Busy Gym Frustration

ldigeorge

I'm happy it's the new year, and I'm happy that so many people are working towards creating good and healthy habits. This is your year, and I'm pulling for each and every one of you.

With that being said, this is the most frustrating time of the year for me. I don't have a boatload of time to get my workout in, and yesterday, I had to drive to 3 different gyms (yay for chains) in order to even FIND PARKING at 7pm.

Being a dad of 2 wonderful little girls, I can't go earlier and I can't go much later. 7p is that sweet spot for me, and from March-December, it's NEVER an issue.

I'm trying to make this work in any way I can - I go for a 2 mile ruck with 40 lbs on my back during my lunch. I take extra steps, walking wherever I can. I don't mind waiting for a bench or something... but not being able to even park. ARGH.

Sorry for venting. Don't know who else would get it.

hesn92

I get it. Last year at this time I just quit going to the gym and worked out at home for a month and a half before going back. I'm not going to the gym so I can stand around forever waiting for equipment. I don't have time for that.

jesspen91

Are you able to take public transport? I can't help you much becuase I'm very lucky to live in a city with multiple gyms in walking distance. My gym is literally metres from my flat!

urloved33

i get it too...I went into shower and bam all the showers taken w novice who don't know that taking a 20 minute shower in a small gym at 7am is JUST NOT DONE. today I went into the gym 15 minutes early and beat the crowd and then they waited for me. a 5 min shower in gym w only 4 showers is acceptable....or go home and shower.

Tacklewasher

jesspen91 wrote: »

Are you able to take public transport? I can't help you much becuase I'm very lucky to live in a city with multiple gyms in walking distance. My gym is literally metres from my flat!

If the lot is full, the gym is full. I don't think parking itself is the issue.

It's Jan. I couldn't get up Monday for a morning workout so had to wait my turn for the rack after work. Sucks but motivated me to get up this morning. Much easier to get a rack when the place is nearly empty.

ldigeorge

@jesspen91 I live in New York City (albeit an outer borough) and I could take a bus / train, but that would be just as long and if the gym is already at max (There's MANY parking spots being taken), there's really no point.

I never have to do laps looking for parking. People wait 25-30 minutes just to park their car right now. If the parking lot is that bad, how bad is the gym itself?

New_Heavens_Earth

I understand. It's hard to find the "good" treadmills and the weights I normally use. But what I deal with is more of an annoyance. Like people training their SOs as they whine their way through it.

Yesterday a bunch of women decided to do group selfies in the cardio area, near the machines. And I was sweating my butt off in the background. I felt it was inconsiderate.

Theoldguy1

I'm so glad a Planet Fitness just opened a couple miles from my regular gyms. They seem to have gotten the resolution people and my gyms are pretty much like normal with the exception of college kids on break.

CharlieCharlie007

Not about parking. But.......I go to a 24 hour gym, I am there at 3a.m. Usually there is one or two regulars, and sometimes a new face shows up...once. Anyways, This week, 3 people came to workout together at this time, newbies. Now, the gym is empty so I have no problem getting my stuff done, but....these 3 are talking so loud I can hear there conversation from the other end, taking off their shirts to train shirtless, with no intention of wiping down equipment, and screamming, you can do it MAN ITS ALL YOU!!!!!!!! At 3 a.m. I do not want to be around monkeys.

lorrpb

Do you have to park in the lot? Could you park a few blocks away and walk to the building? What have you done other years.?

ldigeorge

@lorrpb I just recently switched gyms. The other one, local NYC gym, was $55 a month. I got a great LA Fitness deal for $35 a month. Couldn't say no. Old gym also had tons of residential parking. New gym is in a strip mall.

quiksylver296

It'll be better by Valentine's Day! Hang in there!

steveko89

I feel for you, OP. I'm not fond of other people on a good/regular day so I never entertained the thought of anything but a home gym and I'm always thankful this time of year. All I have to worry about is making sure I don't drop a deadlift on one of the cats.

cyndit1

I started a thread last year about this very topic and almost got killed on here. I am fortunate that I workout early am and with the exception of a very few faces, most newbies never last at the time I workout. My daughter goes to her gym (not the same as mine) after work and has been complaining all week....it won't last...never does.

ldigeorge

I'm all for the healthy habits! I'm glad so many people are trying to right the course, @cyndit1 and I hope they continue. I'm sure that others will get tired of waiting too and will experiment with different times of the day to go. I'm just so locked into a specific time with my other responsibilities, it upsets me when I waste most of it driving. I lost 20 minutes of my workout yesterday gym-hopping.

cwolfman13

I've been going to a private gym now for a few years so I don't have that problem anymore...but when I was going to a commercial gym I started going at lunch for the first couple of months of the year...it was still crowded, but not nearly as bad as after work hours.

jjpptt2

The ironic thing is that by going, you're making the problem you're complaining about worse.

BrianSharpe

As much as Planet Fitness gets made fun of I joined one close to my office just to use the treadmills when the weather is too rotten to run outside (and use their showers when I bike in the summer) and I have not had to wait for a machine yet. (and it's only $10 a month)

cwolfman13

BrianSharpe wrote: »

As much as Planet Fitness gets made fun of I joined one close to my office just to use the treadmills when the weather is too rotten to run outside (and use their showers when I bike in the summer) and I have not had to wait for a machine yet. (and it's only $10 a month)

There's one up the road from my office and I've been thinking about doing the same...one of the ladies here at the office goes at lunch and says it isn't too bad...her husband goes after work and it sounds pretty awful, but I would be going at lunch on cruddy days to do cardio.

rsignorenc

Be flexible with your workout plans, perhaps try something new if the equipment you want to use it busy. You may find a new exercise. Everyone was a newbie at one time or another.

PaigeAnderson1793

I workout at home because I encountered a similar issue last year. I hate crowds and that was the only thing I could think of as a work around.