Why do people not know how to share equipment at the gym these days.
Is it just me or is gym etiquette lost in this day and age? Also why do gyms not bother to educate their patrons to make for a conducive training environment?
I have been working out for probably 18 years and when I first started, one of the very first things I learned was that it’s common courtesy to never hog a machine and to let someone else use it between sets. And if you came second, always do the polite thing to set the seat/weight/configuration back for the person who was there before you.
I took a short break probably like 3-4 years between lifting weights to train how to box and got back into the gym again probably 5 years ago. Joined the likes of pure, VA, tf, af… whatever u name it, I’ve been there.
And I realise that people somehow think just because they’re on this equipment/machine, the usage of it belongs to them for the entire time they’re on it?! Of course I always ask politely, if i could share with and exercise enough tact to know if someone had the whole smith machine or squat rack configured not to ask. I even go as far as to say, I’ll go while you rest and be done even before you’ve finished resting between sets and you can just go at your own pace… no pressure. And it’s not like I am impatient and I can’t wait… sometimes it’s lunch hour and no one has all day, you’re trying to get your workout in and go back to work. Also during peak hour, is everyone supposed to just wait for everyone? We’d be at the gym till midnight… and Half the time always met with a “no, I was here first” or “I have 3 sets left”… even some personal trainers who are supposed to uphold such standards seem to have forgotten as well. Recently, I was at TF and I asked to share the dip bar, with a PT and his client and the PT said no. I waited and I observed that his client was resting 2-3 mins between sets which is more than enough time for me to finish my set? Why so selfish? Maybe I can’t speak for all gym goers to be as considerate when sharing as me, but the bottomline is, everyone paid the same for gym membership, you are not entitled to a machine just because you were there first, people ask to be polite, when really you should be sharing it to begin with.
Recently I been to body fac in Bali and they had signs and gym guidelines warning patrons that if they didn’t share equipment they would be asked to leave the venue. That’s how strict it is else where and it just seems to be completely forgotten half the time over here…
Update:
It’s not like I love sharing equipment myself, I’m introverted and hate talking to new people. In fact when I’m at the gym I plug in my AirPods and it’s my “quiet time”. But I recognise that this is a shared space with people of different needs and everyone needs to work together to accommodate each other. If I had a choice I rather not share as well, but what gives me the right not to? If you don’t like sharing because it’s a hassle to sanitise this, to reset that then maybe build your own private gym at home, don’t come out.