squat form off in gym..say anything?

No. Don't be that guy, please.

My headphones were on but my ipod died at the gym the other day. I was doing squats next to these *kitten* im tough **** guys. I am squating as low as possible, with proper form, but the squat rack is really tall, right? I am like 1 centimeter from racking the weight on the rack with every single squat.... One of them said "Wow, she's lifting too much." "huh? no she's not" "yeah, she has to be.... she isn't squating deep enough"

Let me tell you this pissed me off beyond all EFFING BELIEF.

Don't be that guy. Rule of thumb? Unless they are going to injure themselves in the next few reps/minutes mind your own business.

talking about someone is not the same as talking directly to them to help them avoid injury

Did he say "they were about to injure themselves"? No. Don't say anything to anyone unless they are going to injure themselves. It's not your business. If i see women doing the ****tiest form of crunches ever am i going to run over to them and instruct them otherwise? No. It's not my business.

You go to the gym for YOU, not to be everyone personal trainer. If they are going to HURT themselves, then i can understand.

He asked if he should speak directly to the trainee because their squat form was bad which reading between the lines means they might hurt themselves. Clearly not the same as a couple dbags talking about you amongst themselves.

This entire exchange is why I'm willing to watch people endanger themselves without saying anything. These guys didn't speak a word to the poster, yet she is enraged and they have been labeled as dbags. For what, exactly? They had a conversation with each other just to figure out if they should say something to keep a fellow lifter from being injured. Whether the lifter was in danger or not, their heart was in the right place. Congratulations young men, your concern for fellow humans makes you a couple of douches.

Hi, there,
If you are working out in a gym and you want to know if you are doing your workouts correct then there is someone always there working you can ask them,as far as this other person doing his workout wrong I wouldn't say a word to him because then there is a fight he can say bug off and mine your own business.
I've it happened,just worry about yourself.

[This entire exchange is why I'm willing to watch people endanger themselves without saying anything. These guys didn't speak a word to the poster, yet she is enraged and they have been labeled as dbags. For what, exactly? They had a conversation with each other just to figure out if they should say something to keep a fellow lifter from being injured. Whether the lifter was in danger or not, their heart was in the right place. Congratulations young men, your concern for fellow humans makes you a couple of douches.

while i took the stance of "he may not be doing them wrong" in this thread....THIS, great post.

and I would guess by what the OP said he was doing for weight, that he was doing them wrong. Low bar squats are usually advanced lifters anyway, as high bar is more natural to most people.

No. Don't be that guy, please.

My headphones were on but my ipod died at the gym the other day. I was doing squats next to these *kitten* im tough **** guys. I am squating as low as possible, with proper form, but the squat rack is really tall, right? I am like 1 centimeter from racking the weight on the rack with every single squat.... One of them said "Wow, she's lifting too much." "huh? no she's not" "yeah, she has to be.... she isn't squating deep enough"

Let me tell you this pissed me off beyond all EFFING BELIEF.

Don't be that guy. Rule of thumb? Unless they are going to injure themselves in the next few reps/minutes mind your own business.

Agreed. Don't be the guy that knows it all.

I noticed this kid at the gym - well I say kid he was probably college age or maybe just getting out of high school - and he was doing squats but his form was kind of jacked becuase he was looking down...I wanted to say something but decided not to ...what do you all think? Should I have mentioned something...I mean I would want to know if my form was not good...ehhhh

Please don't. He didn't ask you for your advice. Just ignore him.

When I first started lifting, I knew I was doing some things wrong but was working with just the bar for a while to try to get my form down. I had people coming up to me almost every single day telling me that I was "doing it wrong" instead of leaving me alone to work on it myself and improve. It was obnoxious and annoying. There is nothing more offputting than someone who feels like they need to "correct" your form when you didn't ask them for help.

Among the people that tried to "help" me was a girl who told me to just "give it up" because I was "too fat to squat right." Another one told me there was no such thing as a lowbar squat. Not everyone offering advice is right either.

Some people know they're not doing it right and are there to improve. Don't assume they just "don't know."

I don't comment on anyone's form unless they ask me to. If you don't know the person, you don't know what their goals are, if they are working around an injury, trying to break a sticking point, etc.

