Now and then, you see things at the gym that make you wonder. We've had threads about this in the past and I figured it was about time for another.

When I walked up to the recumbent bike today at the gym, there was a woman going like gangbusters on the stepper nearby. She was moaning and groaning like she was about to die. A little while later, she came over to the column-sized mirror by me and examined herself very closely in it. Then she walked a lap or two around the track and examined herself in the mirror again. Then she got on the elliptical and went like gangbusters on that. That particular machine happens to be right against one of these column mirrors and she was constantly examining herself in the mirror while working out. By this time, I was on the elliptical right next to her, and it was creepy how she kept studying herself in the mirror...not just for a second or two, like to see if her hair was out of place...but for like a minute at a time...just staring at herself.

I started wondering if she was trying to lose weight for a wedding or reunion or something, because it seemed that she was getting ZERO enjoyment out of this workout and was driving herself VERY hard. Frankly, I was REALLY impressed by her endurance (she was about the same level of overweight as I am, but younger), but I was also concerned because I never saw her drink any water while I was on the elliptical next to her (though there was an empty bottle near her).

When I came back from the shower down in the locker room, she was standing on the scale (my locker was right next to the scale), obsessing. She was tap, tap tapping the measure in minute increments, moving it back, forth...I've never seen anyone stay on a scale that long. Most folks jump on, weigh, and jump off...esp. when they're in their underwear and someone is standing nearby.

Then, I go into the other room where they have blowdryers and such to dry my hair and there was another interesting sight. It's very common to see people in this room with towels wrapped around themselves, drying their hair. This woman, however, was completely naked except for a towel that had been rolled lengthwise and was tied at her waist, leaving everything both above and below the waist "hanging out." Now I understand that not everyone is as modest as I about covering nudity, but the whole time I was drying my hair, I was trying to figure out what in the world the purpose of the towel was, since it was obviously not for modesty purposes. The only thing I could come up with is that it was to shield her from the cold marble counters as she was leaning forward to do her hair.



These kinds of things make me want to ask "Why are you doing that?" cuz I just get SO curious! hehe (Of course, I wouldn't ask but I think about it!)

Seen anything unusual at your gym lately?

quote:

Originally posted by Melstruck:
"My legs are so much more defined today". My roommate and I just laughed.

I was doing my toe raises while waiting in line today. I thought of you... took all of my self control not to throw my leg up on the counter and say to the clerk, "Don't you think my legs look so much more defined today???"

I think my biggest pet peeve is that these big muscle guys at my gym apparently get too weak to put away what they took out after lifting and leave everything all over the floor. Also the leaning all over the equipment while strutting and flexing and talking with their buddies instead of lifting. But that's because I like to get in, do my thing, and get out of the gym. Even though it's nice, I don't like it when I run into someone I know because it means a delay in getting my workout in and finished.

quote:

Originally posted by Melstruck:
there is the young kid (20 or so) that struts, flexes and looks in the mirror for about 10 minutes while loading up a bar so that he can do 1 rep. Then, as he lifts, he groans and moans, when he's done, he yells..."That's not human, I'm not human". Every time. He then pulls up one leg of his shorts and walks around (holding hte shorts leg up) for another 10-15 minutes before doing it all again. Mostly, the rest of the gym just tries not to make eye contact.

OMG...I'm sitting here at my desk in the middle of a cube farm (rows of cubicles where coworkers sit with earshot of me) TRYING MY HARDEST not to bust a gut. I had to hold my hands over my mouth just now when I read your story about the young guy. I can't stand the guys at my gym (I have yet to hear a woman do it) who do the "moaning and groaning showcase" when they lift weights. My other pet peeve is guys who purposely let the weights slam down when they're using the Cybex machines as a show of "Look how much I'm lifting!." GRRRR!

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:
Maybe somebody thought, “Wow, this woman is totally obsessed with her left leg in the mirrors… how weird!”

