Asked to move at the gym

[CatamaranViper]

Firstly, the way our gym is laid out, you walk in and all the cardio equipment is either side of you, facing the walls. The equipment is all in pairs so it goes two treadmills, two rowing machines, two cross trainers, two bikes, two treadmills etc on each side.
When I came in, all CTs were free so I hopped on one. I usually do a 40 min program which is customised on my profile. All the cardio equipment has a big screen and you can watch netflix etc if you want. I usually do watch something.

So I was on the CT with my headphones in, facing the wall and about 10 mins into my workout. A lady taps me on the shoulder which made me jump and asks me to move machine. I gestured to the one next to me (I was a bit out of breath) and told her that it was free. She then told me that her and her friend like to do it side by side so I'd need to move for them. I was only 10 mins into my workout and I was quite settled where I was and she was rude. I said no, I'll be 30 mins or so, you can use it then.

One of the other pairs of CTs had a bloke on one so there weren't any two free together, but plenty other equipment was available and in pairs.

She demanded I move again and I just put my headphones back in. A few mins later a staff member comes over and asks how long I'll be. The screens shows I have about 25 mins left now, he sees this and off he goes. Next thing I hear a bang and one of the ladies has stormed out the gym. The other one is glaring at me and saying something I can't hear.

I mean, I could have moved to another CT but i always find it difficult if I stop and start again on those machines and there were other free CTs, just not two together. I don't think I did anything wrong but thought I'd ask on here. So WIBU to stay on my machine?

That is so bad. WTF?

@ThursdayTomorrow

they werent being very kind to op though were they?

You were in the right. Some people think they own the equipment in gyms, my 16 year old wanted to use a piece of equipment, but there was a bottle that had been left on the machine for about 15 minutes so he finally decided to move it so he could start using the machine, a guy then ran over screaming at him to not touch his bottle; he had put it there as he was going to use the machine…at some point!! Being 16 my son just walked away but it’s a good job I wasn’t there because I’m intimidated by no one!

You were not being unreasonable at all.as you were there first. Who do they think they are?

I’d be raging, first off unless it’s an emergency don’t interrupt my workout or wait until I’m resting if on a set and second of all, go do something else until it becomes free if you can’t workout alone.

I can see the benefits to having a gym buddy but I cringed when I read the woman walked out because she couldn’t use exactly the same equipment as her friend at the same time.

There weren’t pairs of cross trainers available, but surely one of them could row etc while the other cross trained. Same work out different sequence. But they had to be samesies. 🤭🙄

I'm amazed she had the nerve to ask, she must live in a world where she thinks every other person exists to make her life better.

Entitled weirdo's are one thing but why are the staff supporting this? I would be having a word with management, it's not their job to inconvenience members to placate entitled idiots and they shouldn't be encouraging it. The fact that the staff member asked you means the entitled idiots probably think they're right.

And the person who was glaring at you and saying things you can't hear, complain about her. It's intimidation and completely unacceptable.

You are absolutely not being unreasonable! Goodness the entitlement of some others! I wonder if they asked the lone guy to move?! Just utterly ridiculous behaviour! I’d be fuming to have been interrupted!

I've already explained about the staff member. He was just dealing with a complaint, came over to fact check and went back and told her that I was in the right.

I won't be complaining about him, he dealt with it fairly.

To me, it all depends on how she asked you. If it was you need to get off there because I wanna work out with my friend then that is wrong. If it was, I was just wondering if you wouldn’t mind moving I like to work out next to my friend, but not a problem if not, then I probably would’ve moved. If she was rude, then you were right. If she wasn’t rude then maybe you should’ve moved out of kindness but it’s all down to personal preference .

Thank heavens it was a cross trainer and not a treadmill. Being tapped on the shoulder, mid workout, when you least expect it and can't seem them coming could have ended up in a nasty accident!

YANBU OP, especially as after your latest sighting of them confirmed they don't even talk to each other!

Love the PP's treadmill/jog on response. I almost want to rejoin a gym to try and use that! 😂

I was just wondering if you wouldn’t mind moving I like to work out next to my friend, but not a problem if not

I think I’d have even less respect for someone who asked me like this. You’ve used all the self-effacing words coaches teach women not to use, like ‘just wondering’ ‘not a problem if not’.

