To think the gym staff should sort it?

[80skid]

I've been going to my gym for years. It's not the cheapest, but there are plenty more expensive.

There's a good mix of age groups and it's generally a friendly and relaxed place to go. I've noticed recently that there's a big trend for dropping weights after the end of a set. It's always young men who do this, often when training together but sometimes alone. It's deliberate and exhibitionist. On one occasion, the vibrations from the weight dropping was so great that the weights on my machine were rattling. On another, the crash was so loud and sudden that I genuinely believed there to be a medical emergency. The noise is deafening, repetitive and needless.

This morning, I came to the conclusion that the noise level was such that in an industrial setting, ear defenders would be mandatory. There's usually staff about but they're often personal training or doing inductions, so not approachable.

AIBU to think the gym should make a greater effort to manage this? I know an autistic gym member who finds it really distressing and I can't say I'm that keen either. Don't start me on the people who think training barefoot on mats and then putting their sweaty feet on the wall while doing sit-ups is ok. It's basic manners isn't it?

Perhaps there's things gyms can do to remove the feelings of intimidation rather than banning an activity that belongs in a gym and people might get a lot out of? My gym is not the usual mould, but it does a great job of getting people who might think lifting isn't for them to realise it is for them too. I was there today, ages ranged from I'm guessing 20s - 70s. There was the noise of battle rope slams, deadlifts, hip thrusts alongside the quieter dumbbell and cable things. We all speak to each other (it's v small), are interested in what others are up to, alongside keeping ourselves to ourselves. Any intimidation is soon dispelled with a smile and chat. That's more sustainable than the them and us stuff.

Yes in powerlifting you have to put them down under control. Still makes a noise though. Olympic lifters put the bar overhead so can't just put them down from that position.

There is this one guy at my work gym that purposefully moved from the matted area to the floor area and starts doing deadlifts and makes sure to hit the floor loudly after every rep. 5x20 reps. Such fun.

I have obsessions, often niche and crazy ones (strongly suspect I have ADHD, but then who doesn't suspect that these days :P).

I was up all night last night on my phone under the blankets, binge-reading a 30-chapter fanfiction (did I mention I am 39 years of age?). Last autumn I became utterly obsessed with autumn leaves and making collage pictures out of them, spent hours researching how to treat them so the colours wouldn't fade, etc. Recently I've become entirely pre-occupied with the war in Gaza to such an unhealthy extent I had to go on a screen diet because it was affecting my wellbeing. My inner world, centred around these fixations, seems far more real and vital to me than the external one, and I have to make an effort of will to live in it mindfully with my children and partner.

However, I don't go on about these obsessions to others, because I recognise them for what they are - obsessions, out of proportion to the thing itself - and don't want to become a colossal bore. It's the self-aggrandisement that's at issue for me, rather than the obsession per se.

Nice try at seeking to imply I'm some sort of bigot though.

@herewegoroundthebastardbush ok so you choose to mask. Not everyone wants to. I mask a lot less in a lifting context than I do elsewhere and it's awesome. I don't think you're a bigot, I don't know you from Adam.

Well done on being in the 2plate club. Took me almost 4 years to get there, was stuck at 99kg for the longest time.

Thanks @firef1y - it took me 5 years - I hit 100k just after my 64th birthday!

I was stuck at 90k for about 6 months. But, being stuck is just a plateau to a heavier lift in the future!

Fractional plates are your friend when you plateau like that, even a 2.5kg increase can feel like you've added 20kg plates 🤣🤣🤣

I masked for the first 45 years of my life, unmasking is liberating, although it can be quite scary.
If the pp thinks I talk a lot about lifting she should get me on the subject of running, I could talk about that for days at a time. Luckily IRL most of the people I socialise with are also into exercise, lifting, running or all 3 and don't mind me wittering on

Perhaps there's things gyms can do to remove the feelings of intimidation rather than banning an activity that belongs in a gym and people might get a lot out of?

Yes, yes, yes to the PPs who suggested that gyms work on making everyone comfortable with weight lifting, rather than banning lifting or curtailing it. If a gym is properly set up, then there's room for everyone.

And if the gym staff do their job properly, then everyone should feel welcome & friendly.

I think anyone and everyone who goes to the gym should learn some sort of facility with the free weights. The classic compound lifts - especially the back squat and the deadlift - are awesome full body training & conditioning. Fair enough if you'd rather focus on cardio, but in the end, becoming strong has so many health advantages especially for women.

I was scared of the free weights a few years ago - a pump class was as far as I got, and the weights in that are tiddly, but the reps are sky high! When I learned powerlifting, I've gotten strong, am much more toned and everyone always says how well I look. And it's fantastic to be able to swing my suitcase up into the luggage rack effortlessly.

I started to lift in a bog-standard commercial gym, which had a wonderfully friendly atmosphere and an age range from 90 to 18. The 90 year old has trained with the person who I train with for about a decade and she still does weighted squats and burpees, adapted for her ability. It's inspiring. There's another lady who trains in the slot after me, and she does sled drags of over 100 kilos in her mid-70s. It's awesome.

You can't attend a gym and expect no one to drop weights (within reason). The bare feet is a bit gross but probably not too bad when you consider all the sweat the gym will see.

My current issue with my gym is the new playlist. The songs are full of men rapping about owning guns, and there's a terrible one where the rapper is just naming Manchester United players.

But WHY are bare feet gross?
The places where bare feet are going to leave sweat are the places that you’ll be putting your shod feet. Do you worry about treading in pee when you walk in public toilets, or all the dirt you walk through outside?

Do you get as stressed out as I do over people that don't load their bar up so that the plates are in order??
And the people that can't put them away in order either. There used to be a small public gym at the high school across from where I live. The guy on reception said the PE teachers always knew when I'd been in the night before, all the plates and dumbbells would be neatly in order.
I always thought of it as an extra workout 🤣🤣🤣

@firef1y cannot abide a scruffy bar, and I might do a little bit of tidying. Problem is I notice everything so if something isn't just so I see it. Btw in health>the weights room there's a lifting support thread where we talk just lifting. Come join us.

She's a strong lady if she's pulling that much.

One of the main benefits for me is that lifting really helps my ADHD. I was on ritalin as a kid but didn't really like how it made me feel and I'm also not to keen on the 6-8x increased chance of getting parkinsons etc.

Nothing seems to slow down my racing mind quite like every muscle in my body feeling leaden.

Yeah. I'm really proud of her. This is a girl who never did any sport at school, and was bullied because of her weight, and became very ill due to body shaming. It's been so good for her, she is now fit and strong. She is competing in Bucs next year.

My gym has asked people to leave for repeatedly dropping weights. Its always the performers. It damages the floor & the equipment and its poor form & dangerous.

Some people need to watch some actual olympians doing snatches, they always drop the weights

Well you're not a bloody olympian are you

They train in appropriate facilities to do it. They aren't trashing the floor down the local david lloyd for vanity sake.

Then you're lifting too heavy or doing too many reps.
Do 8 instead of 10