This one nearly made me LOL too. Granted, I don't know why this woman at my gym was obsessing about herself in the mirror but I think that you watching how your leg works in the mirror is UNDERSTANDABLE mirror behavior. (grin)

quote:

Originally posted by Lori4squaremom:
Ok, now it's your turn to make me laugh! I am sitting here laughing out loud at the comments about you and the bike, and envisioning myself as one of the bystanders. So my 4 year old Rachel hears me laughing and she started laughing, now she and I are laughing so hard at each other that we are both crying! THanks!!!

It is hard to explain but I'd be on the bike and have my left foot at 3 o'clock and my right at 9 o'clock and then I'd pedal (VERY slowly) backwards half way until right foot at 3 o'clock and my left was at 9 o'clock... then I'd pedal slowly forwards half way... I used the bike for stretching more than anything…

Some people did look at me like A) poor thing... never learned to ride a stationary bike or B) Wow... have you ever seen a lazier person in the gym or have you ever seen anyone expend less calories while "exercising" in your whole life? Although, I had a very intense look on my face and was obviously concentrating… so I guess most people thought I couldn’t figure out how to ride a stationary bike. The people who offered to “help” me were very nice.

Ok, this thread is just toooo funny!

I'm glad I'm not the only one wondering what people are thinking sometimes. My dh usually say, as we are walking into the gym "Well, I wonder what kind of show we will get tonight"...and it's usually something we talk about later (did you see THAT??). I have a couple of stories...first, there is the young kid (20 or so) that struts, flexes and looks in the mirror for about 10 minutes while loading up a bar so that he can do 1 rep. Then, as he lifts, he groans and moans, when he's done, he yells..."That's not human, I'm not human". Every time. He then pulls up one leg of his shorts and walks around (holding hte shorts leg up) for another 10-15 minutes before doing it all again. Mostly, the rest of the gym just tries not to make eye contact.

There are more, but that's my best.

One other story from college. Six of us from the dorm went to the gym in our dorm basement and did a workout. This was our first workout of the year (in November). The next day, one of the girls said, "My legs are so much more defined today". My roommate and I just laughed. To this day, when talking about a work out (we live in different cities now), we both say "and I"m sure your legs are more defined today.

Mel

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:
]I went to PT for the last time today. Yay!!! (but I will miss Steve, the Tom Cruise look alike physical therapist... Actually, I think he is smarter than Tom ... But I won‘t miss him enough to want to wrack up my knee again!)

I realized today during PT... Oh Noooo!!! I AM that woman staring at herself at Sheri’s gym! The Y has this mirrored wall. When I first started going to the Y and PT, I would walk back and forth the length of the room for about 5 mins and just stare at my leg and try and get it to move “normally” and to attempt to walk without a limp. I’d also do my PT exercises in front of the mirror and VERY closely examine my range of motion and my technique.

I think everybody at the Y knew that my knee was being rehabbed… but a couple people did ask me if I needed help turning on the bike or did I need to learn how to ride a stationary bike (LOL!) … since at first I couldn’t even make the pedals go all the way around… and a few people did give me some odd looks…

Maybe somebody thought, “Wow, this woman is totally obsessed with her left leg in the mirrors… how weird!”

Denise,

Ok, now it's your turn to make me laugh! I am sitting here laughing out loud at the comments about you and the bike, and envisioning myself as one of the bystanders. So my 4 year old Rachel hears me laughing and she started laughing, now she and I are laughing so hard at each other that we are both crying! THanks!!!

quote:

Originally posted by ltd:

Oh, I guess the weirdest thing I saw was a woman on the recumbant bike with a huge bag of hard candy in her lap. I really wanted to ask why she had the candy as she was pedaling away, but I didn't. I thought maybe she was diabetic or something, but would you really need that much sugar?!!!

Ok, this one really made me laugh!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Terri:
Wow, you surely don't go to the Y I used to go to (and am joining again on thursday!).

Many people in the locker room walk around naked

Yay!! Terri congrats!

