People wasting time.

You probably can't do it, so don't even try.
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GORDON
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People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

This thread is probably worthless without videos, but I watched an OLD man today on the lat pulldown machine, and he had over 100 pounds on the pin, and.... how to describe this... he was mostly just leaning back each rep, and he'd bend his arms to get about 2 inches of movement for the actual lat workout.

Saw a dude the other day on the pullup/dips assist machine.... basically a machine you kneel on, setting the amount of weight you want it to left for you as you do chinups. Saw a dude bending over it pushing the kneeling pad down, like he was doing weird pushups.

There's an old dude, maybe 70, all I ever see him do is stuff out in the lobby with bungie cords for an hour. Don't know why he doesn't just buy his own cord and tie it around a doorknob at home.

Then there's the super-old man in the pool every day, he walks in big, slow circles in the shallow end while lap swimmers dodge him. He always has a blank look on his face and I wonder where he thinks he is.

Then there are the grossly overweight people who think lifting is the way to start getting healthy, and you see them one time, and they never come back.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
GORDON
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Re: People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

I am mostly on free weights now except for a couple machines, namely hip abductor/adductor. Every now and then an oldster will be in front of me and I will have to wait... And I noticed that when they are done with their one set they ALWAYS take the pin from whatever weight they were doing, and slide it back into the "zero weight" slot. I always wondered about that.

Then today I was there and noticed the "unrack your weights when you are done" sign, which is referring to the freeweight bars... And I realize that these walking dead think they are racking the weights by moving the pin back to zero.

Damn.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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Re: People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

There's this one guy at my gym...I mean there's more than one but this one is pretty stupid. EVERY exercise he does, he YANKS the weights with his whole body. Example:

Lat pulldown - YANKS his whole upper body back (like in your first post), then as the weight is flying up, he contracts his arms.
Tricep extension - YANKS his whole arm down from the shoulder, then as the weight is flying up, straightens his elbow.

I'm sure somebody told him you should "explode" when you lift weights.
GORDON
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Re: People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

Been seeing an old man recently curling with some 30 pound dumbbells... and he swings his arms deep. Each arm goes way back behind the plane of his body, and he swings his arm forward and uses the motion to curl up the weight. I bet he's using his shoulders more than his biceps, and walking away thinking, "Easy."

Also, is there a word for a group of lifters? If now I'd like to submit "a grunt." Lately there has been a grunt of 5 or 6 guys, a couple experienced guys showing around a few noobs, and they stand in a cluster taking up too much space and are mostly just shooting the shit and they put their water bottles (!) on equipment they aren't even using. I had to clear their shit off a bench the other day.

Alternatively, I'd accept "A faggot of lifters" instead of 'grunt.'
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

There's a bicep curl machine at my gym that has a weird mechanism: if you do "opposite" curls like a lot of faggots do with dumbbells (you know, you curl one up while the other goes down), on this machine the weight stack DOES NOT MOVE.

And there's a guy I see use it ALL THE FUCKIN' TIME where he does it like that. And I've told him twice! "Hey, I don't know if you noticed, but when do you do it like that, the weights don't move and therefore YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY WORKING OUT."

"But it's hard to do!"

SMH.
GORDON
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People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

Had a guy the other day really irritate me.

I walk into the free weight area, there's a few guys. There's a few small plates on the bench press bar, I remove an earbud and project, "Anyone using the bench?" Usually some asshole just left the weight on the bar and walked away, but I like to be polite. The new guy loading weight on the curling bar says, "Yeah I'm there.". I look pointedly at the curling bar he's loading and ask him to reiterate that he's benching... And he confirms.

Fine, I think to myself, I go to the incline bench. Whatever.

I do a set of inclined, the dude finishes a set of curls and walks to the ab machine. Another dude walks in and asks me if I'm using the bench because there are weights in it. I point to the guy on the ab machine, "No, that guy is, but I'm not sure when." The other dudes in the gym chuckle, the guy who asked me shrugs, and takes off the 25s and puts some real weight on it.

The dude who had weight on bars all over the place leaves, haven't seen him since.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

I started taking my boy to the gym, so he can get swole. Today we went to do chest/arms, which means bench press. We roll into the gym and it's pretty busy. There are only two flat press benches (i.e., they have a bar and a rack built into them). Both were in use, by guys actually doing bench press with a couple 45s on the bar. It's cool, bc my son is still new and we can warm up on a dumbell bench.

We do a few light sets on the dumbell bench and I see one of the "real" benches is free....except there's an old guy sitting on the edge of the bench doing wrist curls or some gay shit. So I go up to him. "Excuse me..."

Of course he's got giant-ass headphones on, so he has to take those off. "Can we use this bench please?"

"But I'm using it."

"Yes, but we want to do bench press. There are a lot of free benches over there to do...whatever you're doing," I say, pointing at the dumbell benches.

"Well, I guess that's more important," he says, and then no lie get his jacket and leaves the gym.

I was just kind of baffled. And some of my gym bros were watching and one says, "how DARE you want to use the bench for its actual purpose!"