The fact is no matter how polite your words, it’s exceptionally rude to interrupt someone in the middle of their work out, bar an emergency such as a fire.

I had this happen before a yoga class. I got there early. I was lying down peacefully stretching waiting for the teacher whilst other people got their mats out. A lady insisted I move to the other side of the room. She didn’t even ask nicely. I said I was settled where I was. She put her mat right next to me and said, you have to move now.
i said in the interests of this being a peaceful class I will. Everyone else just stared at both of us.
very odd.

Cheeky monkey, you were quite right to stay on your machine.

I get what you're saying, but on the flip side I would have had to log out of the machine, lose my progress, log into the other machine (wait for the auth code to come through to my phone) and restart my workout. It's not like I could just hop off one machine and onto another. I have a bunch of pre-sets on different machines paired with various other workouts (mainly free weights) to achieve my goal. It's very hard for me (as I'm relatively new) to stop and start on machinery like the CT.

I have PTSD. If anyone were to tap me on my shoulder when I was in “The Zone” with headphones on (required to get into a crowded place) I would be a crying, quivering mess, or they would be scratched to pieces while I was screeching like a banshee. If it was a bloke, I would be sounding like a car alarm!!! Aren’t there rules in place about invading people’s personal space???

No you were not unreasonable. I would never have asked! What a rude, entitled person! I can understand them wanting to work out together and could even accept them asking nicely whether you'd mind moving machines but as soon as you said "no" that should have been an end to it. I hope she felt embarrassed by her petulant behaviour once she'd had time to reflect.

Gosh, you were nice. My response would have been 'And you need to get out of my face'.

Arrrgh! This is typical of the rude, entitled, arrogant, ignorant behaviour sweeping our streets right now.
I can’t stand people lurking behind me for machines at the gym as well as people who try to bagsie several machines at once. I was waiting (on another nearby machine so not to be annoying) for a specific weight machine. When the guy got off and went to a nearby one I quickly got up and jumped on it. I could see him twitching and staring at me and finally he came up and said “I’m afraid I’m using these two machines together as part of training reps I’m doing so can you please move”. I carried on, took a while to respond and said “no, I’ll be done in a few minutes” he then said “but I’ve saved this machine, I need to use it now” I said “I’ve been coming to this gym for 10 years and can tell you, it’s not policy to save machines” he then said “you bitch” and walked off. A gym staff heard, asked me to confirm what was happened and they went up to him and told him to leave the gym!! I’ll never forget it. Good for you for holding your ground OP don’t give in!

@CatamaranViper no, not if there's an identical machine free. It only applies if all that type of machine is in use and someone is waiting for one to become free. Also, there are signs up everywhere reminding people of the rules.

Yes I do get annoyed when people use Two machines at once, you can't use both a seated row and the Fly machine at the same time its physically impossible. Or the cable machine and the leg press.

I was in the gym the other day, saw the leg press was free, asked nearby and they said oh think she's might be using it. She was also using the cable machine (whilst posing in full face of make up including lip gloss), she had saved it with her water bottle. You can't use two things at once.

I walked off and did something else (and got on the other leg press at the end) but the selfishness of people is beginning to piss me off.

Good for you standing your ground OP. Same thing often happens in group exercise classes too, especially when new people are unknowingly in a regular's 'space'. I was given death stares by the class Queen Bee when I was new to a class as I had unknowingly taken her space and didn't move.

Other class members often reserve spaces for their friends. It's cliquey and unwelcoming especially for new people and so it's usually just established members at the classes at my gym.

You should have done a loud trump - she’d have moved then!

I remember a friend innocently tapping me on the shoulder when I was on a treadmill with my earphones on once, it really shakes you up, did me anyway. I think I’d mention this to the gym, the fact one of their employees then got involved is strange at best and bordering on harassment at worst, there’s generally no time limits on gym equipment and even if there was it would be way longer than an hour. What strange behaviour, can see why you feel the way you do. The perpetrator was lucky they came across someone like you, they’d have gotten a real mouth full in some gyms!

@xSideshowAuntSallyx

I was in the gym the other day, saw the leg press was free, asked nearby and they said oh think she's might be using it. She was also using the cable machine (whilst posing in full face of make up including lip gloss), she had saved it with her water bottle. You can't use two things at once.

If there was no one on the machine why did you ask other people if it was free? You just jump on it