How bad would someone's form need to be for you to say something?

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  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Even my trainer won't approach non clients in the gym

    Even when really concerned about potential injury

    I've had to convince him to try with one woman who squats very heavy but is going to blow a knee out because they just buckle inwards
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    edited September 2016
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    i'm also going to add, i would keep my mouth shut . . . and keep keeping it shut if/when something did happen to the person concerned. none of that 'i knew all along, ha ha, stupid fool' stuff i sometimes overhear from other people. like we don't all have stuff we could learn and little things we don't realise we could do better.
  • Willbenchforcupcakes
    Willbenchforcupcakes Posts: 4,955 Member
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    My teammates and I are always correcting and giving feedback on form. Completely different situation than giving feedback to a random person in the gym.

    In terms of going up to a non-teammate, nope. If they ask, yes of course. But generally, most of the ones that care enough to ask for feedback will also go grab one of the strength coaches to give that feedback.
  • Therealobi1
    Therealobi1 Posts: 3,261 Member
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    I think the best approach is to inform staff
    I don't understand the mind your own business crew, especially those who can see what the person is doing could be dangerous
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    So first of all I tend to have a reputation for being the unsolicited advice guy at my gym. That being said, it's not in a bad way in that people give me *kitten* but they also tend to ask me questions and so it's invited in a way even though at times I'll comment when it's not. But it's only with a select group of people who I socialize with regularly.

    But anyway, for me it depends on whether it's a complete stranger and whether there's any small-talk going on or anything of that nature before hand.

    So for example if it's someone who I've seen there regularly and I'm a little social with, I'd go ahead and say something.

    If it were someone I have never seen before, or someone who I've never interacted with before in any way, I would have to see something quite dangerous before I'd say anything. I'd go to a staff member first.

    I should add though, that sometimes people think something is terribly dangerous when in reality it might be something with a marginally higher injury risk. For example if someone were squatting and they had some knee collapse, or someone were deadlifting with some back rounding, I don't think that's cause for urgent intervention. That's a situation where some populations might have a higher risk of injury.

    Anyway, that's my opinion.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    edited September 2016
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    Personally, I would be glad if someone wanted to help me with form. But, everyone is different. You could try saying Hi. Maybe a little small talk about weight lifting during rest time. Ask them if they would like any help with form because sometimes it helps to get some outside feedback. That's an option. And back off if they say no.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    edited September 2016
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    That makes a lot of sense. I didn't think of that. I'm a dancer, so I am used to having my form corrected, and then needing to quickly incorporate the change. But, weights are very different.
  • Therealobi1
    Therealobi1 Posts: 3,261 Member
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    I take last few comments on board and that's why you could mention it to staff, this way they can watch the person and assess if form is an issue. You can then get on with your day.

  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    edited September 2016
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    Therealobi1 wrote: »
    I think the best approach is to inform staff
    I don't understand the mind your own business crew, especially those who can see what the person is doing could be dangerous

    Because everyone is different. Some people are not comfortable approaching complete strangers with unsolicited advice, especially when they are no experts themselves. You never know why someone is doing the exercise they are doing.

    ETA- Some people just want to do their workout and GTFO without interaction.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
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    canadianlbs wrote: »
    Therealobi1 wrote: »
    I don't understand the mind your own business crew, especially those who can see what the person is doing could be dangerous

    i had someone approach me once when i was buttwinking. no question that i was doing it, and in retrospect i totally understand the worry that probably made him feel he didn't have any ethical choice about mentioning it.

    problem was this. i took it on, i believed him, i understood what he meant. but you change one thing in your form and something else shifts, right? meanwhile you don't know from inside your own skin whether you're making things better, worse, or just different.

    it spoiled the session for both of us, actually. me because i was selfconscious and disoriented. 'couldn't' keep right on doing what he'd just told me was 'bad' after i'd thanked him for it; physically couldn't do anything to fix it either. and him because having destabilized me he was uncomfortable BOTH with moving on and leaving me to it, and staying to clean up the 'mess' he'd set off in my form.

    so, yeah. unless he'd been willing to stand there for half and hour and forego his own workout, and i had been willing to take an impromptu schooling from some total stranger, there just wasn't much that either of us could do with the information.

    i get your point in theory, but in practice there's a hell of a lot more that goes into 'fixing' somebody's form than just telling them they're doing one part of it wrong.

