Usually when I go to the gym I take my MP3 player to listen to. That way I can hear something with a good, driving beat to help me stay motivated. Yesterday I went with my brother, and I figured that I’d leave it behind since we would want to be able to talk.
I haven’t paid attention to the music they play in there in a long time. It used to be that there was a cardio room in which they played top 40 stuff and a free weight room in which they played a good rock or classic rock station.
However, a few years ago Gold’s started building a corporate infrastructure and having all Gold’s Gyms act more like franchises instead of privately owned gyms. Now they have TVs up all over the place playing music videos to the crap music they play.
Now you’re probably asking me, just what kind of music are they playing? How about Bad Day by Fuel, What About Love? by Heart, Brick by The Ben Folds Five, and to top it all off My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion. How the fuck do they expect anyone to be able to get a workout on to the fucking Titanic theme? I don’t expect them to play the underground metal or rap that I usually listen to, but the least they could play something upbeat that doesn’t drain you like a Thai hooker.
So, to Gold’s Gym: fuck you for selling out to the soccer moms and baby boomers who want to go to the gym to ride the bike for 15 minutes and socialize for 45 minutes. Gold’s used to mean something. It used to be you’d walk in there and smell nothing but sweat and testosterone and hear nothing but the clanging of metal plates and the grunting of someone benching 400 lbs. Now I have to listen to N*Sync and Celine Dion.
Now I’m getting one step closer to cancelling my membership and buying a Bowflex or something so I can work out at home. I generally like the atmosphere of the gym. But the continued pussification (thanks George Carlin for that word) of my beloved Gold’s Gym is slowly pushing me away.
I don’t understand. They’re selling out to soccer moms and baby boomers by playing NSync? I don’t know about soccer moms specifically, but most baby boomers can’t stand NSync.
Ew, Lord Ashtar, I workout at a women’s-only gym, and while the music sucks (IMHO) it doesn’t suck like the Gold’s Gym you’re describing. That would make me vomit.
We’ve got an “Urban FM” station that plays Outkast, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, etc. Not my style of music and it gets on my nerves, but at least most of the time it’s upbeat and dancy so you can keep moving.
What About Love? by Heart??? In a gym??? Dude, that’s just wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Even in a women’s gym.
BTW - I actually go to a cool gym, devoid of soccer moms. The women who workout there actually workout. Chit-chat is actually rare, even when friends go together. Everyone’s too busy working out to chat.
Yeah, the music selection at Gold’s is absolutely horrible. I could understand if it was certain forms of pop which have a fast beat, but for the most part they play ballads or music that they think will offend no one.
I am happy that they play it at a pretty low volume so I don’t have to hear it unless I actually force myself to pay attention in order to make out what they are playing.
Agreed. My Gold’s plays their music friggin’ loud so I have to turn my iPod way up. And it’s harder to ignore when you’re forced to watch the video. Maybe that’s why I’ve been running outside lately instead of on the treadmill…some subconcious line was crossed.
Yeah, because god forbid any of us physically inferior females taint your gym with our pussified presence. :rolleyes:
I can sympathize about being forced to listen to shitty music–I take a walkman for just that reason. But I’m having trouble seeing how the strength, endurance, or hormone levels of your fellow gym-goers got involved with this rant. I have ovaries, and kids, and I like soccer, and I can’t bench press 400 lbs–but I hate shitty music too! Will wonders never cease?
Sigh…I should have known I would have offended someone. Seems like you can’t just rant in peace anymore.
It is damn near impossible to keep a good workout going without the right atmosphere. When people nearby you are having a good workout, you can feed off their energy. When Justin Timberlake is playing in the background, my strength level drops significantly (as does that of all the other folk at my gym who I have informally polled).
Then you are a mom who likes soccer, not a Soccer Mom[sup]TM[/sup]. Seems everyone else knew what I was talking about. For the love of God, stop taking everything so damn personally.
I’m not taking it personally–I don’t go to your gym so why should I?
I was just seriously wondering if you find women in the gym such a distraction? Your comment about testosterone and pressing 400lbs read to me like you did, independently of whatever soundtrack might be playing at the time. If so, then I reserve the right to think you’re a bit silly for feeling that way. If not, then my apologies for suggesting otherwise.
Slightly off topic–are there such things as Men Only gyms? I go to a women only club, because they’re the only one in town that offers daycare, but I’ve never seen an all-male club advertised anywhere…
I’m with the OP on this one. I also work out at Gold’s, and while I don’t think I’ve heard Celine Dion at my gym yet, about 50% of the time they have disco/techno music going. That would be great in the aerobics room for a steps class, but not in the weight training area. Give me Metallica, not Madonna!
Why do you think all sports take place outside of the gym? Take powerlifting, for instance (my personal obsession). It’s all about squatting, benching, and deadlifting. Where else am I going to do that?
Honestly, I’ve thought about writing this rant several times. My strength levels don’t suffer from listening to bad music, but I sure do, especially during long rest periods. I’ve tried taking my mp3 player, but they’ve got their shit turned up so loud that I can barely hear my music unless I have it up too loud.
This isn’t the only complaint I have against my local Gold’s, but it’s the biggest one.
I didn’t know it yet, but this, my friends, is just one of the many reasons why I refuse to join a gym. (The major reason being I get bored out of my mind on a treadmill or stationary bike. Who the hell can work out in one spot while staring at the TV? Hell, even in gym class we moved from point a to point b.)
I exercise in the privacy of my own home, where my workout clothes do not have to be clean, I can choose my own music or not, and my dogs can coach me while I attempt “downward facing dog” and other fun yoga moves. I simply cannot fathom wasting my hard-earned money stuck inside, waiting in line to work out using machines that other people sweated all over… and then have to listen to horrible music to boot.
Gym music… my gym is a nightmare. I choose a small private gym vs. national chain because I do not like the meat market aspects of most big gyms here in town. If you got to put on make-up and jewelry to work out well… However, our gym has a large percentage of their membership from one of the local Jewish retirement homes. There is nothing worse*, than trying to get through a long cardio session, and having Glenn Miller or Frank Sinatra blaring from the speakers. Thank God for my MP3 player.
One thing worse - my gym tried to “tap into the urban trend” and offered a hip-hop cardio class on Saturdays at noon. Nothing funnier than seeing a bunch of elderly Jewish men & women get all vaclempted over some serious hard-core gansta music. Granted, I liked the idea of the class but the person running it made some some serious bad judgement calls in terms of the music she selected. I’m not elderly, nor Jewish, but I was most uncomfortable with some of the lyrics - especially those advocating getting guns and killing white people*. Needless to say, that class was over after two weeks.
** Typical disclaimer - I’m not saying all hip-hop is of that type, nor am I making derogatory references to hip-hop culture. I’m pointing out the inappropriatness of gansta lyrics in a predominately elderly Jewish gym.
Oh, and Lord Ashtar , are there any boxing clubs or the like where you are? Generally for a very small fee they’ll let you use the equipment even if you aren’t training. Helps them bring in a few extra bucks. Plus, no friggin’ daycare
However, our gym has a large percentage of their membership from one of the local Jewish retirement homes. There is nothing worse*, than trying to get through a long cardio session, and having Glenn Miller or Frank Sinatra blaring from the speakers. Thank God for my MP3 player.