A Guide To Gym Etiquette: It’s Not All That Dissimilar From The Locker Room!

The fitness industry is booming and with it have emerged facilities designed to meet a wide range of desirable activities, including spinning, indoor running, boot camp, yoga, dance and Olympic lifting. Regardless of your fancy, here’s a list of six bad behaviors to avoid and how these manners are not all that different from the etiquette any reasonable person would use in the locker room.

1. Space Matters

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Guys, we're already well-indoctrinated into the rules of the urinal. And for the other half of the population, the rules are simple: Never crowd a man and his urinal. Always leave a single urinal's space between you and the next person. If it's crowded, simply wait or make use of a vacant stall. The same rule shall be applied to treadmills, stationary bikes and other aerobic machines. Don't take the treadmill next to me when there are 17 other vacant ones. I don't want your sweat permeating the tiny barrier between our machines. Similarly, don't slyly take a glance over at the screen on my machine to check my pace and size me up. You wouldn't sneak a peak at your neighbor on the urinal, would you?

2. Clean up After Yourself

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You wouldn't leave behind a decorative treat in the toilet for the next patron, so why leave behind a nice slick of sweat on the treadmill or oily stain on the bench? We're not dogs and I promise you, there's no need to mark your territory. Similarly, re-rack those weights. Take pride in being able to squat 440lbs, but put those puppies back where they belong. Grandpa George shouldn't have to give himself a hernia re-racking your weights.

3. Share

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The facilities are for everyone. Yoinking the only pair of 30lb dumbbells for your own personal use for the next 30 minutes or using one of the precious few benches to gently rest your oh-so-delicate water bottle on isn't courteous.

4. Fish out of Water

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Alright folks, unless you were one of the lucky ones to be born with that swimming gene, you're naturally going to feel awkward in the swimming pool. As a triathlete, I've seen it all and it's not uncommon to latch onto something (or someone!) for support while swimming. You're scared and uncomfortable. Believe me, I get it. But let's not mistake the lap swimming pool for an outdoor lake in a competitive triathlon. There's no reason to flail, swim on top of someone or grab hold of granny's flotation device during her dance aerobics class. Respect the space around you. And for God's sake, don't get your swim trunks in a bunch when someone in your lane isn't keeping pace. Pass them courteously or just find another lane. This isn't 'nam – there are rules.

5. Don't Hotbox

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Spinning studios are designed to be small and dark to harness the energy, heat and enthusiasm of fellow riders and to keep the music from escaping. Such encasement also means that any leakage of gas (accidental or purposely) has devastating consequences that reverberate in the nose canals of every class patron. Keep those cheeks clenched and on lockdown and be wary of what you consume the night before. Winter may be the perfect season for Brussels sprouts, but be mindful of the consequences the next day.

6. Winter Wonderland

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I know it's the holiday season, but Jingle Bells and White Christmas do not belong in the locker room. There's no reason why old men (or any men, for that matter!) should be parading around the locker room naked, flaunting their old skin and loose balls to any unlucky soul within eyeshot. Jingle Bells or not, sock those dangling things away where they belong. And finally, keep the winter wonderland where it belongs . . . outside. Creating a contaminating shower of white talcum powder while you fluff yourself is just plain gross. I don't want to be covered in that stuff, especially after it ricochets off of your body.

What's the worst gym etiquette you've seen lately?

Ryan Frankel is CEO of VerbalizeIt. He's a world traveler, aspiring endurance athlete and a food and wine enthusiast. He was recently named a Top 35 Under 35 entrepreneur by Inc. Magazine. He lives in New York City with his beautiful wife and pair of running shoes. Write to the author at [e-mail].