness at work, sorry **crazyjoe**. > [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > They tell you to wear deodorant? How would they even know? I get pretty sweaty with or without it when I wok out… Sweating with deoderant = you mostly smell like the deoderant. Sweating without deoderant = you smell like rank B.O. > [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > I simply meant that I had no clue what that sentence of yours was supposed to mean. You lost me at “themself”. It was pretty poorly constructed, wasn’t it? Here’s what I was getting at: > [@](#): > > If he were exagerrating, If JThunder were exagerrating how much laughing or giggling is happening, > [@](#): > > then it will never reach the level of annoyance necessary for someone to remove themself from the class to be considerate, then no one will ever be laughing or giggling as much or in as obtrusive a way as he claims they are (to the extent that they should leave if they can’t control it), > [@](#): > > and you should still have no reason not to agree with him that it would be appropriate in that situation. so there should be no reason not to agree that if it ever gets to that exaggerated point the person should excuse themselves from the class until they can get it under control. As an analogy: if someone starts a discussion about unicorn-hitching etiquette, saying that unicorns don’t exist isn’t a valid argument against someone who says that you shouldn’t put your unicorn in a handicapped spot unless you’re actually handicapped. I.e., the question here isn’t whether or not that much giggling happens, but whether or not it’s rude and distracting. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/143 "2009-05-21T20:05:04Z")
> [@crazyjoe](#): > > Deodorant doesn’t keep you from sweating, it keeps you from stinking. If it’s an anti perspirant it does. I pretty much never sweat when I’m wearing it, unless I’m really working out hard or it’s super hot. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/144 "2009-05-21T20:06:23Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > If it’s an anti perspirant it does. I pretty much never sweat when I’m wearing it, unless I’m really working out hard or it’s super hot. That’s because you’re lucky. I sweat through anything, even when I’m not exercising. For me, it’s the difference between “a smaller amount of sweat that smells like the antiperspirant” vs. “a bunch of sweat that stinks.” ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/145 "2009-05-21T20:10:51Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > That’s because you’re lucky. I sweat through anything, even when I’m not exercising. For me, it’s the difference between “a smaller amount of sweat that smells like the antiperspirant” vs. “a bunch of sweat that stinks.” Yay for female glow! 🙂 Anyway, overall, this thread makes me happy I don’t have to deal with most of this stuff. Nobody really grunts at my gym, not many people go (as mentioned it’s a private, one room gym in my building) and weights aren’t really an issue since I don’t lift very much. Outside of baby 3 pound weights that I occasionally use when I walk laps. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/146 "2009-05-21T20:23:18Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Yay for female glow! 🙂 > > Anyway, overall, this thread makes me happy I don’t have to deal with most of this stuff. Psh, “glow.” I _sweat_. But it smells like roses! … Of course, that may just be the antiperspirant. And a big ditto to the “thank goodness my building has its own fitness center.” ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/147 "2009-05-21T21:02:19Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > If it’s an anti perspirant it does. I pretty much never sweat when I’m wearing it, unless I’m really working out hard or it’s super hot. Seriously? I don’t sweat _from my armpits_ with antiperspirant, but still do down my back and my head. The amount of body coverage I’d need to stop that is… daunting. 'Course, I’m a sweay _man_. We don’t so much glow as incandesce with sweat. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/148 "2009-05-21T21:11:16Z")
> [@Lightray](#): > > Seriously? I don’t sweat _from my armpits_ with antiperspirant, but still do down my back and my head. The amount of body coverage I’d need to stop that is… daunting. > > 'Course, I’m a sweay _man_. We don’t so much glow as incandesce with sweat. Well, I don’t put anti-antiperspirant on my body. But when I’m not working out, but rather am just hanging out, I pretty much don’t get all gross as long as I put deodorant on my underarms. If I’m working out, then yeah…sweaty head, back, legs, arms. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/149 "2009-05-22T17:08:21Z")
