GymsanityGymsanityA running account of the lack of common sense at the gym. Articles
The Key Thing
2011-11-24 16:03:00 It turns out that one of the biggest obstacles to having a good workout is just getting through the gym?s front door. Now I don?t mean this in a motivational or philosophical sense ? I mean literally having a gym employee remember to get out of bed in the morning and go unlock the front ... More About: Gyms
Bump and Run
2011-09-04 17:59:00 For the past few years I?ve participated in an annual 5K run sponsored by a nearby town. Since the course is the same each year, I use the race as an annual evaluation of my level of fitness. I?ve also experimented with listening to music during the race, taking into account issues of etiquette, safety, ... More About: Bump , Cardio
Apples to Apples
2011-06-11 16:52:00 I?ve been critical in the past of personal trainers, wondering exactly what physical benefits a client gets from the relationship, and whether either the physical or psychic benefits are worth the cost. But until today, I?ve never been able to compare side-by-side, minute by minute, my free workout – built only of motivation and common ... More About: Apples
Iron Man
2011-05-28 21:00:00 So I guess it?s time to acknowledge that the wheels have come off the Arnold Schwarzenegger bus. I was all set to write a post about the irresistible attraction of literally the world?s biggest alpha male. But then pictures surfaced, and pundits began discussing the impact of steroids on libido, and Arnold?s raging insecurities, and ... More About: Motivation , Iron Man
Ignorance is Bliss
2011-05-09 22:55:00 I came across this charming article by a guy contemplating the experience of turning 70. He suggests that, having made it this far, you?re starting to play with the house?s money. Since discipline and regimen have served their purpose, why not bring on the ?red meat and dry martinis?? I appreciate the sentiment, but would ... More About: Ignorance
Clean Machine
2010-08-07 16:35:00 Here’s an interesting headline this week from the New York Times: Be Sure Exercise Is All You Get at the Gym. Surprisingly, the article isn’t about loading up on calories at the club snack bar, or getting the phone number of someone who looks good in gymwear but turns out to be a creep. The ... More About: Machine , Clean , Gyms
Fitness Revolution
2009-12-14 02:04:00 Although I?ve clearly taken sides in the ongoing conflict of gym vs. member, the strategies on both sides deserve recognition. Gyms have the home field advantage, of course, forcing members to devise engineering marvels just to get in a decent workout. At one gym, I came across an ingenious solution to the inexcusable lack of ... More About: Fitness , Revolution
Inquiring Minds
2009-11-09 01:43:00 I don?t mind when people approach me with questions between sets. Give people credit for recognizing excellence and caring enough to learn more. Lately, I?ve been drawing a lot of attention with my Manta Ray, and folks wanting to know if it makes squats easier. Yes it does, since the device neutralizes problems caused by ... More About: Minds , Legs
Speaking Truth to Power
2009-05-14 14:00:00 I know that golf is supposed to be the sport most metaphorically applicable to life. But I?d like to mention this bit of insight that came from my coach of youth soccer: A ball rolling slowly towards the goal has a much greater chance of scoring than a fast wild shot that is off the ... More About: Truth , Power , Back , Speaking
Whatever It Takes
2009-04-05 21:28:00 A heavyset gentleman stepped onto the locker room scale. He looked down at the digits, then sighed in disgust and cursed loudly. He raised his head and glowered at the reflection in the mirror. The look in his eyes betrayed his anger at himself, and then expressed a fresh resolve. As he turned ...
Focus Group
2009-03-28 01:13:00 Due to our lack of skill, my golfing buddy and I usually play a scramble. After each stroke, we both take our next swing from the preferred location of the better ball. I remember one hole when my friend blasted his drive almost 300 yards: his ball traveled 150 yards straight and then 150 yards ... More About: Gyms , Focus , Group
The Case for a Health Club Stimulus
2009-01-31 14:30:00 Attached below is my open letter to President Obama addressing the under-explored and underrated fitness crisis. As Congress strives to draft a workable economic stimulus, I?ve decided the time is right to make the case for a health club stimulus. ________________________________________ Dear President Obama: I applaud your rhetoric about getting people back to work for a stronger America. ... More About: Health , Gyms , Club , Case
Ready to Go
2009-01-18 14:32:00 Whenever a holiday approaches, I?m reminded of my old swim coach?s attitude toward days off. When a teammate asked in early summer whether we?d have practice on Independence Day, my coach said: ?The Russians have practice on July 4th, as do the Germans ? you can bet we?ll be practicing too!? Years later, it occurred ... More About: Gyms , Ready
Warm Up
2008-12-26 15:02:00 Though health clubs often spend lavishly to make the gym experience more pleasant, I’d rather see the money put towards making the time more productive. For example, I appreciate the unlimited supply of gym towels, but I?d just as soon have my sweat drip all over a new StairMaster. Likewise, I enjoy watching SportsCenter in ... More About: Gyms
Actually, Yes
2008-06-03 17:29:00 This entry was originally posted on March 14, 2007. Updated at bottom. The Rest Of The Story My nightmare featuring crazed gym ball users keeps getting worse. Remember the guy standing on the exercise ball with his dumbbells? I guess balance really is an issue: So I saw the guy on the swiss ...
