You’d think that every person who goes to the gym is focused on wellness, and conducts themselves with regard to other member’s wellbeing, but according to a new survey you might be better off losing weight at home than risking it at the local gym.
The survey has revealed the most revolting conduct that occurs in the gym, and unfortunately it’s far worse than someone forgetting to wipe their sweat off the equipment. Investigators polled people about the most shocking sights that they have witnessed, some of which you may find amusing, others of which are downright gross.
One 49-year-old man reported that a body builder farted as he was inhaling in preparation for a bench press, whilst a respondent who was 76 claimed that ‘A woman soiled herself while weight lifting.’ According to communications manager at Chemical Heritage Foundation in Philadelphia, Neil Gussman, ‘At family gyms like the YMCA, guys keep the body noises under control, until they get to the locker room.’ He says it’s a common occurrence that a ‘300-plus pound guy comes in the locker room from his brief stint on the elliptical, grins, and farts.’
However, it wasn’t just people’s bodily functions that rubbed other gym members up the wrong way. One person lamented that they had seen a person ‘licking the drinking fountain’, whilst others complained more about the attitude of other gym members. Weight lifters in particular were reported for the egotistic actions, as a 34-year-old man wrote that ‘A meathead chomping on his gum, wearing sunglasses, staring at himself in the mirror,’ was the most annoying thing he’s seen at the gym.
Also, it wasn’t just gym members that caused so much distress, but many of the survey respondents went so far as to blame gym cleaning staff for the state of some gyms. In particular, failing to take care of the most egregious messes was a major gripe. One 24-year-old female wrote of a horrific accident where a man doing bench presses lost his grip, causing a bloody mess when the heavy bar fell on him. She said: ‘No one went to clean it up … about an hour after the ambulance came for the first gentleman … the blood was still present.’ Another woman in her forties also pointed out that she had seen ‘Janitors using same towels people use to wipe their bodies to clean the bathroom floor/toilet.’
According to Dr Aaron Glatt, an infectious disease physician at Mercy Medical Centre in New York, this is common behaviour and makes the gym a potentially hazardous experience, but you can prevent this damage by wiping down machines (whether they look dirty or not), steering clear of blood or bloody secretions, never sharing razors and always making sure you have ‘good hygiene’.
Comments are closed.