Here’s another recent example of poor gym behavior, plus an example of someone doing things right. **THE BAD** Our gym has rows of television sets above the cardio equipment. These sets are tuned to three different channels, and the volume on each TV set is tuned all the way down. If patrons want to listen to a station, they have to tune their radios to a corresponding preset frequencies, as listed below the TV sets. On Wednesday night, two bozos decided that they wanted to listen to the basketball game. They didn’t have any radios with them though, so they used one of the detachable machine row handles to reach up and adjust the volume on one set. I said, “You know, the gym management keeps the volume turned down so that it won’t disturb other members. You might want to ask permission from them first.” Their response? “Is it bothering you?” I said, “I can tune it out, but other people might find it annoying. I think it would be best to ask first.” “Oh, they won’t mind,” one guy said. “We’ve done this before.” Sheesh. **THE GOOD** And now for something praiseworthy. Others and I have complained before about people who join the cardio classes and then flail about in a distracting manner. (Again, we need to emphasize that it’s not a matter of doing things flawlessly. Rather, it’s a matter of being able to _somewhat_ follow along. I want to reiterate this, since it’s become obvious that certain people will accuse us of demanding perfection or hating newcomers, no matter how carefully we emphasize this distinction.) Last week, a visiting German student joined our bootcamp class for the first time. I noticed that she was new, so after the class, I went over and welcomed her. (BTW, this disproves **Suse** ’s allegation that I hate newcomers, as well another person’s claim that I think people have no business joining unless they’ve taken the class before. That’s simply false; in fact, I frequently welcome the newcomers, and I try to offer words of encouragement if it looks like they’re struggling but trying hard.) She smiled and said, “It looks like you know how to do those punches and kicks. Can you spare a few minutes to show me sometime?” I smiled and said, “Sure! I love doing that. It won’t be a problem at all.” So we’ve gotten together a couple of times, and I saw that her technique has really gotten to be quite good. Admittedly, this wasn’t a case of someone who was completely clueless. This person did have some competency, even though her technique was kinda sloppy. Nevertheless, it does show that if you’re unfamiliar with the moves, you don’t have to flail around or simply do your own thing. You can usually ask for help, whether it’s from the instructor, the gym staff, one of the other class members, or even a friend from outside your gym. It’ll help you get the best possible workout, and it’ll benefit your fellow class attendees as well. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/150 "2009-05-22T17:19:20Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Psh, “glow.” I _sweat_. But it smells like roses! … Of course, that may just be the antiperspirant. No kidding. I have some sort of mysterious superpower where I pour buckets of sweat. When I was marathon training, I just assumed it was because it’d make it harder for someone to attack me. They’d slide right off. ---
**Author:** ![Suse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@Suse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suse)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/151 "2009-05-24T17:45:59Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > (BTW, this disproves **Suse** ’s allegation that I hate newcomers, as well another person’s claim that I think people have no business joining unless they’ve taken the class before. That’s simply false; in fact, I frequently welcome the newcomers, and I try to offer words of encouragement if it looks like they’re struggling but trying hard.) Apparently I misunderstood your posts and I apologize. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/152 "2009-05-24T19:27:44Z")
Can I add my annoyance? OK, there’s tons of new folks in January and February. No problem. Most of them are New Years resolvers and a certain percentage of them will remain, but most will quickly give up after a short while. Unfortunately, the short-timers have the most finicky ideas of what should be done, or who should be allowed in a (read ‘their’) gym. I have a membership at a gym. Except for an occasional ‘bad day’ weight workout I almost exclusively use the gym for its showers. Why? Because it is 1/4 mile from where I work and I bike to work every day. I come in, I shower, I change into my work clothes, and bike the rest of the way. I use the gym shower almost as much, if not more than my home shower. The gym regulars & staff are used to me. In fact when I fell ill for a week they worried I had been laid off. The gym has to love the fact that I pay full rates just to use their showers 98% of the time. The only thing better for them are the folks who pay and don’t show up at all. But in January and February I start getting what I refer to as ‘The Stare of Horror’. I walk into the gym wearing winter biking equipment, looking wind & cold blasted, carrying a bike helmet, wearing bike shoes, a backpack, pulling my balaclava my head and already pretty sweaty. The new folks have been know to recoil in terror. The sight of me is apparently horror they never expected to see. Ever. I didn’t think I was such a horror, I know its not the smell. This is silly enough, but a couple of times some of the newbies have gone to the desk and _complained_ about me walking through the gym. ---
