"Grunting, rude as it may be, has been commonplace in gyms for as long as weights have been lifted. At most health clubs, grunts elicit little more than annoyed looks or sighs of irritation. But at Planet Fitness, a national chain with 120 locations, it is a matter not only of etiquette, but also of club policy: one too many offending noises can get a membership revoked in the time it takes to do a sit-up. Nationwide, the chain expels roughly two members a month for various reasons, most commonly grunting and dropping weights.
The no-grunt policy is one of several eyebrow-raising rules — no bandannas, no jeans, no banging weights — that managers say are intended to make their target clientele of novice exercisers feel comfortable."
"The manager who confronted Mr. Argibay, Carol Palazzolo, said without hesitation that people who feel the need to grunt should take their sweat elsewhere,..."
"Planet Fitness bills itself as “The Judgment Free Zone.” But in the weeks since Mr. Argibay was booted, a number of members have accused the gym of judging with extreme prejudice, saying the club humiliates members whose physiques are too chiseled and who take their workouts too seriously."
"At Planet Fitness gyms, grunters and other rule-breakers are treated to an ear-rattling siren with flashing blue lights and a public scolding. The “lunk alarm,” as the club calls it, is so jarring it can bring the entire floor to a standstill. (A lunk is defined, on a poster, as “one who grunts, drops weights, or judges.”)"
“I’ve never seen any gym that micromanages their customers like that,” said Bernhard Schroeder, a spokesman for IDEA Health and Fitness Association, a trade group."
If that's how a private business wants to run their operations, I have no problem with it. It will either work, and will draw individuals that might be too intimidated to go to Bali's or Gold's gym, or members will get fed up with it and the gym will go under. That's the free market.
I personally don't grunt or drop weights, and I certainly don't judge others in the gym, but I still don't think I'd want to belong to a gym like that.
There are plenty of restaurants and night clubs and country clubs that have more rigorous and ridiculous rules for dress code and conduct, but no one seems to get bent out of shape about that, they just choose not to go there or be a member.
Dawn
"Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You have to set yourself on fire." anonymous
Posts: 4334 | Location: Indianapolis, IN | Registered: March 15, 2004
Over the almost 8 years that I belonged to my gym before it went under last month, very loud grunting and weight banging were usually only occasional problems done by a very few men (I have never heard a woman grunt or bang weights at my gym). I understand that, sometimes, weight banging is an accident and that grunting can be a very real reaction to lifting a lot of weight. However, judging from the few men who were regular grunters and bangers in MY gym, I believe grunting and banging weights is also sometimes used as an attention-getting, see-how-macho-I-am device.
When using the machines where you stick a pin in to select the number of weight plates you will be lifting, I find it incredibly rude for people to lift and then just let the weight free-fall back down and slam with every rep. Again, I understand there are accidents with dropping weights but, in my gym, the guys who are doing this regularly are either ignorant of proper procedures or are just showing off, because hardly anyone else does it.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: SheriaVa,
Personal Healthy Habits Challenge - 10/1 to 12/31/08: 1. Exercise: Get back to consistently working out 3-5 X week. 2. Food: Get back to consistently preparing healthy lunches for the week with increased veg servings. 3. Behavior: Reduce intake of sweets.
Posts: 7356 | Location: Rehoboth Beach, DE | Registered: March 12, 2004
At the gym where I go, there are signs posted that ask you to not grunt, swear, bang weights etc. I've never heard anyone grunt ever but I see some people lifting some pretty serious weights and can't imagine not grunting or letting out some kind of noise! Jill
Summer Challenge Goals: 1) Walk 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week 2) Plan weekly menus
is planet fitness located in north korea? it is hard enough to drag ourselves to the gym regularly when we know we have to lose that 20 pounds, but really folks....
i for one am a proud grunter. when i do those core exercises, i use my breath (rather loudly) to engage my muscles. when i do the kickboxing class, i expel energy through the breath (rather loudly) as i kick and punch the bags.I do not wear bandanas because my head is too flat and large (thank you very much) but if i could, i would be a bandana-wearin' fool.alas, i have cranial issues. (sob sob sob)i have also been known to laugh uncontrollably, tickle my fellow gym-pals, and play practical jokes (loud ones).
loud, proud, and among the "big head comin' at-cha" tribe, izzy
Goals: 1. Stop thinking like a chronic dieter and start living to inspire. 2. HALT (hungry, anxious, lonely, tired) I will stop and tune in with myself should I experience these things, and respond with something healthy. 3. One word 2008: courage 4. Eat slow and mindfully.
