It's very important to have gym etiquette.
Some people may even laugh that I’m writing a post on this
But I feel as though it needs to be done.
Because in my 15-year experience as a trainer and
And 7 of those being in a gym
There are a lot of people out there who actually don’t have proper gym etiquette
Or even just good etiquette at all
And it’s just straight up can be disgusting.
Not on here to make anyone feel a certain way at all.
But just to help give some insight and help people realize
That maybe some people need to do just a tad more when working out
But helping to clean up after themselves a little more
Which will give more respect to the people around them.
1 – sanitize and wipe down your machine
I couldn’t believe the number of people that didn’t do this enough when I worked in a gym.
After you use the machine,
And all your sweat has been put on it,
Spray and wipe it down.
The gym you operate in has sanitization bottles and wipes for a reason.
Its to treat the equipment with respect.
But more importantly to have respect for the person who will use it after.
It's even more important now with the immerge of covid
But even before covid came around, people should have been doing this.
It comes to reducing bacterial infections and being clean while having good gym hygiene.
2 – put the equipment away
This always made me angry.
The number of times I had to approach someone who left their equipment around
Leaving dumbbells everywhere, barbells on the floor, etc.
If you can lift the stuff off the weight racks, then you can put them back.
I don’t care how tired you are after doing your sets.
Put them back.
It's simple rules we learned when we were kids.
After you are done playing you put your toys away.
It’s the same concept here.
3 – if you’re going to use chalk, clean it up after you are done.
Just wipe it down after you are done using chalk.
For strength lifting and Olympic lifters who chalk up the bar.
That’s cool, it's needed for grip.
Totally understandable.
But if you don’t mind, wipe down everything you used after.
There have been times where the entire equipment was all Chalked up.
And although it doesn’t stop the next person from using it.
It's just about cleaning up after yourself and not leaving it a mess.
4 – keep your bags off the gym floor
Now, this is one I actually used to never agree with.
But my stance on it changed after seeing what a pain they cause on the gym floor
While working in a gym.
And also seeing a few accidents.
Several people had walked into a gym bag on the floor
And ended up tripping and hurting themselves.
Now, you're probably thinking, yea but how can’t you see a gym bag on the floor.
And your right, some of them are so damn big and bulky there hard to miss.
but the incidents I’m talking about happened because the person,
put their gym bags in an area where people usually walk.
And when it's busy, there’s a lot of people in the gym,
It's possible someone won't notice it because they're in their zone.
There is busy thinking about their exercise and in their workout mode.
The other thing I realized is,
99% of people who brought them on the floor didn’t need them.
They either had a bunch of stuff in there that they never used or rarely did.
So, keeping and lugging this thing around was pointless.
Most of the time, the person would come in, bring the bag with them,
Move it with them from machine to machine,
Maybe at most, take out a BCAA drink or a set of bands,
And then drink it or use the bands for a set
And then put them away.
It really isn’t needed.
And over the years this trend started to pick up and younger kids,
Who would join the gym started to follow suit.
And then there was the reason for theft.
Which was why people did not want to put their bags in a locker.
And although that did happen it was rare.
And if that’s the case and you really don’t trust leaving it in the locker,
Then leave it in your car.
But I think they aren’t needed on the gym floor.
But a lot of gyms don’t mind it and keep it.
So just remember if your someone who brings them on the gym floor,
Just try and make sure to keep it near your machine and out of the way.
Just to keep some etiquette and respect for people around you.
5 - If you really HAVE/NEED to shave after you shower, then clean up after yourself
Speaking from a male’s perspective since I have only been able to go into the male's change room.
If you want to shave at the gym…fine…. I never quite got the concept.
But I guess some people want to look as best as they can for their job right after.
Which is fine.
But guys need to learn how to clean up after themselves.
There were so many times working in a gym,
Whether I was on the job or just working out,
Guys could leave their hair around the sync.
And it was disgusting.
To be honest, because people can be gross, I don’t even think it should be allowed.
But to each gym their own.
But make sure to clean up after yourself when you’re done shaving.
6- throw your garbage away.
Such an easy thing to do yet people don’t do it
When your finished eating.
Or done your protein bottle.
Throw out your trash
There always seems to be a paper towel on the floor,
Plastic protein shakes,
And other things that should be thrown out.
Just be courteous and throw out your garbage.
7 – don’t take up multiple gym machines or equipment’s
I’ll never forget this guy at the gym I used to work at,
Would put 3 towels on 3 different equipment’s
And use another.
He would do a circuit between 4 different machines
And take them all up for themselves.
And when some members approached him so they could use one.
He denied them.