**Author:** ![Kayeby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de0a6/32.png) [@Kayeby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kayeby)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/153 "2009-05-25T01:19:38Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > BTW, **Kayeby** , which forum? The main forums I lurk at are the [exrx.net](http://exrx.net) forums and also the Watch and Weight part of somethingawful, but the main one where the women loathe Tracy Anderson is the fitness section of the vogue forums (primarily because there’s a larger number of women who ask about her fitness DVDs, want to spot reduce, and want “long, lean, not bulky” muscles). ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/154 "2009-05-25T05:09:24Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > This is more for the “family recreation center” than the “serious people’s gym” - but it’s hard to be a serious person at the family rec center sometimes. > > LADIES…if you are in charge of a gaggle of girls going for a swim at the pool tonight THEY DO NOT NEED SHOWERS. I swear to Og, they will not melt if they put on a pair of sweats over their hoochie baby bikinis and drive home to shower at your residence. Yes I know you cram 3 at a time into the shower stall but that doesn’t mean it takes the same time for them to shower as one person. No, it takes six times as long and it’s 200 times as loud. > > I swam at the public pool every day for the first 12 summers of my life. I never once needed a shower before I got home. Your little preciouses do not need one either. > > Also, THE LADIES’ LOCKER ROOM IS NOT A PLACE FOR LITTLE BOYS. I’m glad you are comfortable with little Jimmy seeing my girly bits but I am not. Babies and toddlers I can understand, but your 7-year-old makes me queasy. Check out the Family Changing Room sometime, for chrissakes. You are wrong on both counts. The girls want to wash the chlorine off their skin and off their hair, and that’s best done as soon as possible. I shower immediately after getting out of the pool and again when I get home, and my hair still smells like chlorine. Don’t you always hope they showered before getting into the pool? Then why not let them shower when they get out? What are ladies supposed to do with their little boys? My gym has two locker rooms. One is a family locker room, in which children of the opposite sex may accompany their parents until they are 7. (I do wish they had a boys’ side and a girls’ side, at least in the moms’ locker room, but they don’t.) Really, though–I am not going to send my 5-year-old into the men’s locker room. For one thing he’ll leave stuff there. For another thing–well, I’m not going there. (FTR he is now 13 so I’m well past this stage and glad of it.) Nobody under 18 is allowed in the non-family locker rooms, so this should work out fine. I’m guessing the family changing room in your place is small and/or inconvenient. (The women’s family locker room at my gym is somewhat inconvenient as well, but it’s not small.) Another gym I’ve been to has a family changing room but it doesn’t have a shower. It’s just a room that can be locked. That wouldn’t work for going into the pool (where the showers are in the locker rooms). Every once in awhile the family locker room of one sex or another is closed for repairs, and in that case, the kids are allowed in the otherwise adults-only places. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/155 "2009-05-25T05:17:03Z")
> [@Hakuna\_Matata](#): > > My pet peeve is the fans. At our gym there are about 20 treadmills in a row. At one end is a fan that blows down the row of treadmills. I swear that if the whole row is empty the person who doesn’t sweat (or even really work out) will go to the treadmill next to the fan, and then turn it, so that it blows away from the treadmills. > > So I come in and I LOVE the fan blowing on me as I am running–but of course it doesn’t do that since they turned it. They couldn’t go to the other end of the row where no air is blowing…no, they have to stand right next to the fan and turn it away. > > When I have the fan blowing, I have a great run. The fan cools me down and I have a great cardio workout, when I don’t have the fan I believe I have about a 85% workout. I get too hot and it impacts me. > > But I suck it up and deal with it–but now I have them beat cause I get there first and when they try and turn it I feel justified in saying ‘can you leave the fan? You can use the treadmill down there if you don’t like the air’ \ okay I don’t say the last piece out loud 🙂 I am your exact opposite. I HATE the fan, or anything blowing on me (although a warm wind in my hair when I’m outside is acceptable). I will pick the treadmill as far away from the fan as possible. If no one else is in the room–and I am for that, being somewhat flexible with my time–I will turn the damn fan off. When not alone, I have had to do my workout with my sunglasses on to keep my eyes from watering from that damned fan. Probably people thought I was trying to look cool. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/156 "2009-05-30T17:33:55Z")
