Keep your two cents.
Why is there always a guy at the gym with big muscles (and a little brain) who gives you his crappy, unsolicited advice? Why is there always someone who assumes you have no clue about your environment and proceeds to talk to you like a 5 year old?
I may be 208 lbs and obviously I don’t look like a bodybuilder…yet. But when I go into the gym, I go with a plan. I know what I’m doing, how many, and for how long. I don’t need a personal trainer in my face in order to push myself when I feel like giving up. That person walking around with the "deer caught in the headlights" look is not me. There’s a sense of purpose written on my face, and when I walk into all the grunts and sweat, it’s MY game time.
What happpened:
JoeShmoe Bodybuilder: (working on his last set on the pec deck machine with 90 lbs. Gets up, and moves to the machine directly next to it).
Me: (Check the weight, it’s exactly what I want, so I let it be and begin to adjust the grips).
JSBB: (smirking) Um…honey? You left the weight at 90 lbs. You may want to lower that.
Me: (Feign surprise, and then plaster my fake smile on my face) Oh! You’re right! The weight is wrong….(go and change the weight from 90 lbs to 100 lbs. Do 5 sets of 5 perfectly).
JSBB: (Looks surprised and then tries to save face) You really shouldn’t lift that heavy.
Me: Um honey? You’re struggling there, do you need to me spot you? (big ol’ smile on my face again).
JSBB: (Scrambles off and goes to the far side of the gym)
Keep your condescending, preconceived notions to yourself! I’m not here to lift 3 lb dumbbells, or here to sweat to the oldies. I’m here to get my game on. Don’t presume to know me, or my limitations. I will ALWAYS prove you wrong!
April 19, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Awesome. Don’t hurt nobody! Esp. poor clueless Mr Joe Shmoe.
April 20, 2009 at 10:15 am
wowzer… you did not ask for help so he needed to STFU
April 20, 2009 at 11:32 am
I agree with you. There is always some douche that thinks he’s "helping". Love your comment back to him!
April 21, 2009 at 1:37 pm
That’s awesome!!! I hope I have that confidence when I start back in the gym!! Good job!
April 30, 2009 at 8:08 am
I’ve learned to never judge anyone based on what weight you see them lifting because you never know if they are injured or what their goals are.
I had someone question me on flat BB press because I was only benching 95 lbs. I weigh 240 lbs so it did look kind of awkward. However, he didn’t realize I was doing 4 sets of 15 with only 15 seconds of rest in between sets.