Most people who exercise do so in public gyms. In order to be respectful of others and help make the gym experience a positive one for everyone, there is a particular etiquette to follow. Most of this gym etiquette comes down to common sense and courtesy, but it should be mentioned because anyone who works out in gyms sees continual violations.
First, put the weights back in the rack and remove the plates from the bars and machines after use. There is nothing worse than a gym with weights lying around everywhere. It’s messy and makes it hard to find what you’re looking for. There’s also nothing worse than leaving a barbell on the floor with five 45-pound plates on the side or a leg press machine with ten plates on the side. You’d think anyone strong enough to use such heavy weights had been in gyms long enough to know better.
It is just lazy and ignorant to expect others to come and clean up your mess. It also makes it difficult for some people who are smaller and weaker to have to remove a ton of dishes from a machine when they want to use it. This would have a negative effect on your experience. Make putting weights back on as part of your workout.
Place towels on benches or machines or clean up after yourself. It’s totally gross to walk up to a bench you want to use and find it covered in sweat. Not to mention unhygienic. Be courteous, take a towel to the gym and use it. It’s a great habit and you’ll find you like having a towel to wipe off your sweat while you work out.
Leave your cell phone in the locker room or in your car. Unless your wife is pregnant and going into labor at any moment, she can surely go an hour or so without a phone call. Spend your time in the gym concentrating on training and use it as a break from your daily life. Talking on the cell phone distracts other people around you at the gym who are trying to focus on their training session. Leave the outside world behind and just train. You will get better results too.
Try not to make too much noise when dropping weights, plates and dumbbells. This can also damage equipment, especially dumbbells. If you’re using heavy dumbbells to press, learn to return them to the ground without letting them fly out of your hands. Use a spotter if necessary. There are many people who will be happy to help you.
Be aware of what is going on around you and pay attention to what others are doing. You can learn a few things this way and it prevents you from getting in someone else’s way. It is very annoying to turn your back for a second or go get a drink of water and find that someone has taken your dumbbells away or is using the machine you were on.
Another big nuisance is body odor. Make an effort to wear clothes to the gym that are fairly cool. It also portrays a bad image of yourself if you’re wearing a yellowish, sweat-stained t-shirt that just sucks. Similarly, avoid dousing yourself with perfume or cologne before hitting the gym. You may think you smell great, but chances are others will find it downright offensive.
Here are some quick ones. If you want to sit and read, go to the library. Don’t do it while sitting on a machine at the gym. Don’t do curls on the squat rack. Do not wear flip-flop style sandals. Try not to yell too loudly. I can understand some reasonable grunting (training can be intense, after all) but not screaming like a banshee. Also, come to the gym to train, not to socialize. Small talk between sets is natural, but spend your time exercising your body, not your vocal chords. It’s great to meet new people at the gym, but don’t treat it like a meat market or singles bar.
These seem to represent the most common things that annoy people in the gym. Everyone has their own pet peeves or things they’ve witnessed in the gym that they find irritating. That’s the price you pay for being in public. However, you have to realize that what goes around comes around. So if you make a little effort to be respectful of others while you’re in the gym, it will pay off in a very positive way.
