Ladies, Have You Ever Had a Bad Experience With a Male Personal Trainer?

I joined a gym in November with the intention of trying to get back in shape after a couple of years of too much overtime at work and grad school.

I had received a couple of phone calls from the gym stating that an initial "assessment" with a personal trainer was included in my membership. I thought it would be good to take advantage of that, have someone go through the machines/exercies with me so I could set up a program and hit the ground running once I'm medically cleared to work out (I'm still recovering from flu complications which included badly swollen and painful lymph nodes above my collar bone) I figured it would be a good idea to do this before the New Year when everyone would be in there.

First, he did not listen to me, particularly about my goals and what a healthy weight for me is (I've been a lifelong athlete, including triathlon, marathon, outdoor activities and dance and know my body – I know exactly at what weight I look and feel the best and perform my best in triathlons) I'm getting older and just need to add some strength training to regain some muscle mass that we all lose as we age.

He immediately tried to push hard core body building, a lower body fat percentage than may be healthy for me, and completely poo-pooed any cardio, which is also important, especially for a multi sport athlete. He showed me photos of women's bodies on his phone, none of which had my body type.

He also repeatedly tried to press me into working out right then and there, when I had told him more than once that I was not yet medically cleared to do so, and was just looking for exercise program recommendations for when I am able to start.

There are several Facebook reviews for this gym which name him and his inappropriate commentary with women. I'm pretty laid back and while several things he said to me were borderline inappropriate, I'm sure other women would have found them completely inappropriate.

He most definitely engaged in inappropriate/unwanted touching. I had to ask him THREE TIMES NOT to grab the area between my neck and shoulder due to pain I was experiencing from the lymph nodes (I had to physically take his hands off of me)

The really creepy thing was he kept touching my HAIR. DO NOT TOUCH WOMENS' HAIR!!! That is an extremely intimate gesture and it's CREEPY when done uninvited.

After all was said and done, I did not come out of there with what I wanted, a list of exercises to do to build my strength, but did receive a relentless, extremely high pressure sales pitch for personal training. (even if I had the time, money or inclination, it sure as hell wouldn't be with him)

I gave him a hard "No" at least ten times. I told him in no uncertain terms that my financial situation would not allow and that I owed him no explanation for that. He kept pressing and pressuring.

This was several days ago and I'm still creeped out."

I waited a day and sent a complaint to their corporate headquarters (this was right before the holiday so I expect a form letter in a day or two) There is no single manager at this club; there is a sales manager, a membership manager and a PT manager, which he is, so no one there I can go to.

On an amusing note, my boyfriend joined as well and he's got an appointment set with the same trainer. I'm waiting to compare notes and see how he was treated versus how I was treated… I'm pretty sure there are things that won't be said to him and that he won't be asked to do multiple times. (and that his hair won't be touched)