After taking an extremely long pause from a consistent gym routine, a visit back to the gym is long overdue. As soon as I got back into a routine, I instantly got reminded of the not-so-pleasant parts. The local gym’s capacity is at an all-time high, there’s the “same old regulars”, the “once in a whiles” and then there’s the “new year new me’s”. Regardless of who is in the gym, there will always be someone who is a prime example of who not to be, or maybe just someone who is deserving of an eyeroll from me.
Not-So-Germ Free Zone
OK, the gym is a public space, obviously, it is not intended to be used in the same manner as a clean, disinfected space like a hospital. Yet, sometimes I feel like the level of ickiness is boosted by a thousand. I begin my routine with a stretch on the floor using a mat, when I suddenly feel my fingers tangled in a loose ball of hair strands. Gag. Maybe I am a neat freak, but I always make sure to shake off any loose things a mat catches after use.
We are humans, and sweating is the result of an intense workout. The gym is a place to clear out our heads, and sometimes it kills our nostrils in a not-so-great way. If I could request a big sign to be posted at a gym entrance, I would want it to say: “Deodorant is required!” I wish I knew the number of times I moved away from an area due to someone’s funky odor, but unfortunately, I have lost count. Another annoyance to be around is the person who comes in wearing an intense amount of cologne to counteract a smelly odor.
Yet, a loose hairball or funky smell isn’t the worst of it. It is when the only bench there is left to use has a sweaty stain on it. Then, when you leave the area to grab a cleaning towel, you come back to someone stealing the last bench in the weights area.
Unnecessary Show ‘n Tell
I love it when I’m having a great day, I’ve eaten the perfect fueling food, and my workout is going great, but then my AirPods run out of battery. Fantastic. And now I am forced to listen to the nature of the gym’s environment. There will be groaning and moaning, and then there is the screamer. The screamer is someone who will scream in an obnoxious way after every rep. I can guarantee that if you are this person, the people around you will be giving you a cold eye or swallowing their laughs. Workouts can be fun and sometimes they can be difficult, but it shouldn’t be so excruciating to the point I can hear you from the other side of the large room. It is not a great experience when a great workout is interrupted by someone’s agonized scream.
I can admit I am not a fan of loud noises. Maybe it’s my most unpopular take, but this includes dropping large weights on the floor after a set. I get it, it can be hard to set down an extremely heavy load gently and quietly, but the bang and thump of large weights crashing with the floor is not a pleasant sound to hear. As much as I hate this sound, it’s fair to say I have gotten quite used to the large resonance.
To continue my hater energy, I am not fond of the 5 P.M. wave. That’s the time of the day when the gym is the busiest. Machines are full, and the gym is nothing but sweat and noise. But sometimes it is the most convenient time of day to work out. The massive load of people brings a variety of individuals. But my least favorite are the groups of three or more people. At peak gym hours, there will be at least one large group hogging one machine that is the last one needed to finish your set. The most annoying part of this is when the group of people lowers the chance of someone else using the machine by talking up time instead of working out.
I also want to point out that I may not be the strongest person in the room, and I am also in the “petite person” range. So by far the most irritating thing about going to the gym is the number of times I have to re-rack multiple heavy weights on a machine to use it. As a person who can only lift at most forty pounds with lots of effort, cleaning up after ego-lifting gym-bros is unfortunately part of my workout routine. If I want to use a leg machine or a Smith machine, a big chunk of my prep is re-racking four 45-pound weights before I can do my sets.
The gym is a great place to spend your free time, and the more time I am there, the more I see, hear, and smell interesting things from interesting individuals.