> [@Suse](#): > > Apparently I misunderstood your posts and I apologize. I accept, and in the interest of fairness, I should point out that **Suse** did not actually accuse me of hating newcomers _per se_. Rather, she said that I did not like people who are unfamiliar with the steps in an aerobic class. (Neither statement is accurate, as others have also pointed out. Nevertheless, I do want to point out that I had not represented her accusation in a 100% accurate manner.) One point of my earlier story was to show that I don’t dislike newcomers or those who make mistakes in class. In fact, as I stated earlier, I am now mentoring a young German student who is both knew and prone to error. We got to chatting on her first day, after which I became her _de facto_ coach and sparring partner. I can’t think of a single long-time gym enthusiast who has ever expressed disdain for newbies or people who don’t know the moves perfectly. When they do complain, it is almost invariably over people who don’t follow gym etiquette. Less commonly, they may complain about people whose movements during cardio classes are so out of whack as to cause confusion or potentially cause accidents. Most gym rats honestly don’t care if someone does everything perfectly or not, as long as one isn’t overtly rude or distracting or otherwise cause unreasonable inconveniences. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/157 "2009-06-01T17:15:45Z")
> [@Kayeby](#): > > I’m not saying I hear it every day or even every month, but yeah I do hear it, mainly from women who do lots of cardio and unathletic men. Even the instructor who gave me the program with the bicep curl/arm extension said a variation of it. I asked whether it was a problem that I wasn’t working my biceps to fatigue and he said it was only an issue if I was aiming for big biceps. This guy works at the gym. Well, I’m a woman and all I have to do is think of lifting heavy weights for my biceps to bulk up to an unpretty size. My calves are the same way. Relative to the rest of my body, they are ripped much like Popeye’s when he’s hopped up on spinach. It takes very little to make these muscles swell for me. I’ve seen this happen everytime I do bicep curls with decent-sized weights. So I wouldn’t be so quick to scoff at the notion that certain exercises may produce that effect in at least some women. Maybe your build is such that heavy weights don’t make your upper arms look disproportionately big, but I can’t say the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/158 "2009-06-01T17:40:01Z")
> [@Kayeby](#): > > I’m not saying I hear it every day or even every month, but yeah I do hear it, mainly from women who do lots of cardio and unathletic men. Even the instructor who gave me the program with the bicep curl/arm extension said a variation of it. I asked whether it was a problem that I wasn’t working my biceps to fatigue and he said it was only an issue if I was aiming for big biceps. This guy works at the gym. That sounds like he’s saying that the only thing wrong with your program is if you were trying for big biceps, b/c you can’t get them this way. Not that he’s saying that women should try to avoid big biceps. ---
**Author:** ![Kayeby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de0a6/32.png) [@Kayeby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kayeby)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573/159 "2009-06-02T02:50:09Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > Well, I’m a woman and all I have to do is think of lifting heavy weights for my biceps to bulk up to an unpretty size. My calves are the same way. Relative to the rest of my body, they are ripped much like Popeye’s when he’s hopped up on spinach. It takes very little to make these muscles swell for me. I’ve seen this happen everytime I do bicep curls with decent-sized weights. Colour me educated and sympathetic. Since I’ve been lifting everything has gotten so much leaner and firmer. I’d lose a lot of motivation if I couldn’t keep increasing the weights, and I love feeling physically strong. If I had to choose between strength and aesthetics it would be a hard one. > [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > That sounds like he’s saying that the only thing wrong with your program is if you were trying for big biceps, b/c you can’t get them this way. Not that he’s saying that women should try to avoid big biceps. That’s how I interpreted it, but my issue is that I physically _can’t_ get big biceps, certainly not through curling heavy weights (though thanks to **ywtf** I now know it’s by no means universal). And I think being told by instructors that you only need to lift at half your capacity is the sort of thing that keeps many women from trying heavier weights when they can hugely benefit from it. In my case at least he could tell from my past programs that I’d been curling twice as much as what he’d given me, and he knew that my goal was to increase strength. I think it was a bad program more than an “omg women should stick to the machines” attitude, but I also don’t think that he would have given that program to a man. At any rate it inspired me to do some research and find a program I preferred, and I’m trying [Bill Starr’s 5x5](http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm) program. I might need to get some microweights because the weights at the gym don’t go up in small enough increments, but so far so good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gym-annoyances/496573.md?page=7)