When is a compliment not a compliment

Possibly. He was leering, looming and leching... all the Ls. Really quite creepy and the touching... I was always mid workout, sweaty and in the zone and he would sneak up and just lay his arm over me...

On being soundly rejected he came out with what I think is the classic hurt male ego response.

Go on, have you guessed yet?

He said you must be a lesbian.

Maybe I am being too obvious, but my first thought was that he wants to ask you out.

Having said loudly "Get the fuck off me" to one such meat head I leave it to you to guess what his immediate reaction was.. go on, it's really obvious...

And yes, he did get banned from the gum. And told he was lucky I wasn't pressing charges.

Go on, have you guessed yet?

Headphones are worth a try but note he employed the standard sleazeball tactic of touching to ensure she has to react to being spoken to then used disgusting overfamiliarity the next time. Also he does this to lots of women in the gym.

Men just do not get how threatening this is do they?

Speak to a female member of staff OP, bypass your social conditioning to make excuses for sleazeballs insist that

A) he touched you inappropriately
B) he comments on your appearance
C) he is watching you
D) he is not taking the hint
E) you feel threatened and pushed out of the gym
F) you need help dealing with this every time you come in from now on, you can't deal with it alone safely.

I had this a few years ago at a local shop, one of the male staff was overly friendly, did not take the hint, graduated to grabbing me in a headlock and kissing me. I was with my dc! I was so stunned I just wrestled free and got away as fast as I could. Really shook me up. I blamed myself for saying hello as an automatic response to someone saying hi to me but actually being polite should never lead to sexual assault should it?

I didn't report it, go elsewhere to shop and don't go there much now.

I wish I was brave enough to do what I advise you to do OP.

Good luck and be careful.

Advice ... don't listen to people who's only instinct here is to defend the man 🙄

People's appearances do change things strangely enough - what might be sweet from a 90 year old lady is not from a massive hulking bloke.

Yes talk to the gym, and if you can, next time speak up. The more you do it, the easier it gets.

Please don't just change your habits just to avoid him, that's such a sad thought.

I'd say ''not looking for validation thank you'' and be polite, just.

Men like this really creep me out. I really don’t like being touched by strangers, no matter how innocent their intentions. It’s really not on in this day and age. People need to keep their hands to themselves unless they know the person well and know they are ok with it. Could you politely just say to him that you appreciate he’s just being friendly but that you don’t feel comfortable being touched by people you don’t know? He really should respect that.

Trust your instinct one of the best pieces of advice for all women.

It's not a compliment. He is invading your space because he can. He is touching you because he can.

He gets away with it because of female socialisation, our requirement to minimise to avoid escalation, and because society tells us that a random male's opinion of us is something that we should be grateful for.

Can you wear headphones and ignore him? Also flash sympathetic looks to other females so they know they're not alone. If he escalates report him to management.

Catapultaway When did the OP describe him as a meathead?
I would perhaps speak to the gym staff as Blingloving suggested.

He sounds like a grunting meat head to me.

Speak to the staff, try to go at a different time.

Practice saying "hands off".

It is a frightening situation because you know he is escalating.

You are not over reacting. Trust your instinct.

It's not a compliment. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, he might well believe he's giving you a compliment. But that doesn't change the fact that it is unwanted attention that is somewhat sexual in nature and it's inappropriate. You could either choose to ask him to stop, or consider speaking with one of the gym instructors on the floor.

Advice... Don't judge people on their appearance and call them meatheads