so there was this guy in the gym . . .

Options
1121315171840

Replies

  • MissHolidayGolightly
    Options
    Hahaha maybe Halloween this year because I could be Holly drinking white Russians from a coupe which would likely get me drunk enough to decide it's a good idea to run backwards. I've been known to be a runner when I drink and, not to toot my own horn but, I'm a spectacular faller.
  • CHSegl
    CHSegl Posts: 89 Member
    Options
    I want to see a share of the Rogan-wannabe doing the baby bird face.
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,949 Member
    Options
    Ok so yesterday I was at the gym doing my squats... and there was this one woman who was working with a personal trainer. I've seen her around but never paid much attention. Except, yesterday, she did at least 2 sets of 5 on deadlifts of 275 lbs. And I was just like "Booyah! You rock!". I wonder how I missed that all this time! I couldn't help but watch!

    And apparently I'm doing something wrong because all the trainers came by to try to help me haha. Ok, well two of them did. One told me to "look to the sky" when doing squats (I thought you should be looking slightly down with low bar squats - keeping a neutral neck... something I confirmed later with a different trainer when I explained I was doing low bar)... and then that trainer wants to help me find my 5 and 10 rep maxes... he said I get a 1.5 hour fitness assessment for free so I just said "Sure! Why not!" - no harm, right (considering I'm not one to feel obligated to hire a trainer just because of something like that)? Maybe he'll quickly check my form, not that I have any idea what this fitness assessment entails.
  • MissHolidayGolightly
    Options
    You should have said, "No, you fool!" to that trainer that told you to look up.
  • threnjen
    threnjen Posts: 687 Member
    Options
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    Options
    CHFay wrote: »
    I want to see a share of the Rogan-wannabe doing the baby bird face.

    you don't ;-) it was kind of upsetting really. like, uh, something that strangers shouldn't be looking on for.

    couple of guys in the place yesterday from kind of the same sort of group. they were both kind of middle-aged young'uns, the kind of early-30's guy who's going bald and so he shaves his head and adds a beard instead. and apparently they were great buddies and all - i think i even saw body contact occasionally. but i could only half hear their words, so what struck me the most was how they were standing around talking with these, like, omigod totally into-it vocal tones almost like bff women might use - but their body language and facial expressions were absolute 100% mutual watchfulness. they pretty much did nothing but socialize in my general vicinity and i think there was a lot of low-voiced hard-core misogyny being exchanged as their bonding currency, from the few little soundbites that got to my ears. the whole thing kind of gave me the creeps.

    example: guy 1 tells some story involving somethingsomethingsomethingsomething, and guy 2 watches his face, carefully, the entire time, without a twitch or a blink. guy 1 arrives at the punchline, whatever it was, and guy 2 joins in. 'oh my god that's hilarious. that's the funniest thing that i've ever heard.' apparently heartfelt, i.e. not meant as sarcasm at all. but no vocal inflection at all, he doesn't crack a smile, nothing moves but his lips, and the eyes never even shift to some other part of the other guy's face.

    like i said, they gave me the creeps. i tagged them as wannabe alpha males, tier two or maybe tier three in whatever herd they wandered away from that day.
  • TravelsWithHuckleberry
    Options
    @Canadian -- If I ever come visit you, the only thing I want to do is hang out at your gym. We can leave to eat gummy bears every once in a while, but otherwise, I just want to stay inside and people watch. We can workout too, but our rests between sets will each be an hour long to accommodate said watching. :)
  • MissHolidayGolightly
    MissHolidayGolightly Posts: 857 Member
    edited February 2015
    Options
    The rubber-band-around-the-ankles guys were back yesterday, walking around like T-rexes again. This time they were filming each other doing their strange exercising routine. I think I got to make a few cameos as they were taking up a large part of the gym floor to film. I pretended not to notice and went about my business.

    Also, I watched Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion on Saturday and I totally have some new gym outfit inspiration. Metallic two-pieces with skirts and pig tails anyone?
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    Options
    The rubber-band-around-the-ankles guys were back yesterday, walking around like T-rexes again.

    i just so love this. it's the only thing my gym seems to be missing. apart from a few extra squat racks, of course.

