Finally got back to the gym-gym yesterday

[xiphias]

I finally ran out of sessions at Fitness Together, and Lis and I decided not to buy more, because I really haven't been getting THAT much out of it for a while now. If the trainers I'd been working with when I first got there were still there, it might be different -- I feel like both Brian and Bethany really helped me out in learning how to do this stuff, but they've both gone on to their own studios now. Also, the franchise remodeled, and got rid of their barbells, which were the fun exercises. So I finally went back to the Y.

The Y's also remodeled, and have re-tooled their free weights area. They've now got the modern-style barbell weights, with the rubberized coating, the handles that make them easier to carry, and the interlocking ridges so that the weights are more stable. They're better in every objective way, but I still prefer the old-school ones. The modern ones don't go *clank*, and that takes away some of the fun.

Still, I had more fun working out than I have had in months. I've been reading Elizabeth Bear's reports of the "Valkyrie Project", where she and a friend are working on just becoming badass, and it made me want to start doing deadlifts and bench presses again. I'm not up to where eBear is on either weight, but I think I COULD be with enough work -- when I was at my peak in strength training, I was pretty much where she is now. Of course, she's still going up... I expect that, when I get to where she is now, she'll have gone further. That's okay; I'm not competing with her -- I'm competing with me.

I don't remember who made the comment -- it might have been theferrett -- that there's no reason to feel self-conscious at the gym. A lot of people do -- you go into the gym, and you are afraid that other people will judge you for being out of shape, for doing only five minutes on the elliptical, for lifting only tiny little light weights.

The thing to remember is that anybody who even NOTICES isn't working out in the first place. Everyone who's actually doing stuff is concentrating on that, and is only noticing other people if they're workout buddies, or if they're waiting for the same piece of equipment. The only way it would even be POSSIBLE for someone to judge you would be if you were already working out harder than they were -- it would INHERENTLY mean that you were doing a better job than they were.

I make an exception for actively dangerous things -- other people can, and should, notice if you're doing something that is likely to injure yourself or others. But if you're being reasonably safe and sane, there is no reason for anybody to even consider what your workout is or isn't.

In any case, the only competition that matters is you with yourself. Even if you ARE participating in a race or something, it's important to remember that "last place beats DNF (Did Not Finish) -- and DNF beats DNS (Did Not Start)." And, for that matter, "DNS" beats "not even being on the registration sheet in the first place."

Comments

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

No matter how slow you run, you're still lapping all the people sitting on the couch.

But it's true. These days I mainly go to the gym when I'm on a project and in a hotel 4 nights a week, and there are people there who are working out far more intensely than I am. But I and they know that we all have to start somewhere and that DOING it beats NOT DOING it.

Same when I run. I know I'm slow; I'm not going to do distance at anything less than a 10 minute mile for any distance over 5K. And I also know that that's a lot faster and further than most people run. But the people who are slower than I am, or who can't run as far? They're still out there doing it and good for them! And the ones who are faster or stronger? They're all encouraging; the number of times I've had bike riders going by my on my regular running route yelling out, "Looking good! Keep going!" is some large number.

That's okay; I'm not competing with her -- I'm competing with me.

So. Very. This.

[redbird]

I do notice how much weight/resistance the person before me has set the Nautilus (and clone) machines for, because I have to look at it when setting the machine for myself. But I do my best not to think about it, which is a bit different. I also may notice what someone else is doing if I'm pausing between sets, or walking from one machine/area to another; looking around and seeing the exercise someone is doing is more interesting than staring at the ceiling for 30 seconds.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

And neither of those are ANYTHING like "judging" people. If you're in the gym, you're thinking about what YOU'RE doing, not what anyone ELSE is.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

In general I agree with you that the vast majority of people at a gym are concerned with their own workout, not with judging other people. I tend to be more careful how I sling that advice around now, though, because too many of my heavier friends have direct experience with hurtful comments when they go into a gym. It's probably true that the people making those comments are not the ones working out themselves, and thus anyone who is already has a leg up on them, but that requires a lot of focus to think about when you've just gotten a metaphorical punch in the emotional solar plexus.

So I wouldn't say "there's no reason to feel self-conscious", though I would stress that the overwhelming majority of people who actually know what their talking about are more likely to applaud than to censure a newbie or anyone who doesn't fit their own preconceptions of a fit person.

(Your last sentence is the exact story of my last regatta. At least I *finished*.)

[fitfool.livejournal.com]

Agreed that most people are too self-absorbed in their own workouts to notice other people but there ARE a minority of gym-goers who are indeed judgmental. But then again, such jerks can show up anywhere and I'm not going to stay at home all the time to avoid them. But the folks whose opinions I would actually have any respect for? They tend to be folks who respect the fact that you're putting in the work and showing up at the gym. :-)