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What’s your pet hate at the gym?

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Replies

  • bellababy9031
    bellababy9031 Posts: 287 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Seeing some young gun half my age putting up twice the weight I can lift, and making it look easy. To be honest, my annoyance is less because of what they can do, and more about the reminder of what I used to be able to do, but have to settle for less now that I'm older. Phooey.

    But I would hazard a guess that you are a lot smarter now than you were back then and could probably whip their "kitten" with no trouble, there is that.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,724 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Seeing some young gun half my age putting up twice the weight I can lift, and making it look easy. To be honest, my annoyance is less because of what they can do, and more about the reminder of what I used to be able to do, but have to settle for less now that I'm older. Phooey.

    This post is not meant as a criticism or disagree, so please don't take it that way. I'm quoting because the "young'un at the gym" scenario reminded me of something.

    I don't mostly do strength workouts at a gym, but I used to.

    One of the things that annoyed me was almost the opposite of that: It was young women half my age (and less) almost sleepwalking through a strength circuit - usually a machine circuit, but sometimes freeweights - clearly, clearly, clearly going through the motions, with what was to them very obviously a completely trivial resistance. Spending time, going nowhere.

    Someone may say that perhaps they were rehabbing. Sincerely, I doubt it. I think it's the real life manifestation of "wouldn't want to get bulky" and similar thoughts.

    When I was their age (1970s-ish), physical strength in women was not generally valued, in the culture around me. One of the things I love, about how time and culture have rolled out over the decades since, is how much more common, and more valued, physical strength and athleticism among women is, even though things are still not at 100%. Huge improvement though, would've been unimaginable to me then.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    But I would hazard a guess that you are a lot smarter now than you were back then and could probably whip their "kitten" with no trouble, there is that.

    That's because back in the day I would worry about fighting with "honor" but now I would cheat, lol.

    "There is no honor in defeat." Lol
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,983 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    nossmf wrote: »
    Seeing some young gun half my age putting up twice the weight I can lift, and making it look easy. To be honest, my annoyance is less because of what they can do, and more about the reminder of what I used to be able to do, but have to settle for less now that I'm older. Phooey.

    This post is not meant as a criticism or disagree, so please don't take it that way. I'm quoting because the "young'un at the gym" scenario reminded me of something.

    I don't mostly do strength workouts at a gym, but I used to.

    One of the things that annoyed me was almost the opposite of that: It was young women half my age (and less) almost sleepwalking through a strength circuit - usually a machine circuit, but sometimes freeweights - clearly, clearly, clearly going through the motions, with what was to them very obviously a completely trivial resistance. Spending time, going nowhere.

    Someone may say that perhaps they were rehabbing. Sincerely, I doubt it. I think it's the real life manifestation of "wouldn't want to get bulky" and similar thoughts.

    When I was their age (1970s-ish), physical strength in women was not generally valued, in the culture around me. One of the things I love, about how time and culture have rolled out over the decades since, is how much more common, and more valued, physical strength and athleticism among women is, even though things are still not at 100%. Huge improvement though, would've been unimaginable to me then.

    This reminds me of a pet peeve of mine when I used to go to the gym.

    There were three young women who would unfortunately often be there at the same time as me.

    They would grab three treadmills and meander along while talking loudly to each other, laughing and gabbing. Even my earbuds couldn't drown them out.

    None of them appeared to be physically inhibited in any way. I'm not sure how much benefit they were getting from their slow wandering. It was clearly just socializing, but at least they could say they went for a "work out".
  • Speakeasy76
    Speakeasy76 Posts: 961 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    nossmf wrote: »
    Seeing some young gun half my age putting up twice the weight I can lift, and making it look easy. To be honest, my annoyance is less because of what they can do, and more about the reminder of what I used to be able to do, but have to settle for less now that I'm older. Phooey.

    This post is not meant as a criticism or disagree, so please don't take it that way. I'm quoting because the "young'un at the gym" scenario reminded me of something.

    I don't mostly do strength workouts at a gym, but I used to.

    One of the things that annoyed me was almost the opposite of that: It was young women half my age (and less) almost sleepwalking through a strength circuit - usually a machine circuit, but sometimes freeweights - clearly, clearly, clearly going through the motions, with what was to them very obviously a completely trivial resistance. Spending time, going nowhere.

    Someone may say that perhaps they were rehabbing. Sincerely, I doubt it. I think it's the real life manifestation of "wouldn't want to get bulky" and similar thoughts.

    When I was their age (1970s-ish), physical strength in women was not generally valued, in the culture around me. One of the things I love, about how time and culture have rolled out over the decades since, is how much more common, and more valued, physical strength and athleticism among women is, even though things are still not at 100%. Huge improvement though, would've been unimaginable to me then.