    SO much this!
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    canadianlbs wrote: »
    Therealobi1 wrote: »
    I don't understand the mind your own business crew, especially those who can see what the person is doing could be dangerous

    i had someone approach me once when i was buttwinking. no question that i was doing it, and in retrospect i totally understand the worry that probably made him feel he didn't have any ethical choice about mentioning it.

    problem was this. i took it on, i believed him, i understood what he meant. but you change one thing in your form and something else shifts, right? meanwhile you don't know from inside your own skin whether you're making things better, worse, or just different.

    it spoiled the session for both of us, actually. me because i was selfconscious and disoriented. 'couldn't' keep right on doing what he'd just told me was 'bad' after i'd thanked him for it; physically couldn't do anything to fix it either. and him because having destabilized me he was uncomfortable BOTH with moving on and leaving me to it, and staying to clean up the 'mess' he'd set off in my form.

    so, yeah. unless he'd been willing to stand there for half and hour and forego his own workout, and i had been willing to take an impromptu schooling from some total stranger, there just wasn't much that either of us could do with the information.

    i get your point in theory, but in practice there's a hell of a lot more that goes into 'fixing' somebody's form than just telling them they're doing one part of it wrong.

    And there is a big difference between seeing something that's "wrong" and knowing how to coach someone how to fix it.

    And to understand how something might "look wrong", but actually be appropriate given the person's anatomy, medical history, etc.

    There are often times when I see someone doing something "wrong", but find out that they were coached to do what they are doing by a therapist or another trainer for (good) reasons that aren't readily apparent.

    So even though it is specifically my job to observe people exercising and correct their form, even I do not bigfoot my way into someone's routine without some detailed observations and discussion beforehand. Otherwise, you can end up with the exact same scenario you described.
  • kwtilbury
    kwtilbury Posts: 1,234 Member
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    That's the job of the gym staff. If they're not correcting him, say something to the staff.

    If someone's is just generally using poor form, say, using momentum on barbell curls, I'll just roll my eyes. If they're using poor form that could result in injury - rolling their back on deadlifts - I'll discreetly say something to staff.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
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    I would say nothing regardless because I work out at Planet Fitness. It's up to the staff if they see someone they think is likely to injure themselves. Now if my husband is messing up his form, I will say something because that's hubby and we can help each other without breaking the gym rules.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
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    .... what in the world is "buttwinking"? I'm almost afraid to ask lol.
  • upoffthemat
    upoffthemat Posts: 679 Member
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    kwtilbury wrote: »
    That's the job of the gym staff. If they're not correcting him, say something to the staff.

    If someone's is just generally using poor form, say, using momentum on barbell curls, I'll just roll my eyes. If they're using poor form that could result in injury - rolling their back on deadlifts - I'll discreetly say something to staff.
    I agree with this. I would want to know, but I would want to know from someone who actually is competent to correct me as well, not just thinks they are. Saying something to the staff seems the best answer if someone looks like they are going to hurt themself.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
    edited September 2016
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    canadianlbs wrote: »
    Therealobi1 wrote: »
    I don't understand the mind your own business crew, especially those who can see what the person is doing could be dangerous

    i had someone approach me once when i was buttwinking. no question that i was doing it, and in retrospect i totally understand the worry that probably made him feel he didn't have any ethical choice about mentioning it.

    problem was this. i took it on, i believed him, i understood what he meant. but you change one thing in your form and something else shifts, right? meanwhile you don't know from inside your own skin whether you're making things better, worse, or just different.

    it spoiled the session for both of us, actually. me because i was selfconscious and disoriented. 'couldn't' keep right on doing what he'd just told me was 'bad' after i'd thanked him for it; physically couldn't do anything to fix it either. and him because having destabilized me he was uncomfortable BOTH with moving on and leaving me to it, and staying to clean up the 'mess' he'd set off in my form.

    so, yeah. unless he'd been willing to stand there for half and hour and forego his own workout, and i had been willing to take an impromptu schooling from some total stranger, there just wasn't much that either of us could do with the information.

    i get your point in theory, but in practice there's a hell of a lot more that goes into 'fixing' somebody's form than just telling them they're doing one part of it wrong.

    Yeah, and that assuming the person "helping" knows what they are doing. I've gotten some terrible advice on how to squat (look at the ceiling). It screwed up my workout completely, just by having my focus altered. And I didn't want to take the advice, so I was always watching the guy to see if he was watching me not taking his advice. :s Never have seen him in the squat rack, BTW.

    ETA: Sorry, that was a little sideways from the OP.

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