I don't really want comments on my workout from people who don't know these things about me.

What about comments on your 'stache?

If you feel like you have something to offer, it's just in your the approach. I liked the idea, "Has anybody coached you on that lift?" As long as you come across as wanting to help and not to simply criticize, I don't think you'd be out of line or badly received. Myself, I'm new to the lifting game and am doing the best I can, but sometimes it really helps to have someone to guide you through, especially on those heavy lifts.

If they say, "No thanks." then you're no worse off and you no longer have to wonder if you should have said anything.

i dont know about others, but I always hope to god that if i'm doing something wrong someone will come and correct me!

The problem is that there is at least a 50/50 chance that the person who "corrects" you will also be wrong. A large number of guys who lift weights learn by watching other guys lift weights--they don't have any instruction either. There is no limit to the dopey things that the muscleheads do in our weight area.

I agree with this x1000. Lots of people that have terrible form think their form is awesome. Whether you're right or wrong about whatever correction you offer, you're really only as credible as the hulk-bro who thinks it's really important to have your hands virtually touching the weights on the sides.

Well the SS book really is good, but as I said earlier, the squats in that video did look rough. A bit too much Good Morning to them.

yeah theres definitely some good things that can be learned from his book.

I just wouldn't copy his squats.

Say something. The worst that can happen is that your advice is not taken.

I'm 41 years old and have been squatting for all of three months. I read about the form, looked at pictures, watched videos and then started. About three weeks ago, a very polite and (obviously) experienced lifter asked if he could give me some form advice. I was pushing my knees way too far out on the squat and there were some other adjustments.

It helped a great deal and I was very appreciative. He probably saved this old man from a knee injury that would have kept me out of the weight room for some time.

No. Don't be that guy, please.

My headphones were on but my ipod died at the gym the other day. I was doing squats next to these *kitten* im tough **** guys. I am squating as low as possible, with proper form, but the squat rack is really tall, right? I am like 1 centimeter from racking the weight on the rack with every single squat.... One of them said "Wow, she's lifting too much." "huh? no she's not" "yeah, she has to be.... she isn't squating deep enough"

Let me tell you this pissed me off beyond all EFFING BELIEF.

Don't be that guy. Rule of thumb? Unless they are going to injure themselves in the next few reps/minutes mind your own business.

talking about someone is not the same as talking directly to them to help them avoid injury

Did he say "they were about to injure themselves"? No. Don't say anything to anyone unless they are going to injure themselves. It's not your business. If i see women doing the ****tiest form of crunches ever am i going to run over to them and instruct them otherwise? No. It's not my business.

You go to the gym for YOU, not to be everyone personal trainer. If they are going to HURT themselves, then i can understand.

Wow-chill

The problem is that there is at least a 50/50 chance that the person who "corrects" you will also be wrong. A large number of guys who lift weights learn by watching other guys lift weights--they don't have any instruction either. There is no limit to the dopey things that the muscleheads do in our weight area.

This is one of my issues. Another is that as the only girl in the weight room at my gym (9 times out of 10), I'd probably be embarassed. Lastly, I'm new at this so sometimes when my form is off, I know it and my body just isn't cooperating yet. I'd say to say something though...because I'd rather have someone (in a nice or amusing way) tell me my form is off just in case I'm not aware and I could look it up to verify later rather than just going along and hurting myself. I think if you approach them in a decent way, any reasonable person will take your advice or leave it but won't get p*ssed.

ETA: If they don't look like they're about to hurt themselves immediately, wait til they're done so that if they don't want to take your advice, they don't feel like a jerk ignoring your advice while you're right there.

I really don't get all the MYOB folks. Giving advice costs you NOTHING! So what if your advice is ignored - taking the opportunity to be a good Samaritan and save someone from injury is a good thing. Squats, performed incorrectly, can be damaging.

Someone compared this to correcting bad form on crunches - give me a break - night and day and just a silly comparison.

If I were in danger of hurting myself in the weight room, PLEASE, SOMEONE POINT IT OUT (politely).

There is a problem, though. How would I know whether or not this correcting person actually knows what they're talking about?

That's why you shouldn't rely on some random person at the gym "correcting" you but rather spend time educating yourself and asking advice from qualified people.