I'm easy to spot at the gym. I'm the guy with old, out-of-fashion gym clothes and a farmer's tan, sweating a lot on the treadmill or the exercise bike. Once in a while I'll even lift some weights, and because I'm down with "hydration," I'm always surrounded by water bottles. When my workout is over, I'm one of the 2-3 patrons who still likes so soak in the hot tub afterward. I suppose I get my money's worth. As with anything that costs money, "the gym" has its advantages and disadvantages.
THE GYM: DISADVANTAGES
1. Evenings and late afternoons: just like the doctor shortage in America, there must be a gym shortage. Every gym I have ever been to is so packed between 5 and 8 PM as to almost make it not worth going. You don't get much exercise when you're just standing around waiting to exercise.
2. The music: why must music at the gym always suck? Solution: bring your own.
3. The people at the front desk asking, "did you bring your workout towel today?" before they let you in. I have a feeling that's an absurdity unique to 24 Hour Fitness.
4. Parking. But you can get around this by biking to the gym, which I did. Once.
5. The cheap, weak gel-like soap substance in the showers that smells like chlorine.
6. Dudes who shave in the bathroom at the gym. I'm not sure why, but they annoy me. Maybe they live in trash cans behind the gym or something, like Oscar on Sesame Street. If so, I can understand shaving at the gym.
THE GYM: ADVANTAGES
1. It's hard NOT to get some pretty good exercise at the gym, even during peak hours.
2. Mainstream gyms are pretty diverse these days. Probably because all sorts of people have doctors telling them to go to the gym, all sorts of people go to the gym. Even if you look terrible in spandex and you sweat like a pig, trust me: there will be many people at the gym who look more horrifying than you do. No one cares.
3. Exercise equipment has gotten much, much better. And it ain't cheap. The treadmills at the gym have fans to keep you cool, instructions to get you going, and when you're done they tell you exactly how many calories you burned. Unless you have a ton of cash, it's difficult to get machines that good to use at home.
4. A full workout and cool-down: where else but the gym offers you the ability to work your muscles with some weights, whip your heart into shape with a cardio machine, then get the muscles relaxing with a hot tub or sauna?
5. Off hours: try going to the gym early in the morning, late at night, or mid-day. You'll have access to whatever you want, without the crowds.
6. Classes: I'm not big on classes at the gym, but recently I started doing a spin class every now and then. I can hardly walk the next day, but in a good way. It was a brutal workout but the teacher kept the pace fast and it went by quickly...and it was fun. Most gyms have a ton of classes.
7. Fashion exploration: you can wear anything at the gym. And people do. It is strangely liberating to wear fluorescent, breathable plastic gymwear and hideous shoes sometimes. Try throwing in a headband to let people know what decade you were born in. Just don't try to run on the treadmill in Crocs.
8. Mental improvement. Don't discount the emotional benefits of a workout. If you work out hard, you will leave the gym feeling content, or maybe even happy. Perhaps even "euphoric." Even if it wasn't so good for your body, a gym experience can be fantastic for your mind. Try it. Don't worry if you don't own a "workout towel."
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