5 things you should never do in the gym

Personal Trainer Shaun Stafford reveals his guide to the best gym etiquette to set you off on the right track for 2017
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Shaun Stafford5 January 2017

The start of the New Year always brings an increase in gym usage from both newbies and veterans alike, with everyone trying to work off their festive indulgences.

Make sure that you are attracting attention for all the right reasons by avoiding some of these common gym faux pas:

1. Don't wear smelly kit

Now this doesn’t necessarily mean having all the trendiest trainers and funky new gym clothes that Santa can bring - it's more about making sure you and your kit don’t smell. Nothing clears a gym floor quicker than a dodgy smelling t-shirt, so ingratiate yourself to your fellow gym goers by making sure you regularly wash yourself and your training gear.

2. Don’t be an equipment hog

Gyms are always busier in January than at any other time of the year. When resting in between sets, allow others to use the equipment to combat this: let them know how long your rest periods are and allow them to jump in and use the equipment with you. If everybody shares kit and allows others to “work in” then the amount of time spent queuing for equipment will drop drastically and the efficiency of your workouts will sky rocket.

3. Don't go on social media

It sounds obvious, but when you are in the gym make sure you are training hard, rather than surfing social media on your phone. Not only will you stay focussed, work harder and get better results, but you will also save time by keeping your sessions short and sharp. Keep the Tweeting and Instagramming until after the gym when you are grabbing your post-workout shake or cooling down on the bus ride home.

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4. Don't make inappropriate advances

Even though the gym is a great place to meet like-minded people, it's also a place where everyone has to feel comfortable to get the most out of it. Gyms and fitness clubs can be intimidating places, especially for women or people new to the training environment. So don’t be “that leery guy” in the corner who is constantly trying to make eye contact during a workout. Focus on yourself and your session and save the inappropriate advances for the dance floor rather than the weights room.

5. Don't lift with your ego

This is a classic workout mistake witnessed in every gym I’ve ever been to: rows of people rushing through each rep, with a weight that’s too heavy to really control the range of motion or technique. I’m talking bench presses that are bounced off your chest, squats that are cut high, or standing bar humps (i.e. barbell curls where the movement is solely started by you thrusting your hips into the bar).

Try dropping the weight on your exercises, and making an effort to slow every rep down, squeezing the muscle at the peak of the move, and controlling back down through a full range of motion. As simple as it sounds, this is the best way to really stimulate the muscle you’re trying to work, and reduces any chance of muscle or joint injuries.

Shaun Stafford is a head of personal training at City Athletic. Follow him here.

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