Wednesday, 08 July 2009
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Do You Really Think You Belong To Your Gym?
Last week, I got a free guest pass to Equinox Gym from a friend of mine who's been a member there for few years. Since I've seen so many “It's Not Fitness. It's Life” ads here and there and also heard that it's “THE GYM” in NYC, I wanted to see what's so different about it.
So last Saturday morning, I finally visited Equinox with my friend. What was my first impression of the gym? WOW! It was so fancy! It was clean, spacious, and had tons of different weight machines and group fitness classes. (The weight machines looked brand new as if they've just arrived yesterday). They even had their own spa services!
I literally had to calm myself down before I could start exercising. Even though it was pretty early in the morning, there were already a lot of people on treadmills, ellipticals, and in the weight room. But the weird thing I noticed was that I couldn't find a single person who was even a bit chubby or overweight. Everyone was SO fit as if they had just come out of a fitness magazine. (I'm not saying there are ALWAYS obese people in gyms, but I've never seen a place where everyone was in such a great shape!) Well, they definitely gave me motivation to exercise harder, but I did kind of feel out of place.
Have you been to Equinox or any gym where you felt you don't belong? Would you be willing to join such a gym?
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About the Author
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- From: kimjh125
- Name: Joo
- About Me: I'm a runner and a health fanatic. I currently live in NYC.
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Comments (20)
wow, everyone there must love the gym so much. no wonder they're in such great shape! I go to my university gym during fall/spring semesters and over the summer I go to a gym near home. they're both GREAT and help me get the job done! :) plus I bump into friends at both places, so I'm not complaining.
I want to say I could and would, but I doubt I could actually do it. :/
I'd be willing to join a gym like that. I'm not fit, but I'm thin so I don't think I'd feel out of place at a gym like that, fortunately.
I'm too cheap to actually join a gym. The civic center in my town has a little upstairs track and work out machines, and it's free, so it's good enough for me =)
I'd want a gym in which I felt comfortable, otherwise I'd just feel very awkward. Though at the same time it might push me to run a little longer or something so that I didn't feel like a total loser.
it'd surely motivate me, and if i had a friend like myself id feel heaps better about it. Either that or a loud iPod. But yeh surely motivation, it really depends though...i would try it, and see how i go. *shrug* Id prefer to be comfortable, but motivation would be super
Well I'm sure when the gym looks as nice and as clean as that people are more interested and motivated to go regularly and actually work out. lol
I go to my gym but only when I have classes. I'm registered at my university gym (which is free to all students) but they only allow you in as long as you're taking classes. So right now (summer B) I'm not taking any classes and therefore would be denied entrance. I enjoy working out there because it's familiar (I know immediately to go to the cardio room because it's quiet and allows me to read) and I have my friends to go with me :)
i work out at the ymca and am usually one of the most in shape people there. i definitely don't mind, it makes me happy to see overweight people trying to be healthy =) the kids taking up treadmills is what is annoying! but i dont think id mind equinox...i like hot people haha
yes and no hard to tell....sometimes is too crowded...sometimes total empty.. it is all upon the availability i guess.
The gym I go to has this "teenagers get in for free during the summer" thing, and I live in a pretty small town, so I see EVERYONE from school there. And a bunch of my friends' parents. So... yeah, I guess I belong. It's just awkward.
Excessive. I don't see the point in gyms with expensive contract memberships, thousands of treadmills with huge flat screen TVs, weight lifting machines (but only 1 or 2 squat racks), and fancy locker rooms with saunas.
All I want is a cheap gym with squat racks, benches, dumbbells that go over 100, a variety of different barbells, enough plates to go around, and maybe even an Olympic platform and bumper plates. Gyms should be no more than 50% full at all times, I hate standing around waiting to use equipment.
Your gym sounds nice.
I go to my university gym.
It has small cardio room like 6 treadmills, 6 bikes, 4 cross trainers but their weight training room is like... SO BIG.. WOW MAN!!
I feel like I belong there because Im a student and I get to see some of my friends and there are heaps of guys to look at. HAHAHHAA
But I also feel out of place because guys would just stare at me coz I sweat and I'm a chick. LOLLLLLLLLLL j/kkk.
But yea, I try to ignore stuff like that.
As long as I get to work out, lose weight since Im obese, then i'm happy wherever I go.
But I hate gyms with too much restrictions this and that this and this..... blah! Just basic restrictions is enough. :D
My interest in a gym is all about the atmosphere. One gym right down the street is dark with low ceilings and older equipment. I joined it thinking that I'd like everything low-key and low-tech, but I only went a couple times and found myself really, really bored with it. Plus, it was common for one person to swipe their card and 7 of their family members to walk in, so it was very distracting for me.
Two days ago though, I went to my roommate's gym with her for the first time and I REALLY like it. The ceilings are higher, there is newer (and better maintained) equipment, and the lighting was well thought out. The owners and/or managers were there assisting people and it genuinely felt like a place where people were there to improve themselves...it was nice.
I have mixed feelings about working out a gym where everyone is already more fit than me. I'd like to say it would be motivating, but at the same time I think it would be a little embarrassing. I'll stick to my roommate's gym where the environment is nice and everyone doesn't look like a fitness model or bodybuilder. Of course, I DO want to look like that one day myself.
I personally would take it as a good sign to see that many fit people in a gym. I think that it shows that belonging to that gym is a good thing. People who work out consistently look fit, so if everyone looks fit, doesn't that mean they work out a lot, and most likely are regular at the gym? Which I would take as a sign that its a welcoming place, and a great place to reach fitness goals. Just my personal opinion!
Just go along and enjoy it - try to forget about about the Mr and Mrs Universies - otherwise go somewhere else. I go to a gym and some people there really think they are it. They seem to spend more time looking in the mirror, stand on the weighing scales or chat to other banal people about how many reps they have done (whatever - who cares?!?!?!). Just go for the laugh, get in shape a bit and have a swim and sauna or whatever you like...then go for a beer afterwards - excellent!
That would be pretty cool, but it might be a little awkward for anyone who is overweight.
The gym I'm a member of is pretty great [in my opinion]. I like the people who work there [I went to high school with one of them] and there aren't just skinny folks in there. I actually see a lot of overweight people there, so I feel right about mid stream there. I love the fact that I can work out there and not feel overwhelmed or embarrassed. The people are pretty friendly too.
LA Fitness has such a mix and there are so many locations nation-wide.
There is an EQUINOX gym that's only minutes away from my house and it's located on the second floor of a building and one can see everything that's going on inside the gym. Needless to say, I too have marveled at the gym-it's perfect. I also noticed that the people there were all fit and trim (then again, they look that way preciselly because they go there) haha.
But yes, I have felt out of place. I had membership for 24-hour Fitness and I felt somewhat out of place, but that's because I was always the youngest one there (I'm 17), but I saw people of all shapes and sizes, so that was comforting.
Good luck working out!
I would feel a little out of place but hope that if I go to the gym as often as those people that I'd look good at some point.
I'm very comfortable at the gym I go to now. People from all walks of life go there. The hardcore muscle heads, obese people, elderly people who are just trying to stay active, skinny people, etc.
Thank you for all your comments!
I also thought it was very interesting to see how all those "fit" people were the ones working out hardcore! I was walking on a treadmill for 5 minutes just to warm up, but then I saw all these people running and sweating next to me, which definitely motivated me to run like them. haha :)