I really don't know what's with old guys. I don't know if it's a generational thing and they don't gym etiquette, or if they're just cranky, or what.
TheCatt
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People wasting time.

Post by TheCatt »

Remember how nice and friendly Thib was before he got all jacked on hormones and started yelling at old people?
It's not me, it's someone else.
GORDON
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Post by GORDON »

I see old guys.doing that exact thing on the exact bench from time to time, but I just command them that I need the bench, but pretend to smile while I do it. I haven't gotten any lip, yet.

Also my gym sez no kids under 15. Lame. I'd love.to.get my kid started.
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GORDON
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Post by GORDON »

And btw, I would have said, "Yeah, it is more important, because you'll be dead in five minutes anyway, and you're just wasting time."
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

TheCatt wrote: Remember how nice and friendly Thib was before he got all jacked on hormones and started yelling at old people?
I only yelled cuz he had his stupid headphones on.

BTW our gym minimum age is 12. Then apparently need a MAXIMUM age tho, amirite?
GORDON
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People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

Unless approved by a jury of your peers.

I'm one of the few gray-hairs in there whose arms get all jacked and shit by mid workout. I know I belong.

But if the incarnation of death himself is standing there watching you work out because you're just so ridiculous, then go to... I don't know... A hospital excersize room? And do it closer to the morgue.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

My son is about a month shy of 15. He's 6'2", but pretty skinny (<150 I think). Anyway, trying to get him jacked now. So I've been taking him to the gym.

Yesterday was bench day. Our gym has two bench-press benches, and a bunch of those adjustable, do-whatever benches. One bench-press bench is being used by a guy to do bench press. The other...some Asian dude with airpods is doing leg-raise ab exercises. So he finishes a set, and I say, "Excuse me, can we use that bench for bench-press."

He say, "I'm using it." I said, "Yes, but we want to do bench press. You can do leg-raises somewhere else." He kept arguing, something like, he can't use the floor bc he's going below horizontal with his legs, he was here first, and he can use the equipment for whatever he wants. "This is a gym for everybody, not just bodybuilders."

Ok fine. I took my son over to the adjustable benches and did dumbell press. But this guy...I think he was autistic because he went and got the gym attendant and started haranguing him. I couldn't quite overhear but he sounded upset that somebody would challenge his right to use the bench for leg-raises.

You know, I expect to have to toss people out of the squat rack for curls or some stupid activity, but the misuse of the bench seems to be much more common.
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

While I'm here. Our gym also has an rowing machine; you know, sliding seat, big-ass fan at the front. To pretend you're at an Ivy League school rowing against Yale.

Anyway, EVERY SINGLE MORON that gets on that thing, they pull back more-or-less correctly: legs, back, arms. But going forward, they bend their knees prematurely and have to lift the handle over their knees. So the handle goes back straight, but forward it's going over a hump. I know this is wrong b/c I knew several people who actually did row in college (Kudzu League, but they still know what they're doing).

Until one day: a woman came in and was banging out rows on that thing with perfect form. When she finished, I just say something: "You know, you're the first person I've seen in here that knows the right way to do that." She says, "Haha, yeah I know!" with a big smile.

Later she did squats and not only was her form perfect, her ass was magnificent. If only we had legal polygamy.
GORDON
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People wasting time.

Post by GORDON »

thibodeaux wrote: You know, I expect to have to toss people out of the squat rack for curls or some stupid activity, but the misuse of the bench seems to be much more common.
Pretty much the only spot I see it, too. And the thing is, my gym has 3 regular, loose benches, can be moved around, that can be adjust up to like 70 degrees instead of just flat, on which to do things like leg raises. There's literally zero reason to hog the bench that's the actual bench press... and yet it happens.

Old man got the same kind of attitude one day when I asked to use the bench upon which he was... I don't know. Just shitting in his diaper, or something.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

Things that bug me:
Headphones/earbuds. Especially if you’re just occupying a equipment I want. “Hey can I work in?” Fumbles for earbuds. “What?” “I said can I work in?” Dumbass.

Tattoos. Why does everybody look like a circus freak these days?

Sleeveless shirts. Not “wife beaters.” Just a t shirt w no sleeves. Especially on pot bellied dudes it looks stupid.

Stretching or really anything not involving weights. Do that shit home. You’re just taking up space.
TheCatt
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People wasting time.

Post by TheCatt »

People trying to walk and text at the same time.
It's not me, it's someone else.
GORDON
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Post by GORDON »

I think the tats are a mating strategy, akin to colorful plumage.

I haven't needed them, fyi.
"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid."
thibodeaux
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People wasting time.

Post by thibodeaux »

a month or so ago a friend offered to sell me his SPARE squat rack and Olympic weights. I was like, nah my garage is kind of full. Well, thanks to corona virus, I decided to take him up on it. I dunno if I’ll ever go back to the gym :/ will miss all the jackasses
TheCatt
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Post by TheCatt »

Nice. We setup our spare room as a workout room and it's kinda awesome
It's not me, it's someone else.
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