The ‘Bodybuilder’ Mentality

Do you even wipe after you lift?

I work out fairly regularly, at least thrice a week, but I know I’m no bodybuilder. You’ll be surprised by the number of gym-goers who think they’re bodybuilders. Most of them have an actual belief that the gym is their home, this is their job, their career, if you will.

“That 9-5 office job that I do? No, that’s just an obstacle standing in the way of being a CrossFit Champ!”

These gym rats, they get offended very, very easily, wheneer you doubt their strength or progression. You cannot tell them that they look smaller, they can get really, really upset. Which surprises me because I would think people who spend hours every week staring into their own reflection in the mirror to have a lot more self esteem.

The people who run these gyms try to make it a more hygienic place by implementing the towel rule. But if you really think about it, the towel is actually spreading more germs around the whole gym. You use it to wipe the sweat off your forehead, your neck, your arms, your armpits. And then you use the towel to wipe the sweat off the bench. You’re really just carrying a rag of germs with you around the gym.

One thing I can never understand is the sharing of gym equipment. “Hey, can we share this bench?”

“Oh, sure, why not? Let’s sit on each others’ sweat consecutively, stranger.”