Where do guys get these bad gym habits?

I dont mind the weight dropping, I tend to slam the bench press barbell on my last rep onto the holder thingies (not the floor) i always get looks when it makes the loud sound, and i think "get over it, its a gym).

I dont grunt but dont mind it

The gym requires towels to be put on the machines before use so i do get upset when someone doesnt do that and leaves a sweat trail.

I do put my towel on treadmills then for example run to bathroom or to get water, it gets pretty crowdy and i dont feel like waiting an hour if i have 2 do something for a minute before i start running.

Originally Posted by alan

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I dont mind the weight dropping, I tend to slam the bench press barbell on my last rep onto the holder thingies (not the floor) i always get looks when it makes the loud sound, and i think "get over it, its a gym).

I do that all the time, whether its dropping on the holder thingies or dropping the wieghts on the machine on the stack. The latter is not deliberate. Its an artifact of complete muscle failure. This is different from those who drop it deliberately. It will be much much louder.

Re: The grunting/moaning. You guys are thinking of a different sound I bet. You'd laugh out loud at some of the stuff I heard yesterday.

Re: Weight dropping/slamming. These people are doing it deliberately.

But back to my original question, where do guys pick these up? Is it a lack of proper weight training teaching or is really just a culture thing? I never really saw any of this stuff at military/base gyms, professional training gyms, or even back in my highschool gyms.

Originally Posted by robin

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Re: The grunting/moaning. You guys are thinking of a different sound I bet. You'd laugh out loud at some of the stuff I heard yesterday.

Re: Weight dropping/slamming. These people are doing it deliberately.

But back to my original question, where do guys pick these up? Is it a lack of proper weight training teaching or is really just a culture thing? I never really saw any of this stuff at military/base gyms, professional training gyms, or even back in my highschool gyms.

1. The sounds I hear is not unlike the sound of a guy banging a chick or a woman giving birth.

2. Some people think if they work hard, they can be inconsiderate and act like bores in the gym.

As far as weight dropping goes, it is pretty much unnecessary. I was always taught that if you can't control the weight going both up and down, then you can't consider that a complete rep. The only time I drop weights are on max or close to max effort olympic lifts, when I miss the catch and get sent tumbling over backwards. Obviously the weight falls down, but so do I. And naturally, I don't count that as a rep.

Curling in the squat rack is a mixed bag at the gym where I go. There are dumbbells up to over 100lbs each, and none of the squat rack curlers are curling anything close to 200lbs on the bar. I've explained the dumbbells will be more comfortable because the hand positions can vary as needed, but it does no good. There are a handful that are pretty good about abandoning the squat rack whenever anyone wants to squat, so I can't complain too much. Especially since one of the trainers at the gym explained to me that the administration was considering cutting back to only one squat rack due to lack of use. Seems everyone uses ellipticals and they just can't get enough floor space for them. So, I guess I'll deal with the squat rack curlers if it means the use numbers go up and they keep the racks where they are.

There are towels and bottles of cleaner ALL OVER the gym, and yet people still don't wipe down sweat. My habit is to wipe down equipment before and after use. Similarly, the barefoot thing is kind of nasty. I personally hate getting athletes foot, so I don't ever go barefoot in the gym.

Every gym is going to have a little of this stuff from time to time. If it's a constant problem (especially the nasty stuff like cleaning up, spitting, not being courteous, etc.), then just find a new gym with management and staff that educates the slobs and doesn't tolerate this kind of stuff along with a member base that cares a little more.

Theyre common things in every gym i went to, so i guess i dont consider it as bad.

As far as im concerned when i go to the gym im expecting to see guys there who train all day and take it very seriously to the point of obsession.

So things like showing off with making loud sounds and dropping weights around dont bother me.

Theyre just things that the typical bodybuilder does, in my experience.

Side story:

A couple of years ago i went to a gym in a military compound here, with a friend whose dad is in the army. I only trained there for a couple of monthes because my friend quit on me.

There was a coach there who my friend always made fun of. He was a meathead, all he talked about was muscles and proteins and fake girls stuff. And he was the kind of guy who makes the loudest noises, yells to motivate you when hes spotting, drops stuff, etc.....

