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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Asked to move at the gym

336 replies

CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 20:16

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?

OP posts:
sandrapinchedmysandwich · 22/03/2024 22:15

ThursdayTomorrow · 22/03/2024 22:02

You could have moved OP - it would have been the kind thing to do.
I find it sad how people only care about themselves now a days.

Are you fucking bonkers? I am so sick of this Be Kind shit to excuse shit behaviour

Auburngal · 22/03/2024 22:17

CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 22:07

Ah I do sometimes go with a friend. We will work the whole session together but have never ever demanded other people move to accommodate us. Also doesn't stop either of us going on our own. Sometimes it's nice to have a friendly face

Show quote history

Good for you to be able to pluck the courage to go alone sometimes. Its those who are sheep that if one bucks out for reasons I mentioned, the other(s) don't attend.

Auburngal · 22/03/2024 22:18

sandrapinchedmysandwich · 22/03/2024 22:15

Are you fucking bonkers? I am so sick of this Be Kind shit to excuse shit behaviour

Show quote history

The Be Kind thing lasted a month before people attacked each other for loo rolls.

EmmaGrundyForPM · 22/03/2024 22:19

My gym has a rule that, if someone else wants the machine, you can only have it for 20.minutes.

If there's no similar rule at your gym, then you can stay on for however long you want.

SD1978 · 22/03/2024 22:20

Nope, wouldn't have loved either. They didn't harass the man to move off his machine- they assumed you'd roll over and do it to 'be nice, be kind' and you didn't- you were in a workout, stopping and starting would have changed the momentum, whilst it's nice if they get a machine together, and can understand if it's more a social gym visit, the staff memeber never should have interrupted you the second time. You did nothing wrong and I would have done the same.

Original poster
CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 22:22

EmmaGrundyForPM · 22/03/2024 22:19

My gym has a rule that, if someone else wants the machine, you can only have it for 20.minutes.

If there's no similar rule at your gym, then you can stay on for however long you want.

Definitely no rule unless it's an unwritten one, but does that also apply when the same type of machine is free a few feet away?

There were 2 women wanting the CT and at least 2 free machines. At your gym would i still be expected to move?

OP posts:
TheSnakeCharmer · 22/03/2024 22:25

You not only did nothing wrong, but you actually did something positively right...and that is to teach a pair of CFs that the world doesn't evolve around them. Not only did they distract you when exercising, but then tried to get their own way by complaining to management, before getting angry. People like this need to be told.

AngelQuartz · 22/03/2024 22:35

ThursdayTomorrow · 22/03/2024 22:02

You could have moved OP - it would have been the kind thing to do.
I find it sad how people only care about themselves now a days.

Oh leave it out 🤣

It is totally unreasonable to expect a complete stranger to interrupt their workout and lose their flow over 2 immature grown babies who are incapable to be more than 2 meters apart.

Anonymouslyposting · 22/03/2024 22:35

I’m clearly in the minority here - I would totally have moved so friends could be together and I’d have asked you if you minded moving not thinking it was a big deal.

However, if you’d said no I would not have got in a strip, complained to staff and stormed out. Massive overreaction.

Penguinmouse · 22/03/2024 22:40

You did nothing wrong, they are ridiculously entitled! I can’t believe the gym staff member even entertained their entitlement.

Original poster
CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 22:42

Anonymouslyposting · 22/03/2024 22:35

I’m clearly in the minority here - I would totally have moved so friends could be together and I’d have asked you if you minded moving not thinking it was a big deal.

However, if you’d said no I would not have got in a strip, complained to staff and stormed out. Massive overreaction.

If they hadn't startled me, demanded I move and then complained about me, I may have considered moving. But the machines take a couple of minutes to reprogram (you've got to log in and Auth on your phone) so it's not simply a case of jumping off one machine and onto another. Plus it would have started the program over from the start (I think). I did not have a 50 min CT session in me!

OP posts:
LadyBird1973 · 22/03/2024 22:48

It's really rude to interrupt someone who is in the middle of a run, though, @Anonymouslyposting - it totally ruins a persons flow.

Anonymouslyposting · 22/03/2024 22:48

CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 22:42

If they hadn't startled me, demanded I move and then complained about me, I may have considered moving. But the machines take a couple of minutes to reprogram (you've got to log in and Auth on your phone) so it's not simply a case of jumping off one machine and onto another. Plus it would have started the program over from the start (I think). I did not have a 50 min CT session in me!

