What do you do when you see terrible form at the gym?

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  • Growtinymusclesgrow
    Growtinymusclesgrow Posts: 152 Member
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    I live in China and see a lot of bad form in the gyms.... sometimes I even see bare feet or flip-flops ;))) I try to ignore and make sure I use proper form.:)

    I lift in my socks (basically barefoot) @ my gym. Does this mean my form is bad?

    NOT AT ALL! I lift in wrestling shoes, which is basically barefoot and my form is spot on. I won't up the weight if my form suffers.
  • dave4d
    dave4d Posts: 1,155 Member
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    I live in China and see a lot of bad form in the gyms.... sometimes I even see bare feet or flip-flops ;))) I try to ignore and make sure I use proper form.:)

    I lift in my socks (basically barefoot) @ my gym. Does this mean my form is bad?

    I saw a guy do that today, when he went to do squats. I've heard running shoes put your feet at the wrong angle, and you should have flat soles when you do lifts like squats. I figured that was why he took off his shoes.
  • Nataliaho
    Nataliaho Posts: 878 Member
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    I live in China and see a lot of bad form in the gyms.... sometimes I even see bare feet or flip-flops ;))) I try to ignore and make sure I use proper form.:)

    I lift in my socks (basically barefoot) @ my gym. Does this mean my form is bad?
    Totally legit to lift barefoot, that comment is an example of what I was getting at in my post.
  • rachaelfisher1
    rachaelfisher1 Posts: 69
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    ^^ My point exactly, haha.
    IMO, everyone should lift barefoot.
  • MyM0wM0w
    MyM0wM0w Posts: 2,008 Member
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    Mind my own business and stop watching what other people are doing......
  • jayche
    jayche Posts: 1,128 Member
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    ^^ My point exactly, haha.
    IMO, everyone should lift barefoot.
    Haha I used to lift with my vibrams a lot more, now I'm favoring good ol' chucks. Still do wear them from time to time though
    Mind my own business and stop watching what other people are doing......
    Sorry if this bothers you but my eyes do wander between sets, I don't do this out of contempt of anyone but rather because I'd rather not just look at myself or the ground for a full minute and a half every time I hit a set.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    I don't give feedback unless I'm asked.
  • sunsnstatheart
    sunsnstatheart Posts: 2,544 Member
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    It depends.

    I'd say 90% of the time you're inevitably going to sound like some gym d-bag. Sometimes people will finally ask and if it comes up in conversation you can suggest. There's an older and wiser guy in my gym that I'll ask for advice on occasion.
  • Austin1988
    Austin1988 Posts: 243 Member
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    I would approach them, but in a way that they can relate to you:

    "Hey, I was doing good mornings and my back was always hurting, so I checked it out and found out that my back was never as straight as it should be. You might give it a try if you are hurting the next day after you do them."
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
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    I would approach them, but in a way that they can relate to you:

    "Hey, I was doing good mornings and my back was always hurting, so I checked it out and found out that my back was never as straight as it should be. You might give it a try if you are hurting the next day after you do them."

    I like that approach. It is always a little presumptuous to critique some stranger's form, but phrasing the critique the way Austin suggests takes some of the arrogance out of it. We all need some help, especially since often times you cannot really see your form completely and objectively, and we just get in bad habits.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    I would approach them, but in a way that they can relate to you:

    "Hey, I was doing good mornings and my back was always hurting, so I checked it out and found out that my back was never as straight as it should be. You might give it a try if you are hurting the next day after you do them."
    You sound like an infomercial.

    Just tack "And for only $19.99, I can provide you the tools to do it right!" on the end.
  • JNick77
    JNick77 Posts: 3,783 Member
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    Today I saw someone going deep on some good mornings with a really rounded back (I'm not exaggerating when I say his back resembled a flamingo's neck) on the squat rack but ultimately just said nothing and let him do his thing.

    What would you do if you saw terrible/potentially dangerous form in the gym?

    Interesting, I saw somebody doing RDL's the other morning with a horribly rounded back. It made my back hurt just looking at it.