I was receptive to his coaching cause i was new there and couldnt dismiss him for fear of being rude, although my friend avoided him.

But i must say, training with him was the most beneficial workout ive ever done.

It was pretty motivating when he was constantly saying how much i was improving, and i was. And he really saw potential in me (prob. to become like him) so i really felt he was sincerely rooting for me.

Hed make me increase weights when i stalled, kick up the intensity level, etc.... I saw tremendous results immediately.

After a couple of monthes i was benching about 220 pounds (including barbell weight).

That all went away when we stopped going there. I started working out again like 7 monthes ago and im not benching 220 again yet!

Point is: its a gym and those are the gym characters, learn to love them

Originally Posted by robin

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Observed at a middle-tier gym this morning in downtown Seattle:

* Grunting like a rhinoceros in a Discovery Channel mating special.
* Moaning like an actor in a bad porno flick.
* Banging/slamming weights after every rep.
* Dropping weights to the floor after every set.
* Spitting wads of flem into the drinking fountain.
* Not cleaning up your sweat.
* Not cleaning up your food and other trash in the locker room.
* Not reracking your weights after you're done.
* Leaving a treadmill running for 10 minutes while you leave to do other things.
* Typing out emails on your blackberry while taking up equipment.
* Walking around barefoot and doing exercises in the gym (that was a new one).

Where do guys get these bad habits?
I stopped going to the gym several years ago, even though I have access to a good one for free. Many of the behaviors mentioned became a bit too much for me to deal with. Besides, I enjoy exercising in the comfort of home without the hassles associated with going to a gym.

Biggest problem I have is people not re-racking their weights. The gym I go to is pretty good but yesterday I discovered someone hocked a loogie on the GROUND right next to the stretching area. That is rude beyond belief.

I think you could easily make this question into a general social one... where do guys pick up ALL these bad habits? It seems to me that no matter where you go, from the gym to a grocery store, 99% of guys have abominable habits that would make my mother yell, "What, were you born in a barn?"

As for grunting, I was running a treadmill the other day and the guy next to me let out these strange noises from time to time like he was a dying water buffalo. I think he was just trying to push himself that final mile, but with his ipod blaring in his ear, he let out the loudest, "Grummmmmphf!" sounds. I couldn't stop smiling and neither could the other few people around.

haha I'd probably die laughing if someone was grunting next to me on a damn treadmill. It'd make me laugh far more than it'd bother me.

Bad manners in gyms are legendary, but they do not compare with the lack of etiquette in locker rooms. I can't believe people act at home as they do in locker rooms. I have seen people shaving and brushing their teeth without clothes or even a towel. And I may be paranoid, but is there any reason for someone to take the shower head right next to mine if there are twenty others available? Also, there is absolutely no reason to bend over when drying your legs and feet. And, if you must use baby powder please do so off to the side of the locker room and not near the large fans. Finally, pissing in the shower is not cool. The toilets are only twenty feet away so please use them or I will be forced to wear two pairs of shower shoes and coat my feet in silicone.

It seems older gentlemen especially think being naked is a good thing in the locker room. And not just naked but naked and lounging. Literally hanging out with their pals for hours. I see the same dudes naked and yapping when I arrive and later when I leave. I can't imagine what they are talking about that requires them to be so naked.

Originally Posted by beasty

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I am only barefoot when deadlifting. In between sets, I slip on my shoes.
With all the weight dropping in the gym, walking barefooted is like walking blindfolded in an uncleared landmine field in Cambodia.

+1

I do both squats and deads barefoot, but always have shoes on after I walk away from the station.

It looks a crazy if you've never tried it, but I found that my lifts went up around 15% and I no longer had sore knees from squatting. It's worth a few nasty glances.

The only beef that I have with my gym is the mind-numbing trance music that they play. I seem to forget my Iphone half the time, and it sounds like I crash-landed in a 1993 Chicago rave.

A perfect gym does not exist, sadly. I'd happily pay double the amount I pay now for something classy.

The equipment is not bad, the CS folks try their best, but there is no way to contact the owner/senior management. But the worst is the toilet area of the locker room.

'Y'all live like pigs', comes to mind. And worse, the little twat who they hire as a cleaner is as useless as **** on a bull!