Try to stay calm as we list off the top annoying gym-goers of all time.
A while back, our guest contributor Geo Chang covered some gym etiquette 101 – those simple rules that every gym-goer should know for a pleasant and universal weightlifting experience.
But the sad truth of that matter is that there will always be people who break those rules – either because of ignorance or just plain not caring. Then there are people who go even beyond that – not just rule breakers but just plain annoying patrons. People that call attention to themselves saying, “Hey, look at me! I’m at the gym and I’m the only one who matters!”
Well we’re deciding to call those people out by listing the top seven most annoying people you see at the gym. Get ready to start clenching your teeth and fists.
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Having Long Conversations at the Gym
We’ll start off with a simple one. Yes, we know that the gym is a place you visit every single day – so of course you will start to get to know people. Or maybe you go to the gym with someone you know. A friend who is your gym partner and spotter. That’s great and it’s always okay to exchange a few words with friends. What’s not okay is when someone just hangs around machines and catch up on their entire week; gabbing away with their arms leaning against the equipment like they are in some sort of coffee shop.
The gym isn’t your personal living room, a coffee shop, or the bar – it’s not a place to stand around and chit chat loudly while other people are actually trying to get work done. The truth is – you should be so tired from your workout that you don’t have enough words to speak about anyways.
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Giving Workout “Trainer” Advice That Was Never Asked For
This one’s the worst. You all know the situation. You’re just working out at your machine and then some other guy casually walks over, looks right at you, and starts trying to tell you the “right” way to work out.
Of course it’s always nice if someone makes a quick observation and tries offer a quick piece of helpful advice and prevent injury – but when they sit down and start acting like your personal trainer and you didn’t even ask for it. That’s annoying. The worst part? Most of the time these people are WRONG. If you have this problem maybe you should start thinking about bringing headphones to block out all that yapping. Speaking of headphones…
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Singing Out Loud to Your Music
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with bringing headphones to the gym. Sometimes people just want to have their own personal music to listen to. The key word here is listen.
The problem starts when people decide to start singing out loud to their music. This isn’t American Idol or a karaoke bar – no one wants your off key singing. Worst part of all is that that singing voice is all panty from the workout – ruining your favorite song even MORE than usual.
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Gym Selfies
This one is relatively new. Selfies are a phenomenon that has taken the world by storm. People love to document every single place they are – no matter what. This includes the gym. “Here’s me on the treadmill! Here’s me lifting barbells! Here’s me all sweaty after a long workout!”
No one cares – so stop wasting your time and ours with this selfie nonsense. Instead of lifting that phone for a picture you could be lifting more weights.
Get a taste of the last three annoying gym habits on page 2!
Hanging Around Naked in the Locker Room for Too Long
Sometimes people just overstay their welcome. It’s worse when someone overstays in a locker room. It’s even WORSE when that person overstays in a locker room naked.
Look, we’re all adults here and understand that we can get changed in the bathroom without laughing or guffaws. But this isn’t a nudist colony. There’s no reason to walk around naked, start conversations, and bend over too many times in your birthday suit.
Keep it reasonable so that everyone else can enjoy the locker room – or at least get themselves cleaned up and dressed without feeling uncomfortable.
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Hovering Over Someone Using a Machine
Picture this: you’re in the middle of a really extreme workout. You’re in the zone and pumping those muscles just perfectly. You’re feeling good – and then you notice him. The hoverer. Just standing over you and way too close. He’s staring you down and shifting back and forth waiting to get on that machine.
Hovering is the worst – especially if you haven’t been hogging the machine. Sometimes the gym is just busy and people will have to wait – but that doesn’t mean they should hover right over you and destroy your pumping groove just so they can get the next grab at the machine.
Be kind. Don’t hover.
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Taking Your Shirt Off in the Gym
This one is simple but for some reason no one gets the point. So we’ll just say it real quick: DON’T TAKE YOUR SHIRT OFF AT THE GYM. You’ll get even more sweat all over the machines (these are normally the same people who don’t wipe them down) and you just look like an asshole.
Unless it says otherwise, keep your shirt on.
That about does it for the top seven most annoying people you’d find in the gym. Now you’re probably all pissed off just thinking about it. That’s okay, just let off all that steam with a workout. Hopefully you won’t see any of these kinds of people there.
What annoys you most at the gym? Is there anyone we missed? Let us know in the comments section below or through our official Facebook and Twitter pages. Stay pumped.
Cover photo courtesy of Macro Bodybuilding.
View Comments (0)
Agree with most here. Along with people singing with headphones I would add people who whistle loudly to their music. Whistling can have such a high pitch you can even hear it when using headphones. A lot of the music in gyms is bad enough but having to listen to some X-Factor wannabe's amateur accompaniment makes it unbearable. It's a question of good manners and bad manners!