    In the gym let's face it, nobody wants to hear anything from anybody about what they're doing wrong. Men don't want to hear it because hey, we're men and have ego's to uphold. Women don't want to hear it because then we're just creepers.
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
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    I would approach them, but in a way that they can relate to you:

    "Hey, I was doing good mornings and my back was always hurting, so I checked it out and found out that my back was never as straight as it should be. You might give it a try if you are hurting the next day after you do them."
    You sound like an infomercial.

    Just tack "And for only $19.99, I can provide you the tools to do it right!" on the end.

    that was snotty and not very helpful

    go to the back of the line
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    I would approach them, but in a way that they can relate to you:

    "Hey, I was doing good mornings and my back was always hurting, so I checked it out and found out that my back was never as straight as it should be. You might give it a try if you are hurting the next day after you do them."
    You sound like an infomercial.

    Just tack "And for only $19.99, I can provide you the tools to do it right!" on the end.

    that was snotty and not very helpful

    go to the back of the line
    Why so serious Dave? Lighten up :D
  • Mutant13
    Mutant13 Posts: 2,485 Member
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    I know if I were doing something wrong I'd like to be told the correct way to do it. Provided the person was polite and actually knew what they were talking about.

    I once heard one guy tell another that he should be pushing his elbows APART on tricep extensions.
    Thankfully the guy didn't listen to him.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
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    Unless you actually have experience in variant biomechanics, you keep your trap shut, basically. You probably have absolutely no idea of exactly how these peoples' joints are shaped and/or move under pressure. You certainly can't tell this from a passing glance, or even 30 seconds of hard staring.

    For example, my deadlift form looks atrocious, however it works very well for me, and I have had absolutely no negative side effects. The reason? I found out early on that the typically prescribed DL form does not work well for me. As such, I started working on strengthening my traps to support the weight (I can shrug 525x2 at max) of my current DL PR, which is 425.
  • cortezpj
    cortezpj Posts: 129 Member
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    I ask the gym's PTs to intervene and offer advice rather than sit at their desk...

    At my gym on a Saturday afternoon there is a session for teenagers and they often have no idea about technique and risk injuring themselves. I do intervene personally at times but it has more "weight" coming from a fitness professional.

    This is my favorite post so far. I read the OP a day after it was first posted so by now there are already over 7 pages worth of replies, more than I care to read.

    To answer the OP, I personally wouldn't say anything. But that's because I'm not qualified or credentialed to offer advice on proper lifting techniques. If I was, then yes, I'd say something. I think any advice / constructive criticism / recommendations would be received as more credible if it came from a member of the gym's staff or a certified personal trainer.

    If we put ourselves in the shoes of the person displaying improper form and we were getting unsolicited tips from a total stranger, how would we take it? How do we know that they know what they're talking about if they don't appear to be a PT or a member of the staff? How could anyone know for certain that any unsolicited advice may be worse and even pose more potential harm?

    Doing nothing is rarely, if ever, a good thing. But we also need to consider all the facts and factors involved.
  • BCSMama
    BCSMama Posts: 348
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    Personally, if I were doing something incorrect that could cause injury, I would be ever so grateful to learn proper form since I am fairly new to weight lifting. However, I can see how it could be uncomfortable to approach someone like that. I don't know what I'd do since I don't consider myself qualified at all to know how to correct someone's form.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
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    When I start lifting, I think I'm going to get a t-shirt made. On the back in big letters.. "Tell me if my form sucks".


    Not only is this a legit LOL for me, I think it's actually a good idea. I have a feeling my squat form is a little off at the bottom, but I can't really tell without hurting my neck. Maybe I'll do this and hope that anyone that "helps" me knows what they're talking about.
  • RedHeadDevotchka
    RedHeadDevotchka Posts: 1,394 Member
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    It depends, if they are doing it for attention (and you can usually spot these types a mile off) then leave it alone. BUT if not, and you really want to say something say it nicely. I've been approached for doing things correctly and incorrectly before. If the person comes over and sound arrogant and is all loud about it, Im not gonna be receptive.
    But if they come over and are casual and conversational, well I'll probably be open to listening to them.

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