So I… um… hmm. I had to find a new gym.
Two Fridays ago, I was minding my business doing a crazy workout at the gym. As I was about to do reclining sit-ups, a trainer came up to me and said that I can’t leave my dufflebag in a locker like I used to. If I wanted to continue doing this, I'd have to rent out a locker for $12 more a month. When I go to the gym, I first drop my bag off early in the morning and then come back at around 10am to do my workout. This prevents coworkers at my job from seeing me leave carrying a gym bag in my hands. I had asked for permission to do this in November and was approved. So him coming to me with this bullshit pissed me off. But something angered me more.
Obviously someone complained about me doing this, most likely one of the other clients at the gym. This trainer coming up to me made me feel like I was being watched, and I no longer felt comfortable working out there. So I cancelled my membership and joined a new gym located two blocks away. I had my first training session and… well, the new gym sucks. The atmosphere is completely uninspiring, the machines aren’t as comfortable, the locker room is very small, and the personal trainer they assigned me was a pain in the ass. The first day, the fucking broad tried to get me locked into a $250 a month personal trainer package. I asked her if I could have some time to think about it, and her answer was "Well, not really because the deal expires today." At one point, she was looking at me saying nothing, thinking that was gonna put pressure on me. I looked at her and asked, “What are you doing?” She said, “Oh I’m sorry, I thought you were gonna say something.” This idiot actually tried to put peer pressure on someone who has no peers. We didn't even work out on any of the machines... it was just an hour of her telling me about herself and what she could do for me. Ugh. So I'm gonna cancel my membership at the end of this month.
The situations at both gyms could have been resolved if I were a normal human being. A normal person at the first gym would say, “Listen, I’ve already spoken to someone and was given permission to leave my bag in the locker for a couple hours." A normal person at the second gym would say, “Listen, I don’t really use personal trainers. But when I’m ready I’ll let you know.” Simple. Unfortunately I’m not normal. But I can make sure this never happens again.
An employee of the YMCA took me on a tour of their gym and I really liked what I saw. It had the same machines as the first gym, and the locker room was huge. I asked her whether I could leave my stuff in a locker and come back later in the day to work out and she said yes. I also told her (in a nice way) that I'd prefer no one speak to me, and to email me if there are any issues.
Look, I’ll definitely miss the first gym and its business atmosphere. It was an absolute pleasure going in there, busting my ass, and seeing great results as a reward. The owner of the gym actually called me a few days after I cancelled and asked if there was a problem, and whether there was anything he could do to get me back there. I thought about complaining about the whole situation, but that felt beneath me. The trainer that came up to me was an idiot, but he didn't approach me with disrespect. So I told the owner that I simply decided not to go to the gym anymore and thanked him for the call. Now, was I in the right? Probably not. But the gym is like a sanctuary to me. My workouts are intense and have a certain flow to it that can't be interrupted. The second someone comes up to me and makes me feel uncomfortable in any way, everything is ruined. I only put up with feeling uncomfortable when I’m at a job getting paid, not when I'm the one paying for it. The second that guy walked up to me and opened his mouth, I knew there was no coming back.
So I'll start working out at the YMCA in May. The lesson learned here is to get things straight with the gym in the beginning. Any relationship, be it personal or business, has to have clearly defined rules and regulations for both sides. I'm not a normal person and that won't change. I have to be proactive and lay down the law in the beginning to avoid going through this BS again.
Two Fridays ago, I was minding my business doing a crazy workout at the gym. As I was about to do reclining sit-ups, a trainer came up to me and said that I can’t leave my dufflebag in a locker like I used to. If I wanted to continue doing this, I'd have to rent out a locker for $12 more a month. When I go to the gym, I first drop my bag off early in the morning and then come back at around 10am to do my workout. This prevents coworkers at my job from seeing me leave carrying a gym bag in my hands. I had asked for permission to do this in November and was approved. So him coming to me with this bullshit pissed me off. But something angered me more.
Obviously someone complained about me doing this, most likely one of the other clients at the gym. This trainer coming up to me made me feel like I was being watched, and I no longer felt comfortable working out there. So I cancelled my membership and joined a new gym located two blocks away. I had my first training session and… well, the new gym sucks. The atmosphere is completely uninspiring, the machines aren’t as comfortable, the locker room is very small, and the personal trainer they assigned me was a pain in the ass. The first day, the fucking broad tried to get me locked into a $250 a month personal trainer package. I asked her if I could have some time to think about it, and her answer was "Well, not really because the deal expires today." At one point, she was looking at me saying nothing, thinking that was gonna put pressure on me. I looked at her and asked, “What are you doing?” She said, “Oh I’m sorry, I thought you were gonna say something.” This idiot actually tried to put peer pressure on someone who has no peers. We didn't even work out on any of the machines... it was just an hour of her telling me about herself and what she could do for me. Ugh. So I'm gonna cancel my membership at the end of this month.
The situations at both gyms could have been resolved if I were a normal human being. A normal person at the first gym would say, “Listen, I’ve already spoken to someone and was given permission to leave my bag in the locker for a couple hours." A normal person at the second gym would say, “Listen, I don’t really use personal trainers. But when I’m ready I’ll let you know.” Simple. Unfortunately I’m not normal. But I can make sure this never happens again.
An employee of the YMCA took me on a tour of their gym and I really liked what I saw. It had the same machines as the first gym, and the locker room was huge. I asked her whether I could leave my stuff in a locker and come back later in the day to work out and she said yes. I also told her (in a nice way) that I'd prefer no one speak to me, and to email me if there are any issues.
Look, I’ll definitely miss the first gym and its business atmosphere. It was an absolute pleasure going in there, busting my ass, and seeing great results as a reward. The owner of the gym actually called me a few days after I cancelled and asked if there was a problem, and whether there was anything he could do to get me back there. I thought about complaining about the whole situation, but that felt beneath me. The trainer that came up to me was an idiot, but he didn't approach me with disrespect. So I told the owner that I simply decided not to go to the gym anymore and thanked him for the call. Now, was I in the right? Probably not. But the gym is like a sanctuary to me. My workouts are intense and have a certain flow to it that can't be interrupted. The second someone comes up to me and makes me feel uncomfortable in any way, everything is ruined. I only put up with feeling uncomfortable when I’m at a job getting paid, not when I'm the one paying for it. The second that guy walked up to me and opened his mouth, I knew there was no coming back.
So I'll start working out at the YMCA in May. The lesson learned here is to get things straight with the gym in the beginning. Any relationship, be it personal or business, has to have clearly defined rules and regulations for both sides. I'm not a normal person and that won't change. I have to be proactive and lay down the law in the beginning to avoid going through this BS again.
I used to work out at a YMCA gym and I loved it! The equipment was good and they had Body Pump classes. I miss the Y.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't have the sleek design and rich atmosphere of my original gym, but I like the YMCA as well. In fact, I think the "rich atmosphere" of my old gym wasn't such a good thing, as it contributed to my paranoia. All kinds of people go to the YMCA which allows me to blend in and not stand out so much.
DeleteOne of my favorite aspects of the YMCA is that they can charge me based on my income. So if I give them a couple pay stubs from the shipping depot to show that I only make $900 a month, my monthly fee will be something like $10 a month for all that wonderful equipment.