Gym Etiquette #2
Yesterday I had my first post in my Gym Etiquette series. I was very pleasantly surprised with the various comments that post garnered in such a short time, so apparently, this is definitely an issue for a lot of us. Common courtesy just doesn’t seem to exist anymore, sadly, even though there are clearly a lot of us who would like to see it make a comeback. In that vein, I will continue with this series with this tip.
Rule #2 – Please wipe down the equipment!
This one is just gross. You are in the gym to workout. You are going to sweat. You will sweat on the equipment. This is acceptable. It is unavoidable.
What is NOT unavoidable is not doing anything about it!
I’ve trained in two different gyms and they both had their policies for how to deal with sweat. One gym had large five-gallon bucket dispensers of sani-wipes that you could grab, wipe your sweat off with, and leave it nicely clean for the next patron. My current gym has a bottle of hepacide spray and paper towels that you can wet and then wipe down. Both take a matter of seconds.
Please note that it is also acceptable to simply use your towel and give the equipment a quick once-over. No one is expecting you to bust out the Chlorox and make it clean enough to perform surgery on. It is just simply not fun to go for a bench press and find yourself lying in someone else’s sweat.
This is also the same reason why many gyms have a mandatory shirts policy. Some dudes are crazy buff and want to show off. Well, I’m sorry, but if your naked upper body is lying on the exercise equipment, that is a LOT of sweaty flesh touching something that I am going to need to use next.
Of course, some guys get around this by wearing the barely-a-shirt shirt. You know the one, it’s kind of like a string tank top, but they made it by ripping up an old t-shirt all the way down to the waist?
Okay, we get it. You have muscles. That’s fine. I’m very proud of you for having nipples. Just please wipe down the benches and other equipment when you are done with it!
And probably the most confusing part of the entire wipe-down process – what do you do with cardio equipment?
Easy. Wipe it down. If you touch it with your hands, wipe it down. This is for two reasons – one, you may touch yourself sweating and then transfer said sweat to handles where the next person has to touch it. Gross. And two – you may have a head cold or the flu, and I don’t want to touch your elliptical handles or treadmill heart rate sensors for the same reason I don’t want to touch the door leading out of the bathroom.
Just grab an antiseptic wipe if your gym has them and wipe it down, or at the very least, get a towel (bring your own or use one of the gym’s) and wipe the equipment down that you used. Those of us who don’t want to touch someone else’s sweat or get your germs thank you.
What are your thoughts? Are those of us who are insistent on wiped down equipment just too anal about it? Given that some people NEVER wipe down equipment, it seems that some people feel that way.
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21 Responses to “Gym Etiquette #2”
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Yes, the towel!!! I don’t even find it that disgusting, but it’s a principle thing. I remember one Saturday Night Live eppy with Gwyneth Paltrow, she was this dude’s date at his parents’ house. The joke was that he didn’t have saliva so his parents had to chew the food for him, them spit it out their mouths into his. Like a bird feeding the newborns. They actually did that on camera. Everyone at home went “EEwwwwwww I’ll pukeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee” and I was “What? They are just spitting food in his mouth”.
So I don’t really care about the sweat thing. I’ll take a dare for 100 bucks and LICK IT. BUT! You must clean after yourself. You don’t just leave iron plates lying around. You just don’t leave a weighted bar at the bench and move on. What if someone needs the bench? They’ll just look around, thinking “Is this Motherf****r doing supersets and come back, or is no one here?”
I actually looked at this bar in the floor for 20 minutes (while warm up and other exercises), and was not occupied by no one. Some fart let it there, I thought. So I took some weight off of it, because I needed them. Little I knew about the newbie that was doing “supersets” talking with his friends 10 minutes between exercises. So, 20 minutes after that, the dude grabs the bar back (because, he was training alone in the gym and nobody else needed those plates, effing moron), lift it, and plates went flying all over the room. His face, his beatiful pain face when one plate landed in his foot… was priceless. And the scare face he did after. I loved it. I’ll do it again. Newbies…
Some things don’t bother me too much from a germophobe standard but simply a common decency angle. It’s not polite to expect someone to work out in your sweat. Definitely with you on cleaning up after yourself. That’s one my list, too.
