Totally with you on the exercising for health, NOT weight loss, though for completely different reasons. I joined a gym last year for the first time in my life on doctor’s orders, the doctor being my psychiatrist treating me for severe postpartum depression. I love her forever for saying “the exercise will help you more than the medications.” While I do still have all my baby weight, it’s way down on my list of concerns and the last thing I need is to get discouraged from exercising because I’m not meeting some “goal”. That being said, I’ve given up on explaining it to the trainers at the gym. I just let them measure me every month and write it down in their little chart and then proceed to ignore it.

I pick and choose my classes carefully, haven’t stepped foot in the spinning room yet but I do like water fitness, yoga and zumba. Generally in water fitness they are gentler on you because that’s where a lot of the people with back problems and injuries go – although one of the worst teachers I’ve ever had was a sub for the water fitness class. (Yep, left a comment card about her… tee hee.) The teacher can always make or break a class. Yoga is all about listening to your body and doing the practice at your pace, and zumba is the “fun” class (it helps that we have an instructor who’s in her 50s and not a stick figure.)

On days when I can’t handle human interaction I swim laps. I find breast stroke is the best because my head is under water most of the time so the noise is drowned out, literally. It can get boring so I’ve started switching it up with butterfly style.

By the way I go to Shapes, it’s a women only gym but it actually has a pool and classes unlike Curves so it doesn’t bore the crap out of me. To each her own though, my MIL swears by Curves.

Just do what you enjoy – you got the right idea, keep it up and don’t let the occasional butthead ruin your day. :)

You don’t tell a person what they’re doing wrong – you show or tell them how to do it correctly and commend them when they do.

You don’t tell a person how out of shape they are, you talk about how much closer to their goals they’re getting.

Anybody who is in the gym, regardless of their physique or fitness level, deserves respect simply for the fact that they are there making the effort to improve themselves in some way. If you don’t get this at a gym or training studio you should show them what you think of it by voting with your wallet and taking your business elsewhere – if they don’t change their tune, they won’t be around long.

Then (again, if you’re comfortable with it) apply as needed at the gym. No one else there is more deserving of a particular piece of equipment than you – especially if you’re already on it! As long as you’re not overrunning some clearly stated and posted gym regulation about “amount of time on a piece of equipment, proper gym etiquette is for the person (GUYS) to say to you, “[Could you] Please let me know when you’re done there? Thanks!” I fear what you ran into is “guy entitlement” – you know, the one that entitles guys to whatever you have, are doing, are working on, or the last of, because the fact that you already have or are using or are doing doesn’t count, because you’re a girl. (This is also exemplified by the guy who comes into a room, picks up the remote next to you, and changes the channel without asking – because the fact that you’re already watching a program doesn’t count.)

I had someone try that on me at 6:00 in the morning at my gym, for my bike; there were other empty bikes there, but she wanted MINE. I told her I’d be happy to let her have it when I was done, and she bitched about my being on it too long – I pointed out that that was during PEAK HOURS, and not at 6:00 AM, and there were other bikes. I had never seen her before, and I haven’t seen her since.

Don’t change your bench, if you don’t want to. You’re a member too.

I think as it is a community facility it has to be more accepting as there is a variety of users. But I was so worried beforehand due to the body fascism experienced at previous establishments that I didn’t join it for several years after moving to the area. I was missing out on fun exercise because I was scared. It’s sad really.