    I'm 45, and it seems that most of the women my age and older still do a lot of cardio and circuit-type training with machines orighter dumbbells. There are a few of us who lift heavy or work with the trainer, but definitely the majority I see there use the cardio equipment. However, the teenage, 20's and early 30 year olds tend to lift heavier.
  • Speakeasy76
    Speakeasy76 Posts: 961 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Not sure it's the right place for this, but while weighing myself after my workout today and looking in the mirror, I realized that now, after almost 20 years of marriage, I finally have the body I wished I had back when I was still a single 20-something. Man, if only I could reach back in time and slap myself upside the head, tell my lazy bum self to get to work. Because if I look this good now at age 44, imagine how much better a 24yo me full of testosterone would look...

    I have had very similar thoughts as a 45-year old woman who actually did some sort of regular strength training in my 20's as an avid subscriber to Shape magazine. Lifting heavy definitely wasn't really much of a thing for the average woman looking to get fit back then. What I really wish I could have changed was my relationship with food and my body and shifted my focus from eating better quality foods. However, "low fat" was still pretty much the norm back then, too.
  • SpicyMeatball82
    SpicyMeatball82 Posts: 31 Member
    Exercising their mouths more than using the machine they are at.
    Using gym equipment as their locker
    Not wiping down machines after use
    Not re-racking when done
    Parking in the handicap parking spaces when you are not handicap.
    Not changing the toilet paper roll when it’s done.
    🤨
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,427 Member
    edited November 2021

    Parking in the handicap parking spaces when you are not handicap.

    My pet hate anywhere. Self-entitled kittens.
  • bellababy9031
    bellababy9031 Posts: 287 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    But I would hazard a guess that you are a lot smarter now than you were back then and could probably whip their "kitten" with no trouble, there is that.

    That's because back in the day I would worry about fighting with "honor" but now I would cheat, lol.

    @nossmf

    As I said.......you are smarter now. All's fair in love and war.

    YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME.
  • debrag12
    debrag12 Posts: 1,071 Member
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    nossmf wrote: »
    A month or so ago all the squat racks were in use, but the bench press area had a couple openings. So I pulled the bar to the space in front of the bench and proceeded to complete my deadlifts. Gotta do what ya gotta do.

    Why do you need a squat rack to deadlift unless you're really doing a rack pull?

    People do deadlifts (actual deadlifts) at the squat racks all the time at my gym. There is typically only extra barbell in the barbell stand and the weight plates are right there with the squat racks and not by the spare barbell. It just makes more sense and a lot more convenient to do deadlifts at one of the 3 squat racks there, and it seems well accepted to do so.

    Got it. My gym has a couple lifting platforms and there are multiple extra bars along with empty floorspace for deadlifts with out using the power racks.

    Most, if not all, deadlift platforms, I've seen are in front/connected to the power/squat racks.
  • BuiltLikeAPeep
    BuiltLikeAPeep Posts: 94 Member
    Kmb4391 wrote: »
    At my gym we have this women who comes in two or three times a week and just hangs out to judge people. She'll plant her butt down on whatever she can find to sit on and just mock everything the rest of us are doing. On multiple occasions, I've seen her eating snacks and drinking what I'm pretty sure was a beer. I keep reporting her to management but I'm pretty sure she's sleeping with that guy.

    Also....I workout at home...
    Don't tell my wife I brought her up on the internet.....

    :smile:
    @Kmb4391
    Tell this story the other way around, ya know "there's this guy... yadda yadda. Also I work out at home" and all these people who are mad at a damn joke would be "OMG YES!!! MEN ARE SO AWFUL!!!" And before you ask- Gen X female.
  • SpicyMeatball82
    SpicyMeatball82 Posts: 31 Member

    It drives me nuts. I actually know some of the members walking to the spot and I know they shouldn’t be parked there. People suck. Sorry to hear about your wife ❤️
    nossmf wrote: »
    Parking in the handicap parking spaces when you are not handicap.

    My wife has a handicap sticker in her truck due to a car accident having screwed up her back. The other day I drove my wife's truck to the store, started searching for a parking space when I saw somebody trying to flag me down. The guy was graciously trying to alert me to an open handicapped spot, and couldn't quite grasp the concept when I told him I was fine, the sticker was for my wife, and since she wasn't with me I was going to find a different spot. I could see the wheels turning in the poor guy's head as he sputtered, "but you have a handicapped sticker..."

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,879 Member
    I have to say my new gym is pretty great. I go at lunch and it's never busy...I've never had to wait for a squat rack or any other piece of equipment. I'll be curious how it is after New Years...I'm hoping the lunch workout crowd stays pretty chill.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,311 Member
    Reading my programme wrong and realising I’ve just done an extra set of split squats (THE most evil exercise on the planet) when I didn’t need to 😭
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 8,697 Member
    Definitely a toss-up between split squats and paused box squats for most evil...
  • I2k4
    I2k4 Posts: 179 Member
    2nd complaint re our very good condo facility, recently reopened from lockdown (first was about noisy overhead TV sets). The reopening introduced online booking with strict user limits for distancing, and almost all the time slots were immediately filled through to February. But whenever I pass by it's empty or maybe a solitary user. A fellow resident confirmed the same in the elevator, and said she just goes whenever she wants to - suggested I do that. (There are two or three PTs working out of it and my suspicion is they booked it all up on spec they'll get business.)