  • MissHolidayGolightly
    Options
    They are my favorite :smiley:

    I heard shrieking at the gym tonight and I thought someone was caught under a machine or something. Turns out, it was sounds coming from the Zumba class :unamused:
  • DawnEmbers
    DawnEmbers Posts: 2,451 Member
    Options
    Saw some interesting things last night. Not quite as interesting as the ones some on here often get to report but they caught my attention.

    First was the older gentleman who helped me remove a 45 from the bar when setting up deadlift. The guy using it when I first got there had just left his on there, 4 in total, but I was managing okay to get them off. He was nice though, the one that helped.

    Over using the big cable machine with all the pull down bars and such were a group of guys all bro-ing out. They would do a lift somewhere or do some pull ups then watch someone else do their thing. One of the guys I see on a regular basis, and have for months, was there too near the smith machine but it was more like he was observing than a part of the group. Though it wasn't as amusing as the guys who randomly hugged last time I was in the gym. Was kind of cute, threesome bro hug.

    Then there was a guy doing something similar to deadlift near the squat rack but without it touching the ground and didn't have 45's on it though had decent weight combined. He looked in the mirrors a lot (two are available in the area, front and side though side was a longer distance away). Gotta say, whatever he is doing it is working for his butt and the black pants accentuated that factor. The gay boy (novel) characters in my head were entertained by the view. lol
  • hanlonsk
    hanlonsk Posts: 762 Member
    Options
    I have a collection from the last bit or so.
    I had a couple of guys actually curling in the squat rack. Which once again... I thought that was just one of those gym rumors. What made this even more special was how every bit of their conversation I could hear was like major serious in depth bromotional conversation. Would have made much more sense if they were females in general.

    There is this guy I have seen twice now that is absolutely COVERED in tattoos. Like most of his face sort of totally covered. Like why do people do that sort of thing. He doesnt even look tough with it, just really ridiculous.

    Then today, a guy probably mid 20's came in. And was, i dont even know how to explain it... tap dancing... maybe??? To the music in the gym.... while standing on the treadmill... for like 5 minutes before he ever started on the treadmill... and then while on the treadmill he would walk and run, and occasionally throw in some more toe tap type stuff, and shadow box, and I dont even know what else because I am a klutz and had to occasionally look at my own treadmill.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    edited March 2015
    Options
    hanlonsk wrote: »
    tap dancing... maybe??? To the music in the gym.... while standing on the treadmill... for like 5 minutes before he ever started on the treadmill... and then while on the treadmill he would walk and run, and occasionally throw in some more toe tap type stuff, and shadow box, and I dont even know what else

    that's lovely. i lose my balance on a treadmill if i even move my eyes by a couple inches.

    pseudo-seth was in there today, fortunately without groupie but still with the world's.stupidest.haircut and the half-rimmed heavy-frame glasses and the depressing urban-hipster-short-guy aggressor smirk. he took over from me on the bench, and good riddance to both of them.

    there's a teeny little middle eastern woman who i've seen twice in a row now, being taught lifts by either a boyfriend or a big brother. last time i offered them the 30lb bar when i saw them looking dubiously at the 45 in the stand, and this time i took over from her for my squats. saw them leaving later when i was outside for a brief fresh-air break, and she waved to me. feel like i've made a gym buddy there :D

    - awful woman working with this guy i've seen around, who seems okay enough. one of those big muscley middle-class guys with a shaved head and a tattoo on the back of his neck who's probably a network administrator or internal tech dude. he's also either a pt or he runs a harem, because i've seen him before with other women, walking them through various lifts. this one was awful. at first i just thought she had had a bad day, but then the self-righteously complaining narrative tone just went on and on and then further on, no matter what they were working on. and i could hear her wherever they moved to as well. at one point i was stepping backwards with the broomstick while she was doing cable rows and complaining, and i guess i impinged on her airspace or something. she did that classic passive-aggressive sniff/sneer and said, i kid not 'of course, that's a really good place to be with that thing' and i had this brief, really intense longing to smack her. oh excuse me - am i lifting weights in your gym?

    only other hting that happened was that i found someone's credit card outside on the grass and handed it off to the desk. hopefully she's a member, because if not then it's up to the desk people to know how to do whatever gets done with such things.
  • hanlonsk
    hanlonsk Posts: 762 Member
    Options
    Soooo... today was one of those days, like spectacular enough I may have to adjust my gym time just to see if the people watching is always that great.