Show quote history

Ah, if it takes a long time to get restarted again and involves starting from scratch then that’s a different matter - the gym I visit most often is very low tech so I hadn’t appreciated that.

Agreed then, I would ask someone if they minded hopping off and hopping on again but not to risk starting from scratch or stopping for a while.

And of course there’s no need to give in to rudeness.

Original poster
CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 22:57

Anonymouslyposting · 22/03/2024 22:48

Ah, if it takes a long time to get restarted again and involves starting from scratch then that’s a different matter - the gym I visit most often is very low tech so I hadn’t appreciated that.

Agreed then, I would ask someone if they minded hopping off and hopping on again but not to risk starting from scratch or stopping for a while.

And of course there’s no need to give in to rudeness.

Show quote history

Tbh I've not tried, I'm just assuming it would make you start again? It only stores your session data at the end and I know you can't start a preset session part way through (I kinda wish you could cos the first 10 mins is the hardest part to get your heart rate up). I think I would have cried if it did...

OP posts:
Codlingmoths · 22/03/2024 22:58

EmmaGrundyForPM · 22/03/2024 22:19

My gym has a rule that, if someone else wants the machine, you can only have it for 20.minutes.

If there's no similar rule at your gym, then you can stay on for however long you want.

I’d hate that rule. Why go to the gym if you can’t do your workout plan?

Justrolledmyeyesoutloud · 22/03/2024 23:01

ThursdayTomorrow · 22/03/2024 22:02

You could have moved OP - it would have been the kind thing to do.
I find it sad how people only care about themselves now a days.

Hahaha yep cos their workout was much more important than op's!

Crazycatlady79 · 22/03/2024 23:04

If someone tapped me on the shoulder during cardio, then rudely asked me to move, then there is no frigging way I'd move.
I'm a pretty kind, well-mannered person, but the tap alone would have guaranteed a no.
It's not being 'unkind' or only caring about yourself, as someone else has suggested.
Hope you enjoyed your CT!

Original poster
CatamaranViper · 22/03/2024 23:07

Crazycatlady79 · 22/03/2024 23:04

If someone tapped me on the shoulder during cardio, then rudely asked me to move, then there is no frigging way I'd move.
I'm a pretty kind, well-mannered person, but the tap alone would have guaranteed a no.
It's not being 'unkind' or only caring about yourself, as someone else has suggested.
Hope you enjoyed your CT!

Hated it as always but I almost beat my second best top score which isn't bad considering I was interrupted a couple of times!

OP posts:
woahboy · 22/03/2024 23:32

DutchCowgirl · 22/03/2024 20:51

yanbu, but … my gym has a rule you shouldn’t use one machine longer than half an hour, because otherwise some people occupy machines like poolbeds at a resort. So maybe check if there is such a rule at your place because 40 mins sounds like a long time to me. So last week at my gym i tapped a guy on the shoulder who was already running for 40 minutes and i was waiting for a treadmill. He was annoyed by it , but i believe i was in my right to do so.

No. You were rude

woahboy · 22/03/2024 23:35

ThursdayTomorrow · 22/03/2024 22:02

You could have moved OP - it would have been the kind thing to do.
I find it sad how people only care about themselves now a days.

You don't exercise at gyms much do you. You get into a zone. You do not go around interrupting people. It's against gym etiquette. Tbh when people are full of adrenaline you risk being shouted at. And your deserve it

HoppingPavlova · 22/03/2024 23:51

You were not unreasonable. They were entitled arseholes. Also, the staff member was out of line, they should not have approached you.

hopscotcher · 22/03/2024 23:55

Obviously YANBU - what weird behaviour. Those machines wouldn't have 40 min programmes if you were only meant to stay on them for 10 mins.

trekking1 · 22/03/2024 23:56

YANBU, my friend and I go to the gym together and are perfectly capable exercising on machines that are not next to each other. I mean the absolute entitlement to storm out of the gym over this instead of doing a different exercise 😂Some people don't live in the real world!

whynotwhatknot · 22/03/2024 23:57

staff souldnt have come over to you ask wen there were two free machines

trekking1 · 22/03/2024 23:59

Agreed, I think the op should absolutely complain about the staff member