A Beginner’s Guide to Gym Etiquette
The gym is a perfect place. You’ll never be sad, you’ll always only have good days, and you’ll never do leg days.
We wish, right? Wouldn’t that be amazing if all of the fairytale stuff those corporate gyms try to make you believe was actually real? Tell me if this sounds familiar: You were sold on a corporate gym sometime in the past, signed up, and quickly learned the gym wasn’t what you expected. The shiny sales rep did a great job of keeping you from noticing the flaws, and now they’ve got you on the hook.
What makes The Athletic Club different? Why should you believe me when I say we’re not like that? Because we have a different business model. Big corporate gyms try to get as many members as possible and hope they don’t show up (but keep paying their dues). Our model, on the other hand, is to have fewer members who have a great time when they’re here! This is a local, family-owned establishment in a small town—not a corporate behemoth. Which is a great segway into this article. We firmly believe our outstanding gym community is a huge part of who we are, and that’s not by accident. We’ve spent years crafting a community that treats each other kindly, is welcoming to beginners, and, honestly, just contributes to a great place to pursue fitness. Sure, we can have great equipment (we do), clean facilities (we do), quality staff (we do), but what makes this place so special is our members—You!
Fun fact: I’m writing this at the club, and while I was writing, someone came up to tell me a joke. This is the kind of community we have and the kind of community our members are after. There are a million commercial “we-don’t-care” gyms. Come to The Athletic Club for a genuinely welcoming, low-pressure environment. Much of that depends on each of us doing our part, so let’s go over a few ways that proper gym etiquette can make a big difference!
A Beginner’s Guide to Gym Etiquette
Now that our shameless pitch is over, here are a few simple rules you can put to use right away to help make sure everyone has a good experience at The Athletic Club!
- Wipe Down Equipment. While The Athletic Club staff (myself included) spend hours a day sanitizing, cleaning, vacuuming, dusting, sneezing from said dust, and lubricating equipment, it’s always a good rule of thumb to wipe down your own piece of equipment after you use it. There are sanitizing stations set up strategically throughout the facility, equipped with disinfectant spray that smells great, towels, disinfecting wipes, a trash can, and more. Give the machine a quick wipe down after using and move to the next one!
- Work In With People. “Working in” basically means sharing a piece of equipment. While we try to have a lot of different options in case the machine you like is in use (for instance, we have four leg extensions), you sometimes need to share. People do this all the time, and it’s 100 percent easy to do. Just ask if you can work in and share the machine (for instance, they do a set, and then you do a set, and so forth). As an introvert myself, this always sounded unpleasant, but it’s actually not bad at all and you can even develop a friendship with someone.
- Re-Rack It. “Racking” is the process of returning weights to a rack. Basically, when you’re done with a machine that has weights, please put them back on the storage rack. Not only does this let other members know you’re finished with a machine, it also helps people find the weight they’re looking for. As far as where to put them, with dumbbells, it’s simple: Return them in order. With weights, it’s arranged by size. Some machines have their own storage places, and sometimes you put it on the little storage racks nearby. Put the lighter ones toward the top and the heavier ones closer to the floor. Try to put the same weights on each other (for instance, place a 10-pound plate on a 10-pound plate, not over a 5-pound plate). If you have any questions, please feel free to ask the staff and we’ll be glad to help! Click here to see our staff!
- Be Kind. This one is simple, but remember, we’re all human. People are going through different things, and the trick to creating a genuine, welcoming space is to understand that sometimes someone is fighting a battle you might not know about. For many people, coming to the gym is an intimidating prospect. I’ve said it before: When I first got into the fitness world, I was so nervous that I never said anything to anyone and walked around with a semi-permanent scowl because I didn’t want people to know how out of my element I was! If you feel this way, it’s okay. Nobody was born in a gym. Take a deep breath, realize that people generally don’t pay attention to the weights anyone else is using, and stay in the moment. It’ll open you up to seeing the kindness and friendliness of our fantastic members who want to welcome you!
Conclusion
This was a short post because it doesn’t take much to be a conscientious member. The basic point of gym etiquette is to respect others, and you can accomplish this by doing a quick wipe-down of equipment when you’re finished, respectfully sharing equipment when necessary, re-racking your weights, and remembering we’re all human and a little spark of kindness can go a long way.