    Some like 60+ year old lady was the one doing the sideways treadmill walking thing tonight. Only she was doing it on an incline, and instead of regular side step she was grapevining, and rather briskly too. She clearly has excellent coordination and cardio, but it just seems like a bad bad idea.

    Treadmill dancing guy was back, only today was a weight day, and lets just say certain weighted moves do not look at all appropriate when someone is bobbing along to a rhythm.

    Face tattoo guy was back, and today he had clearly smoked pot directly before coming to the gym. Like completely brought a waft of it in with him.

    Then there was a guy, who I really would not have known what to make of his get up had the trainer not been with me. This guy had his hoodie on, with the hood up, and this black mask with like 3 white plastic circles on it. It is apparently an "elevation mask." (Google it.. it looks goofy in the images.. but rather intimidating with the sweatshirt hood up.) But yeah he looked like some wanna be comic book villain, and sounded like Darth Vader. Apparently they make your lungs work as though you are training at a higher elevation. To quote the trainer "so instead of just working harder he just makes it so he cant breath... I don't get it."

    Oh... and .. some girl tripped while getting on the elliptical... which wouldn't be all that amazing... other than it WASN'T ME!!!!
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    Options
    hanlonsk wrote: »
    Soooo... today was one of those days, like spectacular enough I may have to adjust my gym time just to see if the people watching is always that great.

    dooooooo eeeeett.
  • DawnEmbers
    DawnEmbers Posts: 2,451 Member
    Options
    Last night the interesting sight was the guy who looked like he forgot his gym clothes but really wanted to work out. Had khaki looking pants and a long-sleeved nice-ish teal/blue kind of shirt. He still walked around the weight section and did stuff but looked out of place.

    I also noticed the older gentleman who is there 5+ days a week at 11 working elliptical and some of the cable machines tends to workout in jeans.
  • threnjen
    threnjen Posts: 687 Member
    Options
    DawnEmbers wrote: »

    I also noticed the older gentleman who is there 5+ days a week at 11 working elliptical and some of the cable machines tends to workout in jeans.

    I see that guy when I go at night too. I do not understand what is going on there. I know exactly who you mean.

  • annaskiski
    annaskiski Posts: 1,212 Member
    Options
    threnjen wrote: »
    DawnEmbers wrote: »

    I also noticed the older gentleman who is there 5+ days a week at 11 working elliptical and some of the cable machines tends to workout in jeans.

    I see that guy when I go at night too. I do not understand what is going on there. I know exactly who you mean.

    I see these gentlemen too. I think maybe they feel self-conscious in sweats.
    Good for them for getting to the gym though...
  • DawnEmbers
    DawnEmbers Posts: 2,451 Member
    Options
    Yeah, he is a motivation in that he's freakin' dedicated. Might be odd at times but he goes and does his thing all the time.

    Tonight it was the bro show. I've seen this group of guys often after 11 pm and they often are working out together. Sometimes it's take off shirt and take pictures doing some weird thing in the power cage. This time it was lie down on the floor near the numbers and curl/lift fixed barbells by bringing down close-ish to forehead (or move head up to help get it closer) then push away from body again. Group of 4 working out on that one taking turns and helping each other.

    I also saw a guy wearing spandex/tights type leggings and it reminded me of a forum post over in the fitness section about whether it's offensive if guys wear those. This one did in fact also have a pair of shorts on over them.
  • threnjen
    threnjen Posts: 687 Member
    Options
    My 1AM dude last night was not someone I have seen before. He was wearing super tight spandex leggings and one of those tank tops that is so scoopy that the neckline is down to his belly button.