Nothing will drive me crazier than someone interrupting my workout at the gym by starting a conversation with me or making an unnecessary comment. What's worse is when it's a guy who can't take the hint that I don't want to be disturbed. Sadly, many women can relate to this.
I asked the women in the BuzzFeed Community to share the worst things a guy has said to them at the gym. The responses were overwhelming and quite frankly made me never want to go back to the gym again.
1."I have a chronic medical condition called POTS, and I do a lot of modified versions of workouts where I have to squat, bend over, etc. The last time I was in a gym, I was doing one of these workouts for squats, and this guy kept aggressively pointing to my headphones as though he wanted to talk. Instead of asking, he just kept saying 'you're not doing those right' with an annoyed tone. I just stared at him and said I'm doing them just fine, I was taught this way, and he rolled his eyes and mumbled something about 'people not knowing how to workout.' Word to the wise, leave people alone unless they ask for advice."
2."Not the worst thing, but when they act like you don’t know how to work equipment and 'mansplain' things to me, it deters me from going back."
3."With literally no pre-conversation, or even a welcoming smile, he just marched over and told me, 'I’m waiting for you to finish your workout so I can massage your pecs.’"
4."I was in the hot tub, and four old men were there as well. I'm leaning against the grab bar sitting on the steps. I got asked by some wrinkly, white man (I'm not white) if I was gonna give them a pole dance. Fun times. I haven't seen him since I reported him."
5."I was a petite and slim but fit-looking woman when I had a gym membership. From men, I’d get unwanted 'instructions' on how to use the machines, and leering glances. From women, I’d get 'why are you here, you’re thin.' I work out from home now with YouTube. It costs me nothing, and I don’t have to deal with other people. It’s a win."
6."Just yesterday a man told me I need to wear nice clothes in public so I can show off all the hard work I put in at the gym. Gross."
7."*while squatting* A man comes up to me and says, 'I can see you’re doing leg day, but you really don’t need to; you have a lovely ass and a full breast. The one thing ruining your body is your stomach; if you ate less and went for a run, you’d be perfect.'"
8."A guy once came up to me in the gym to announce he'd seen me on Tinder. Okay, fine, it's a small town. He then continued to say he remembered me vividly because he had screenshot every single photo on my profile, then pulled out his phone and offered to show me all the screenshots. He then got pissed off at me when I wasn't bowled over by this romantic gesture."
9."'Are you married?' 'No.' 'You must be a psycho.' Every other time he saw me — he called me 'certified psycho'?!? Also, just guys trying to 'help' me work out properly, without any invitation."
10."'You must be on your period. You don’t usually have panty lines.'"
11."I got into a conversation with a guy about how I'm choosing my exercises, and I said I do strength training that's recommended for runners. He asked how often I run, and I said three to four times a week. The guy became very condescending and told me I'm not a runner, and if I were serious, I'd run every day and do marathons at the very least. He just kept going and told me I wasted money on my shoes because someone who's only running so lightly doesn't even need to worry about good shoes. I just tried to get out of the conversation as fast as I could, but because I was in my early 20s, I took it too hard and felt discouraged."
12."Not me, but a female friend I have who is bleeping STUNNING is constantly harassed and bothered. I've told her to come find me if they do, but she's too polite. It makes me want to throw weights at them."
13."Another one, some meathead once made me cry when he shouted at me because I had unintentionally taken the machine he was waiting for. I don't normally burst into tears in public, but the aggression of this dude made me feel so threatened. For context, I am 6 ft. tall and have been working out for five-plus years, but he triggered the F out of me."
14."About six years ago, I joined one of those shitty gyms that are impossible to quit with arrogant staff. I got a free 30-minute PT session, and the man just watched me on a treadmill and talked about weight loss when I weighed 110 lbs. and am 5 foot 5."
15."I was doing hip thrusts, and a guy came up to me to ask about shoulder placement on the bench. He sounded genuine and was asking other questions. When he was done, he said, 'Great, I’ll let my girlfriend know what to do to get your ass.' And then walked away. I really hope he never actually talked to his girlfriend and compared her body to anyone."
16."I had a gross old man come up to me — who, mind you, I had never noticed before in my entire life — and say 'I don’t know if I like you in a skirt or shorts better.' So fucking creepy!"
17."'I'm pretty sure there's a weight limit on that machine.' Said to me, on my first day back at the gym, at my heaviest weight of 300 lbs. I had finally worked up the courage to go back and work on myself. Only to start the treadmill at a slow walk and have some asshole make that remark as he walked past me."
18."I dress fairly conservatively a lot because I get cold easily and still have creep things said to me, or guys staring."