And when staff told him he needed to stop doing that.
He became offended and said he paid for the membership blah blah blah.
It was a very selfish and ignorant thing to do.
Not this was more of an extreme case.
I never saw many people doing this and also doing it to the level he did.
But just be wary of what you’re using and be courteous to others.
It's not fair to constantly take up more than one thing.
If the gym is dead and there are not many people, ok cool.
But don’t expect to do the same thing when it's busy.
8 – Stop Yelling
I am all for people who have to grunt.
Or even weightlifters who raise their tone here and there.
Trust me I get it.
The weight is heavy and you trying to push through it.
Or you are generally just finding your workout hard because it's challenging.
But don’t yell and do it repeatedly.
I have come across some people, mainly guys, who aren’t just loud, but literally will yell.
Have some respect for other people in the gym, especially if it’s a smaller gym.
No one needs to hear you constantly yelling.
You can keep pressing that heavyweight,
Or go through the set,
While still just grunting or increasing your voice.
9 – stop slamming the machine weights
A lot of times when people are on machines, they just keep slamming the weights.
And I’m not talking about heavy deadlifting.
I’m talking about when someone is sitting on a chest press machine,
Or a shoulder press machine,
Or any other machine,
And they constantly slam the plated weights when performing an exercise.
First, you’re going to break the machine.
Second, it's loud and irritating.
And third, you’re not even controlling the movement of your muscle to the best of your ability.
So, the weight slamming shouldn’t be happening.
10 – if you’re just sitting on the machine on your phone then let someone else use it.
If you’re just sitting on a machine on your phone for minutes on end,
Then don’t use it.
If you have to take a long break during your exercise because you’re fatigued that is understandable.
Totally fine.
But there are a lot of people who’ll sit on the machine and just scroll on their phone or talk.
And they will do it multiple times.
If you’re going to the gym your there to work right?
That’s the time you’re putting in to further your own health goals.
So, if you just come to the gym to continuously talk and just scroll on Tik Tok,
What’s the purpose of you even being there?
Make it a habit to put in the time and dedicate yourself to working out.
11 – wear deodorant
This is always a touchy subject any manager or employee has to do,
With an individual who has had multiple complaints against them because of their odor.
But it needs to handle sometimes because the individual just doesn’t know themselves.
In the past working in a gym setting, there will be some people,
They always have an odor with them because their B.O is too strong.
Sometimes someone has a bad day or a long day at work.
And they have some lingering B.O.
That’s understandable.
But there are situations sometimes where the person repeatedly just stinks.
And it's uncomfortable to address.
So just remember, if you have had a long day at work,
Bring deodorant to wear with you,
And even some cologne if need be.
Of course, Follow the rules of your local gym you attend.
As some of them might now allow strong colognes to be worn.
But have some sort of antiperspirant with you.
12 – wear a fresh pair of clothing to the gym.
There are some things no cologne or deodorant will help with.
In my years of working out at gyms, working at a gym, and training clients,
There have been some people who wear the same clothes without cleaning them.
How do I know this?
Because they would put their dirty clothes in the locker they would rent.
And, of a particular smell, they would leave behind them.
It’s a very specific smell your clothes have, which smells different than just B.O.
And you know it's from re-worn clothes that someone’s gas sweat in already.
I’ll never forget this one individual who came into the gym,
That I had been working at about 5 years ago.
The clothes he was wearing smelt so bad it progressively
Took over the entire gym.
Yes, it was the entire gym.
Several people came up complaining.
So, my manager, to make the individual feel as though he wasn’t being targeted,
Aske him to come upstairs as he needed to talk about his membership.
And when he brought him upstairs that’s when he broke it to him.
The person felt so embarrassed and left.
And he actually never came back again.
I don’t think he knew that his clothing smelt that bad.
But that’s what happens when you just leave clothing
That’s already been used multiple times and has sweat all over it.
In a locker or gym bag.
Don’t reuse them.
Throw them in the laundry lol.
So lastly, just be courteous and have respect for other people and sometimes even for yourself.
By having some gym etiquette.
Side of these things on the list can be argued.
But other ones should be n doubt in anybody’s mind to follow.
With that being said, have you ever had a rough experience in a gym setting?
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor nor a nutritionist. This is all from the experience I have gained through myself and through schooling I have taken from a health and fitness course. Through my videos, I share my personal and educational experience that I have acquired over the past years of training individuals through fitness and nutrition.
As always, I strive to help as much as I can by bringing you fitness education through means of all my social media platforms. My passion for fitness guides me to give people the help they need in whatever way I can. If you have been able to find the information I release helpful then I’m happy I was able to serve you.
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