Quote of the day: “I’m very proud of you for having nipples…” LMAO!!!!! Thanks for the laugh and another great post
Craig recently posted..Progress Update- 9-16-10
Since so many guys seem to show off their nipples at the gym, I can only conclude they are very proud of having them.
Hey Jeremy, there is nothing worse at the gym then having to use equipment that a sweaty, hairy, overweight guy just used. Yuck.
Susan@Home Workouts recently posted..3 Healthy Eating Habits To Help You Burn Fat
He can even be fit and bald; if he’s sweaty, I want it wiped down.
bahahah amazing. I hate this too because I’m a germaphobe.
Added to the pet peeves of this are the over the top – need a doctor help germaphobes who are not environmentally friendly… you know the ones that get a new paper towel EVERY time they have to wipe down the machines – like common, wet it good and carry one with you. SO annoying.
I have to laugh at the shirts because my boyfriend and his best friend (gym buddie) are so guilty for these shirts. Not nipple showing, but muscle showing. However I know they wipe their stuff down!
Amy @ life’s journey with a smile recently posted..the big purchase
I’m even okay with people using their own towels rather than paper towels. I truly don’t even need the chlorox myself. I just don’t want to lie in someone else’s fluids.
I truly don’t mind the shirts. It’s just that the logic behind not allowing men to work out shirtless, keeping excess sweat off of the equipment, is totally negated with the barely-there shirts.
I use my own towel, but I don’t use it to wipe down equipment. I put it on the machines BEFORE I use them, so there’s nothing to wipe afterwards.
I’m very proud of you for having nipples. <—-ahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!
Every meathead in the gym is guilty of those damn shirts. They'd make a good noose, don't ya think?
Erin recently posted..Primal-Paleo Burrito Bowl
I know that I would never be caught dead in one. Now when I have more muscles… nah, probably not. I don’t think it would go over too well with Tina. She couldn’t work out for making so much fun of me.
I’m thinking of joining the gym soon. The family plan! So ya, I’m taking notes. And I love your winter wonderland bloggyness!
Yum Yucky recently posted..What’s Your Take on Compulsive Eating Real Disorder or Lack of Willpower
Yay! I like my wintery look, too.
You should totally join a gym; your whole family will love it. Our gym even recently started a Zumba series for kids called Zumbatomic. There are some very family friendly gyms out there.
Yes, yes, yes!!! I hate it when people don’t wipe down equipment.
Andrea@WellnessNotes recently posted..Putting a Little Spring into our Lives
It’s truly just the rudeness that bothers me even more than the sweat.
I have to fess up. I had a bad experience at the gym Thursday. There were no towels, there were no wipes.
I sweat all over the machines that day.
And I felt like an asshole.
Sorry dudes at my gym.
Rinn recently posted..Trinity- short story
Y’know, sometimes, it is beyond our control. If the gym doesn’t prepare wipes and they usually do, what can you do?
Jeremy, I wanted to respond to this & your last post BUT I have been asked by another blogger to write a gym etiquette post for her & am in the process of doing that. I actually have done a couple in the past too. Both your posts reflect my thoughts… especially this one! I have a list a mile long though since I have been going since the early 80′s so I might have to shorten it for this lady blogger! I will be referencing it on my blog too.
Jody – Fit at 53 recently posted..Saturday Funnies
Oh good! I can’t wait to read it, and I’ll be sure to reference it here. One thing I have found across the board – people are sorely lacking in gym etiquette. I think it’s truly even the minority; it’s just that those who are “gym rude” are so rude, it makes it seem like there are more of them.
Oh man, I wish my gym had such restrictions as yours
I know its part my fault, for not changing to a cleaner gym, but its the only one I could afford in my area.
Oh well, couldn’t really complain, its one heck of a cheap gym after all, $22 per month
Amr Boghdady recently posted..German Prepositions
Dude, I would put up with a LOT to pay only $22 a month for the gym.