Point Of No Return
2007-10-28 12:53:00 I found the following handwritten sign taped to the mirror in a corner of my gym: When you are caught sticking the bar in the wall, you will be asked to leave and not return. MGMT A little explanation here. The t-bar row is one of the best exercises for your back. Unfortunately, too ... More About: Back , Gyms , Return , Point
Good Looking
2007-10-21 13:53:00 In an attempt to make amends for last week?s goof-off of a post, I?ve done some actual thinking about what motivates people to come into the gym. For sure, there?s a certain subset that buys the membership or hires the trainer simply for the status. Beyond the poseurs, however, there are three kinds of people who ... More About: Motivation , Good
Placeholder
2007-10-13 15:00:00 I?ve never talked about my job before on this blog ? frankly I don?t even think I?m even allowed to. Regardless, I feel compelled to share a colleague?s amazing demonstration of how to prepare a presentation when you?re short on time. It was a marvelous display of the flexibility of the English language. Taking a ... More About: Motivation
Equipment Failure
2007-10-07 21:24:00 There?s an old law school joke about the failing student with a bookshelf full of books. Performing terribly, he doesn?t crack the binding on the books he already owns, but instead goes out and buys more books. At the gym yesterday, I noticed this scrawny guy with brilliant white running shoes striding into ... More About: Equipment , Failure , Lure
The Sky Is Falling
2007-09-30 23:54:00 This week the roof caved in at my gym. Seriously: Wet chunks of ceiling tile were splattered across the floor, and puddles splashed my shoes when I walked from one machine to the next. I decided it was time to at least explore alternatives among local gyms. At the first gym, I saved myself ... More About: Back , Gyms
Jitters
2007-09-23 15:03:00 Since no one has risen in defense of the sport of swimming, I?ll guess I’ll just do it myself: Dear Muscleman, Though you claim to have spent years as a competitive swimmer, you seem to have missed the most rewarding aspect of the sport ? the competition against yourself. As you know, the most important benchmarks ... More About: Gyms , Cardio
Taking A Hint
2007-09-08 15:45:00 I get very nervous when I have to host a dinner party. My fear has nothing to do with the food prep or social anxiety, however. I am simply focused on making sure everyone leaves my house promptly when the party is over. I have a few tools available to give people the hint. I’m ... More About: Gyms , Taking
Mind Games
2007-09-02 18:00:00 People underestimate the mental soreness that follows from serious training. Just as the anticipation of pain is as bad as pain itself, the mental preparation required for a big lift ? or an entire leg day for that matter ? is as exhausting as the physical workout. I know what happens to me ... More About: Games , Mind , Mind Games
Washed Away
2007-08-26 15:08:00 Every morning, my gym rubs my nose it. On my way to the locker room, the gym’s layout forces me to walk past the swimming pool - a reminder not only of wasted gym fees, but also of my deeper philosophical objections to the whole activity. Let me be blunt: Stripping down to your banana hammock ... More About: Gyms , Cardio
Tough Read
2007-08-19 12:53:00 I?m always worried by the guys who bring bodybuilding ?how-to? books onto the gym floor. My first reaction is similar to when I spot a car with a Student Driver sign: I slowly back away and give him a wide berth. Recently, I?ve been thinking about that scene from Spies Like Us, when ... More About: Read , Cardio , Tough
A Farewell To Arms
2007-08-12 20:07:00 Though technically not one of the most outstanding things I?ve ever seen in the gym, Arnold Schwarzenegger?s visit to my high school in 1991 definitely ranks up there as one of my top moments in bodybuilding. Arnold?s limo arrived at the football field and drove the long way around the track. Finally, Arnold got out of ... More About: Arms , Farewell , Fare , Well
Burn Out
2007-08-06 03:24:00 Rest is an important part of every athlete’s training routine. I find that after just a few days away from the gym, I return to workouts that possess more energy, more enthusiasm, and that joints and sinews bend pain free. The same principle also holds true for creative intensity. I?ve decided to take ... More About: Burn , Burn out
Heat Of The Moment
2007-07-29 13:30:00 As I watch Seinfeld in syndication, I?m struck by how much of the show?s humor takes place at the gym. There?s George Costanza as the urninator: ?It?s all pipes, what?s the difference?!? You?ve got Elaine Benes feeling up Teri Hatcher in the sauna. And speaking of saunas, how about Kramer?s greatest line, ... More About: Heat , Moment , Cardio
Are Bodybuilders Dumb?
2007-07-22 19:38:00 Let?s take a look around my gym early on a Saturday morning. You have to figure that the folks showing up before 9 a.m. on the weekend take the activity seriously enough. We?ve got one guy wearing dark sunglasses, in this windowless gym prone to power failures. Another guy, dressed in a Barney-the-dinosaur ... More About: Dumb , Back , Gyms , Bodybuilders , Builder
Body Paint
More articles from this author:2007-07-14 14:04:00 Joe Weider?s 1980’s bodybuilding bible, at 528 pages, gets it wrong for only one single paragraph. Weider points out that while bodybuilders literally carry their sport around with them, they should never under any circumstances wear shirts so tight that the shirts seem painted on. I think Weider?s aim was to discourage lifters ... More About: Body , Paint 1, 2, 3 |
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