GYM ETTIQUETTE

Major Pet Peeves In Gym Etiquette - Your Mother Doesn't Work Here!


Where has gym etiquette gone? I have been around gyms for over twenty years and have never seen the outrageous things I see going on today. Here’s a brief list on the latest gym pet peeves and how to improve.

By: Lisa Sutton Jun 30, 2008
Your Mother Doesn't Work Here!

Too often when I walk the gym floor, I will undoubtedly find dumbbells left out or weight plates left on a machine. This infuriates me because it isn't just a five pound plate or ten pound dumbbell; it's usually our one hundred pound plates and a couple of forty fives left on a leg press machine. Sometimes the inconsiderate culprit will leave out the heavy dumbbells on the floor. Thanks guys, it really makes my day to clean up after you.

I am not saying women don't leave weights out as well, but the men are the biggest offenders when it comes to the heavier weights. Not too many women I know are using the eighty-pound dumbbells for example.

It never ceases to amaze me how people think that we are responsible for racking their weights. Get a clue, its part of your workout, not to mention its plain and simple common courtesy to the other members. Do you want to unload someone else's weights off a machine or barbell so you can use it?


Where has gym etiquette gone? What happened? I have been around gyms for over twenty years and have never seen the outrageous things I see going on today. I don't know if it's the generation or that people just do not give a d@mn about anyone else around them anymore. Back in the day if you left a weight out you were immediately reprimanded and possibly thrown out of the gym all together. Now, it's a free-for-all.

Not only are people not racking their weights, they are abusing the equipment. This by the way can be dangerous. It isn't uncommon for me to hear the machines being slammed or weights being dropped and I don't mean bumped a little. These people are literally dropping the weights (particularly the dumbbells) from heights you can't even imagine. They just don't get it... doing this can break the dumbbell as well as damage the floor.

This type of behavior could potentially hurt a fellow member. The weight could roll over on somebody's hand or foot. The slamming of the equipment could also be an accident waiting to happen. The pin in a machine will eventually get caught between plates and then POW! Here is an injury that could have easily been avoided.

Next, share the equipment, don't hog it. If you have multiple sets to do, then let someone break in and do their set or sets, it makes for a more pleasant environment when people are actually polite to one another.


I have yet another pet peeve, and that is not wiping down the equipment after sweating all over it. It is unsanitary as well as rude. We provide small towels and disinfectant bottles for that very reason. So why aren't some people utilizing them? Who the h#ll knows? This unconscionable behavior has baffled me for years.

I am not saying our clientele in general is unmanageable and rude, but there are those few people who make it difficult on everyone. By not racking your weights, you make it hard for the next person to find what they need to use. When you don't share the equipment, you make it trying for a person to get their workout in. Finally, PLEASE wipe down the machines and or equipment you use and perspire all over. Nobody wants to sit or lay in your body fluids.


Be Courteous And Help Keep The Gym Neat And Clean.

Next time you go to the gym for your workout, be mindful of these issues. There are certain rules in life we all have to abide by. It's no different in a gym or fitness facility.

Be courteous and help each other keep the gym neat and clean.

Major Pet Peeves In Gym Etiquette - Your Mother Doesn't Work Here!

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