I don't think our Y has a locker room or showers... we have cubbies... like they have in kindergarten... I just live a 4 min. walk away... so the shower is pretty close!

quote:

Originally posted by SheriaVa:
...she kept studying herself in the mirror...not just for a second or two, like to see if her hair was out of place...but for like a minute at a time...just staring at herself.

I went to PT for the last time today. Yay!!! (but I will miss Steve, the Tom Cruise look alike physical therapist... Actually, I think he is smarter than Tom ... But I won‘t miss him enough to want to wrack up my knee again!)

I realized today during PT... Oh Noooo!!! I AM that woman staring at herself at Sheri’s gym! The Y has this mirrored wall. When I first started going to the Y and PT, I would walk back and forth the length of the room for about 5 mins and just stare at my leg and try and get it to move “normally” and to attempt to walk without a limp. I’d also do my PT exercises in front of the mirror and VERY closely examine my range of motion and my technique.

I think everybody at the Y knew that my knee was being rehabbed… but a couple people did ask me if I needed help turning on the bike or did I need to learn how to ride a stationary bike (LOL!) … since at first I couldn’t even make the pedals go all the way around… and a few people did give me some odd looks…

Maybe somebody thought, “Wow, this woman is totally obsessed with her left leg in the mirrors… how weird!”

quote:

I've seen a commercial something like that....

One of my "favorites" is an exercise machine commercial where a guy declares "I gained twelve pounds of muscle in six weeks!".

I mutter to myself "Any how many gallons of steroids did you use?"

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:

No strange sightings at the Y...

Wow, you surely don't go to the Y I used to go to (and am joining again on thursday!).

Many people in the locker room walk around naked, shower naked in front of others etc. I became used to it...doesn't phase me anymore.

The one thing I'll remember from there, is some woman was dying her hair, spilled the dye on the carpet (really nice manners doing it there anyhow!)....and then went and showered it off in the community type shower in front of everyone.

They actually talked about charging her to clean the carpets as it never came out, but not sure if they did.

I can't get over that girl who kept looking at herself in the mirror. Seriously..look at it in a couple weeks!! That's too funny...but sad that she's that obsessed. There's way more to life than to worry about how you look that much!

I'd like to quote skedwards,

Terri

Thanks for the laughs, Sheri. I'm sitting here trying not to wake the kids with my laughing.

I haven't seen anything really weird at the gym. There were two sisters who discussed food and recipes the entire time they were exercising and looked at cookbooks while they were on the treadmills. Everytime I saw them they had their cookbooks and were talking about food.

Oh, I guess the weirdest thing I saw was a woman on the recumbant bike with a huge bag of hard candy in her lap. I really wanted to ask why she had the candy as she was pedaling away, but I didn't. I thought maybe she was diabetic or something, but would you really need that much sugar?!!!

I have seen it all, too, sherrie.I used to watch as people took off whatever would come off at WW meetings before they weighed in. I totally expected that one time I would come in and see naked buns weighing in....seriously.

Don't we live in a world that is filled with humorous things to make us smile at ourselves.
But naked buns aren't one of them

quote:

Originally posted by Lori4squaremom:
...in small town, podunk Central CA those kinds of things are just NOT common, which is why everyone was so amused.

I got to agree with you there!! Butts are like hair... we always want a different one than the one we have...

No strange sightings at the Y...

Once I was on a elliptical machine next to a guy wearing headphones. Not once, not twice, but three times his cell phone rang and darned if he didn't hit it on the headphones every time! Hello -- clunk! Hello -- clunk! Hello -- clunk!

I've seen a commercial something like that....A guy runs as fast as he can AROUND equipment at a gym and then steps on a scale. The announcer says something like "Want faster results?". I can't remember what the commercial is for though!!

How weird Sheri!

I've been training at work almost exclusively now so no weird stuff to report other than "guy locker room" type banter that I'm working on getting used to ; )