Gym Etiquette

A large part of the healthy lifestyle so many of us are living is going to the gym.  My husband and I are no exception.  We joined our local gym even before it opened.  One day, we were walking past an empty building and noticed a sign advertising a gym opening soon.  The owner was there and invited us inside and took us on a "tour" of what would be there when all the remodeling was finished.  We signed up and became the 5th and 6th members of a now thriving fitness facility that's been open for a decade.  Our gym has a large variety of equipment from elliptical machines to treadmills and both free weights and machines as well as a speed bag and a punching bag.  There are  bootcamp, step, spinning and yoga classes.  This variety attracts a variety of clientele.  Everyone from kids still in high school to senior citizens all feel comfortable working out.  If you've been going to a gym for awhile, you're probably aware of a thing called "gym etiquette."  That's the behavior that makes sweatily exercising right next to someone else bearable.  Most people instinctively understand how to behave, but there are a few that have no clue.  My husband likes to call them meatheads.  Usually he means a select few of the muscle guys, but not always.  On the treadmill next to me once was a woman leisurely walking, carrying on a long, extended conversation on her cell phone with her boyfriend.  Lots of kissy noises and baby talk.  I couldn't crank my mp3 loud enough!  There was also a sign right in front of her banning cell phone usage.  Our gym has three sizes of lockers, full sized, half sized and third sized.  There are plenty of smaller ones, but only a few full sized.  During busy times, it's next to impossible to get a full sized, so I cram my bag, shoes, towel and coat into a small one.  Invariably, one of the full sized lockers will be taken by someone with a tiny little bag and nothing else.  Why do they feel the need to take a big locker?  Our gym has six benches in the free weight area that are premium real estate.  Sometimes guys will come in and put their towel, water bottle, gym bag (get a locker!) and workout log on one bench while using another.  They never seem to notice all the other people waiting for a bench.  These are usually the same guys who stand directly in front of the dumbbell rack doing reps while completely blocking anyone else from using the other dumbbells.  I also don't understand the guys who tie up two machines for an hour at a time, loading them with as much weight as the machines will hold, all the while looking around to see who is looking at them.  They don't actually ever seem to lift any of that weight, they just want everyone to think they are.  I'd be more impressed if they did their reps and freed up the machines.  My all time biggest gym peeve is guys who don't rack their weights when they're finished.  What does that mean?  It means when you're finished with a machine or piece of equipment, unload the weight plates you put on it and put them back where they belong.  Not on the floor next to the machine, not leaning up against the wall, and not left on the machine itself.  It's a huge imposition for a senior or small woman to have to remove 270 pounds from the bench press when they only want to lift the 45 pound bar!  Notice I said put the weights back where they belong?  The 45 pound plates go with other 45's, not on top of the 25's and the dumbbells are racked in order, not helter skelter whichever space is closest to you.  The large sign that says "Rack your weights when you're finished" isn't just for decoration.  People behaving badly.