AIBU to expect gym staff to stop people blocking machines?

[XXAHF]

I'm having undue hassle getting through my obligatory workout at Nuffield Gym in the Barbican, London. I'm finding it so difficult to get onto seated machines as people sit there texting ad infinitum, with a few token interspersed reps. Last week, there was a guy who sat on one for 15 minute and did 10 reps. In fact, 3 machines that I use were simultaneously blocked by people doing similar. I suppose I could challenge them, and did manage to get someone to move off on one occasion, but it's difficult and confrontational.

There's a notice in a side corridor saying that people have complained, requesting users not to block use of the machines by texting. Yet the problem is definitely getting worse.

I asked a manager to place staff on the floor to have a quiet word with the worst offenders, but was told that there was nothing they could do and it was the customer's responsibility to challenge the rule-breakers. I find this refusal to manage the gym floor so that customers can access the machines to be unreasonable. People are not getting the service they are paying for; they're not getting fair access to equipment, and Nuffield refuses to take responsibility. AIBU?

Thats bollox. Selfish gits

Vote with your feet...

My gym is run by the local authority and in the past year they've changed a lot of the weights/resistance machines to one's that most women aren't strong enough to use, greatly reducing the ones I can do anything with. They've also reduced the cool down and stretching area to a single mat.

Add in a lot more users sitting on machines doomscrolling and texting and I end up doing no more than a couple of the things I want to and then leaving. It's getting to the point where I feel I'm wasting my money. It's the only gym in town.

Lazy cop out from the staff. Escalate your complaint or just find another gym.

This is why I don't go to the gym anymore. I feel your pain. No one takes responsibility for machine hoggers.

Just ask the person on the machine if they are going to be much longer, usually works

YANBU because if it’s a known problem to the extent that they are putting up signs, then yes they should be dealing with people who are doing that. To say “there is nothing they can do” is ridiculous - of course there is something they can do, they just don’t want to. At least they could be honest.

The poor people who work at the gym aren’t some kind of police officer, they have no authority over grown adults.
I’m not surprised they don’t want to go and tell grown adults how to behave, you don’t want to OP and neither do they.

Yep that's what I do.

I'm also pretty flexible with my workout. I have a plan in mind of which muscle groups I'll target in that session; if one machine is busy there's usually something else that will do the job.

And you can always use the free weights/pullies/kettlebells etc to work almost any part of the body.

YANBU, it's annoying if the staff just expects you to be the police.
But if they won't help, gym etiquette if someone forgets themselves on a machine is to go ask how many sets they have left and if you can work in. Same effect, less confrontational (as some people are indeed jerks)

The poor people who work at the gym aren’t some kind of police officer, they have no authority over grown adults.

it's literally their job to see that gym users follow the rules and while no, they are not police, but gym is a private establishment and repeat offenders can be banned.

Gives me the rage! Are you working out or checking your social media? When I go to the gym I want max effort in the shortest time, suspect these people say they 'worked out' for an hour when in reality they've done maybe 20 mins max. I'm lucky enough to have a work gym that is quieter but have also got a decent workout using free weights/bars/kettle bells that mean I'm not waiting for equipment. That said last week someone had left the weights bar loaded, at my shoulder height, with 90kg...I couldn't unload 20kg plates from that height safely...selfish wankers...

The women that hog treadmills going at 1mph while scrolling TikTok are the worst. Would you not rather just work hard for twenty mins and be done?

It's their job.

i have a gym in my garage to avoid this kind of twattish behaviour. Appreciate this isn’t possible for everyone but you can do very effective workouts at home with just dumbbells if that’s all you have. Plus save a fortune on gym membership and no longer have to worry about selfish dicks!

I feel your pain. I go to a council run gym where they opened up a Pure Gym round the corner. Presumably to replace the lost customers, my gym has now lowerred its age limit and is now full of 11-15 year olds who spend most of their time messing around and filming each other. They are always in large groups and take it in turns to go on the machines meaning nobody else can get a look in. Parking is shit at Pure Gym so I have to stay at the council run one. Despite there being signs up saying that under 16s are not allowed to use anything other than cardio machines, the staff do nothing to enforce this. Two young boys were throwing heavy bar weights around last weekend, they or someone else could have been injured. I raised a concern with the member of staff and was told ‘Oh they’re with their mother, they can do what they want!’ 🙄
I’ve now started going stupidly early to avoid kids.

Complain formally to the gym and if they don't address it, then cancel your membership and say why. Part of what you are paying for is effective gym management.

This drives me crazy. It’s another symptom of people’s thoughtlessness and the impact of smartphones. In the past those people would not have just been sitting there doing nothing.

Smashing your workout ASAP might work for you but I don't think your approach is superior to that of the people pottering around taking their time with recommended rest periods between sets. The latter is necessary for lifting heavy.

A good gym will have multiples of popular equipment so that people can do 3 or 4 sets with a short rest period in between and not overly inconvenience anyone else. If you're taking 60-90 second rests- phone or no phone - that's ~3 minutes of extra waiting. That's not worth working in with another person and having to keep wiping down and readjusting settings in between.

Another problem I see is that the PTs at my gym give every new starter the same, formulaic workout. Then those people all want the same machine and haven't been shown how to use an alternative if it's busy.

No it isn't

Our gym took the seating out of the infrared sauna as there was a cliche of women taking it over and stopping others having free access. It is now very uncomfortable so easier to get access if you just want a quick sauna.

@Sugarnspicenallthingsnaice
I think you’ve missed the point of the post. The OP is referring to people hogging machines for long periods of time, not those who are having 90 second rest periods. I observed a guy using the leg press machine yesterday. He was on there for 20 minutes! He did 3 sets of 20 during this time and was on his phone for the rest of the time. Oh and he just walked off afterwards without removing the weights he had placed on the machine. If you can’t see that’s selfish then maybe you’re part of the problem. Being on a cardio machine for 20 minutes where there are usually multiple machines is fine but not something there is only one of especially not when the gym is particularly busy!

we have a couple who comes to the gym regularly, she sits on the leg press and he stands next to it. If nobody specifically asks how long they will be, they will simply sit there and chat for an hour. Why on earth they can't do it sitting on the sofa, nobody knows.

No, I didn't miss the point. It's quite clear I wasn't relying to the OP but rather quoting another poster and addressing her comments about wanting to whiz through a work out as quickly as possible. Maybe you're the one who needs to work on understanding the point of a post before you reply to it.

I’m getting too old to tolerate this and will speak up. Obviously a fair amount of rest time is acceptable but some people just sit and scroll. So inconsiderate.