Gym Etiquette.

[mchammer187]

i hate douchebags taking up the power racks to do foooking curls. wtf is it with n00bs doing curls in the gym. guess they think their 10'' arms are gonna get swoll if they curl 55 lbs a couple hundred times..

ok i'm done with my rant. carry on.

someone doing curls in the power rack I do not mind going up to them if I plan on using so it doesn't bother me.


edit: what about thumbless benching?

There is a guy that does that at my gym but lifts a bit more than I do especially in bench so I dunno how he would take it.

 

[Whisper]

someone doing curls in the power rack I do not mind going up to them if I plan on using so it doesn't bother me.


edit: what about thumbless benching?

There is a guy that does that at my gym but lifts a bit more than I do especially in bench so I dunno how he would take it.

Agreed on the first point. If I see someone using a power rack for something like curls, I'll ask them how many sets they have left, and if it's a lot, may ask if they would move the barbell onto the floor so that I can squat.

Conversely, if I'm using the power rack for something other than squats (such as to load weights onto the bar while doing SLDL's, which I perform immediately after squats; or for standing presses/shrugs, as the power rack allows me to perform both exercises in quick succession of one another), and I see someone waiting, I'll ask them if they're going to be doing squats. If so, I gladly offer to move my barbell down onto the floor so they can get to the rack. Nine times out of ten they turn me down, but I at least like to give them that option.

As for thumbless benching--personally, I think it's dumb, but enough people do it that I wouldn't correct someone on it.

 

[Howard]

nominate this thread for ownage of the year 2010

 

[alkemyst]

QFT

interested in seeing what the OP even looks like.

 

[coreyb]

Who said the lifter was a novice? Perhaps he's on an intermediate program that utilizes these resources and varies the weights.

I highly doubt that. A young kid who's an intermediate? lol

not in any gym around my city

 

[MJinZ]

I highly doubt that. A young kid who's an intermediate? lol

not in any gym around my city

I'm sure some people who are relatively new at weight lifting have looked online and into all of the exercises and is doing some that are probably not appropriate for their level.

 

[coreyb]

yeah, most people are. ie, every day at the gym i see people doing box squats with an empty bar for sets, partial deads with 200lbs, and so on.

 

[StageLeft]

When I was a kid and some guy advised me on form I didn't like his advice at all (it was partially correct but not very important). These days if somebody advised me on form I'd probably stab their car tires mainly because a) I don't want to hear their crap (which may be wrong anyway) and b) I don't want to ever, ever talk to anybody while I'm at the gym. I have earphones on to block them out.

i hate douchebags taking up the power racks to do foooking curls.

Truth. That is freaking annoying. Most people at my gym stay away from the power rack like it's cryptonite, though. Huge ass gym, one power rack, generally free.

 

[Pantlegz]

QFT

interested in seeing what the OP even looks like.

uhh... you didn't quote anything

 

[SlitheryDee]

http://www.exrx.net/ExInfo/Etiquette.html

Abstain from telling others they are using the equipment improperly

• Unless it is your job or someone's life is in danger
• Certainly feel free to ask to assist anyone that appears to be struggling to figure out how to use an exercise machine

There's some funny stuff in that list too:

release your farts where no one else can smell them

naked persons always have the right away

lol

 

[MJinZ]

When I was a kid and some guy advised me on form I didn't like his advice at all (it was partially correct but not very important). These days if somebody advised me on form I'd probably stab their car tires mainly because a) I don't want to hear their crap (which may be wrong anyway) and b) I don't want to ever, ever talk to anybody while I'm at the gym. I have earphones on to block them out.Truth. That is freaking annoying. Most people at my gym stay away from the power rack like it's cryptonite, though. Huge ass gym, one power rack, generally free.

The one I go to is medium sized and we only have one power rack.

But... we have plenty of the similar ones.

I use the power rack for like 1 set of pull ups.

 

[purbeast0]

eh i'd say you were being a dick for doing that. let him do what he wants, who cares what he wants.

yesterday one of the regulars at my gym that i talk to was doing shoulder side raises and some small kid in a wife beater who was grunting over in the legs room with light weight and poor form came over and tried to give him pointers for doing the side raises.

when he walked away i told the regular dude to just disregard wtf that kid said cause he was stronger and bigger than that kid.

at the gym, myob.

 

[HomerX]

when he walked away i told the regular dude to just disregard wtf that kid said cause he was stronger and bigger than that kid.

stronger + bigger = better technique?

The best trainer in my gym is also the smallest one....

 

[MJinZ]

stronger + bigger = better technique?

The best trainer in my gym is also the smallest one....

Stronger = better technique probably.

Big is hugely genetic.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Stronger = better technique probably.

Big is hugely genetic.

