Gym rules should have their own constitution. The frustration. The anger. The pain. Whenever I see the following 3 skinny guy mistakes in the gym, I can’t help, but get mad. And I’m not the only one. If you want to irritate as many workoutaholics as possible in your gym, please do the following 3 things. Sometimes just watching people breaking these gym rules make me so angry that I turn green and want to smash things.
Gym Rules: No Curl in the Squat Rack
I kid you not, when I was working out at Gold’s in Destin on vacation, I seriously had to wait to do squats for 15 minutes while guy who didn’t weigh more than 150lbs did 8 sets of straight bar bicep curls in the rack with 20lbs on the bar. WTF! If you’re going to be using the squat rack, you better be squatting, front squatting, partial pressing, or performing rack pulls in it. Do anything else, and don’t be surprised if you get knocked out because you’re not only wasting your time, but you’re also probably wasting the time of another gym member because he can’t get into the squat rack.
I have a simple philosophy when it comes to gym rules as I train my athletes. If you weigh less than 170lbs, don’t even touch a curl bar. Chin ups will be your “bicep” routine.
Gym Rules: A Half Squat is Not a Squat. It’s a Half Squat
Almost weekly, we’ll get high school football players coming into the gym to get a little extra training in – outside of their football program. Whenever we see them make their way to the squat rack, we’ll usually ask them what their squat max is to make sure they load appropriately. 9 out of 10 times their squat max will never be lower than 315lbs. Impressive. That is until you see their depth. 9 out of 10 times their squat will resemble a half to a quarter squat. Arghhh! This should be the least complicated of the gym rules as it’s all about basic form and not cheating.
Your half (or quarter) squat max is not your squat PR. It’s your half (quarter) squat PR. They are two completely different lifts that target different muscles groups to different extents. Also, one is a lot safer than the other. Quarter/Half squats are dangerous, especially for young, testosterone-filled males.Don’t be that fool in the squat rack with 405lbs on the bar, and moving it about an inch or two while screaming and then slamming it back into the rack.
Gym Rules: A Bench Press PR is Not a Group Effort
When it comes to gym rules, this is a big deal when I train my athletes. If someone touches the bar AT ALL when you bench, it’s not your max. It’s you and your partner’s max. It’s like switching from singles to doubles in tennis. As soon as the bar is touched by someone other than yourself, it becomes a team game.
Once again, we’ll get high school football players who will come into the gym almost weekly bragging about their recent bench max. Very seldom is it below 250lbs. And as predicted, very seldom is it done without the help of a spotter. As soon as we test them, it instantly drops 30-40lbs, and the excuses start flying. “The bar feels different.” “I just didn’t feel strong today.” “I’m still sore from my previous workout.” No, you just don’t have your team of spotters helping you.
If you brag about your bench PR, eventually someone will call your bluff, and make you do it. Don’t be the fool that’s decapitated by their own “bench max.”
Now that we’ve gone over our pet peeves for the gym, we understand how mad you may be at yourselves. Have no fear, there is still hope!
