Originally Posted by
Skyler
Well, i didn't want to go into every little detail, but i guess i do have to explain.
I do watch people workout when i am between sets. Its a small gym, and there are mirrors on every wall, so even if i am not looking directly at them, something usually catches my attention.
I also agree that it doesn't matter how much a person can lift, because thats not the "end of story". What bother me is that I go in there, and from the moment i walk in, I keep to myself. I do not wear clothes to show off my body, I do not lift weights with the hopes that other people will think I am strong, i do not make an immense amount of noise to draw attention to myself, and I do not say anything to anybody. Even when i see people doing things I flat out disagree with, I just keep to myself, no smirks, no laughing, no comments.
BUT
These guys come in and i question why THEY are there. They come in wearing the most exposing clothing possible, to show off a physique that honestly is not worth showing off. Then they decide to start lifting. They usually load up pretty light weight, but will be acting like they are the biggest and strongest guys around. They practice flat out god awful form, while also screaming as much as possible, probably because they think if you are hardcore, you have to scream. Then they alternate from a chest movement, to a bicep movement, to a leg movement, to a shoulder movement, etc. The whole time loading up weights, and then never putting them away (which is why I have to clean up after them). They also decide to talk the whole time they are working out. The last conversation I heard was about how bad a** they were. They were literally saying in plain english that they could beat any 5 guys in a fight (5 on 1), that they are probably setting some sort of record with the weights they lift, how they just can't seem to keep the girls off them, etc.
SO, maybe I am wrong, but when a bunch of skinny teens in stringed clothing come into the gym and start loudly discussing how they are freaks of nature and gods gift to women, then trying to use every piece of equipment in the gym at least once, then never putting their weight back, I get irritated. Especially since half these guys look at me like I am doing something wrong, even though I am keeping to myself, staying quiet, and actually working out, oh, and not to mention cleaning up after them.
The reference to bench press is kind of open. I am 21, weigh 190, and bench 365. I do not train like a powerlifter, I do not stick to 1-3 reps or try to max out every time I workout, etc. And honestly, I don't feel like I am hot sh*t or special, which is why i stay quiet in the gym and keep to myself, and keep my body covered.
So when little man with BIG attitude is filling the gym with noise and preaches that he is unstoppable, all because he benches less than his bodyweight, it strikes a nerve.
This goes for the bigger guys in the gym too. I am not a powerlifter, but i will have some 300 lbs guy walk in, being an especially big a** hole, giving me dirty looks, etc. Because his huge gut is what he refers to as a "power gut", yet in the end STILL lifts less than I do.
Maybe it is a personal problem I have, and others would not feel the same way in this situation. I guess for me though, I feel like i work hard, and i am dedicated, and I really want this. This is my life. This is what i want to do. If i look at myself and I am still not happy, and I feel small, and am embarressed to show my body off, etc. Then what makes these guys so special? Why do they get to be half my size, a third my strength, and have none of the desire or motivation that I have, and get to be as abnoxious and arrogent as they want?
Not trying to offend anyone. This is just they way i feel about the matter.
i am open to different points of view.