No, big is hugely EPI-genetic. If you lift and eat a ton, you will get big every time, regardless of genetics. Epigenetics refers to the modification of genetics due to environment. If you modify your genetics through weightlifting, you will gain both size and strength.

Physiological cross-sectional area (and not motor coordination/form) is the main predictor of strength. Size predicts strength. I know a ton of huge guys that look like monkeys when they do their exercises. They have poor form and coordination. Big does not necessarily mean coordinated or practiced.

 

[MJinZ]

No, big is hugely EPI-genetic. If you lift and eat a ton, you will get big every time, regardless of genetics. Epigenetics refers to the modification of genetics due to environment. If you modify your genetics through weightlifting, you will gain both size and strength.

Physiological cross-sectional area (and not motor coordination/form) is the main predictor of strength. Size predicts strength. I know a ton of huge guys that look like monkeys when they do their exercises. They have poor form and coordination. Big does not necessarily mean coordinated or practiced.

I mean big (frame).

 

[purbeast0]

stronger + bigger = better technique?

The best trainer in my gym is also the smallest one....

someone who has better definition of a muscle and has a bigger muscle and is stronger and has been lifting for at least 5+ years probably doesn't need advice from some smaller kid who is less defined and not as strong who was previously doing leg exercises wrong and not even going the full ROM.

i'm pretty sure the stronger/bigger guy knows wtf he is doing already...

 

[HomerX]

someone who has better definition of a muscle and has a bigger muscle and is stronger and has been lifting for at least 5+ years probably doesn't need advice from some smaller kid who is less defined and not as strong who was previously doing leg exercises wrong and not even going the full ROM.

i'm pretty sure the stronger/bigger guy knows wtf he is doing already...

I'm not sure that this is true...

You can do a lot of exercises the wrong way and still get big/defined/strong...

Years later when getting older you will get the bill for that... not immediatelly!

I will not say that this particual kid was right... but only because the other guy was bigger/stronger that won't mean anything...

a good trainer has not to be strong/big etc... he must be good at knowing the right techniques and finding your weak spots...

 

[darkxshade]

i'm pretty sure the stronger/bigger guy knows wtf he is doing already...

It's one thing to say that a smaller guy who's doing something wrong giving advice to a bigger guy is stupid.

It's another thing to assume a stronger/bigger guy automatically knows what he's doing just because he looks looks big. I'm pretty fit and still learning new things.

 

[purbeast0]

It's one thing to say that a smaller guy who's doing something wrong giving advice to a bigger guy is stupid.

It's another thing to assume a stronger/bigger guy automatically knows what he's doing just because he looks looks big. I'm pretty fit and still learning new things.

well yea i clearly stated that in my original post that the kid who 'gave him tips' was doing leg exercises with poor form.

 

[HomerX]

well yea i clearly stated that in my original post that the kid who 'gave him tips' was doing leg exercises with poor form.

probably the kid specialized itself in shoulder side raises

 

[alkemyst]

uhh... you didn't quote anything

it would have been Howard's post.

jesus...not that hard.

 

[gramboh]

Also what is the consensus on doing shrugs in the power rack? It annoys the hell outta me since we only have 1 power rack but there is plenty of space on the floor to do stuff like deadlifts and there is also a trap bar.

Unless the person is huge, they should not be doing shrugs. If the weight on the bar is less than 495# (5 plates) they do not need to be doing shrugs. I get mad when I see skinny kids strapping in to do BB shrugs with 185 on the bar. Just deadlift and clean, it's not like they have any traps anyway.

 

[alkemyst]

Unless the person is huge, they should not be doing shrugs. If the weight on the bar is less than 495# (5 plates) they do not need to be doing shrugs. I get mad when I see skinny kids strapping in to do BB shrugs with 185 on the bar. Just deadlift and clean, it's not like they have any traps anyway.

Wow...495lb shrugs...

however saying that's 5 plates is like saying "page #X" of a thread when you are set for anything but the max.

I like doing shrugs. I am only 3 months back after 4 years off. I am only using 120-140lb dumbbells for 6-10 reps. I guess I suck.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Unless the person is huge, they should not be doing shrugs. If the weight on the bar is less than 495# (5 plates) they do not need to be doing shrugs. I get mad when I see skinny kids strapping in to do BB shrugs with 185 on the bar. Just deadlift and clean, it's not like they have any traps anyway.

Shrugs are a great accessory movement, if you're a serious deadlifter. What you're saying is completely out of line. That's like saying a weight-class athlete shouldn't do some tricep extensions to strengthen his tendons and ligaments for bench press. If you're deadlifting around 2x BW, I can see shrugs being a great addition. I don't know if you understand the point of these accessory exercises. Typically, you utilize them to strengthen tendons and/or increase strength of a potentially limiting factor in the movement.