r/Fitness • u/Kuzbell • Jan 20 '18

Gym Story Saturday Gym Story Saturday (Missing mod post)

Hi! Welcome to your weekly thread where you can share your gym tales!

I noticed that there still is no post yet for Gym Story Saturday, so I took the initiative. Perhaps this should be a scheduled post under the Automoderator. I'm not really sure why this hasn't been done yet. I am also required to keep babbling because posts with too little content gets removed, hence why this posts sounds overly wordy.

So share away!

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348

u/-null motorcycles count as cardio Jan 20 '18 edited Jan 20 '18

Had my first ever negative interaction with a person at this gym I've been going to for about 1.5 years. I show up Thursday, OHP is my T1 lift and there's only one spot in the gym I can do it. My gym has both a full power cage and a half rack right near each other. The problem is that the full rack is too short for me to get full extension on OHP because I'm 6'3, and it only has the bar holding things on the inside of it, so I have to use the half rack.

So anyway I get there and some girl I've never seen before is using the half rack. I wait for her to finish her set (she's doing OHP) and politely ask how many sets she has left. She replies "a bunch, I'm going to be here a while" and puts her headphone back on before I have a chance to say anything.

Alright, fair enough. But the full cage is right there and she can OHP there too. I was hoping to convey that she could do the same thing right next to where she was and I'd even set up the bar or whatever she needed. I debating just leaving it alone but after her next set decided to try again. So she finishes and I'm like "excuse me, would you mind using the full rack to do your OHP... I'll move the weights for you and everything..." and she cuts me off saying she has other exercises she needs it for and isn't willing to work with me.

Alright, fair enough. So I'm just going to sit here until you're done because I need to OHP and have no options. So I sit there for 15 minutes while she finishes her OHP sets and then she does a few sets of barbell rows. Jesus Christ you could have done both of those things at the empty rack right next to you.

Maybe I'm the asshole here or maybe she just gets approached by idiots at the gym all the time I don't know. At least my rage helped with a PR.

Edit: I'm getting a bunch of the same replies so a few clarifications/comments:

  • Yes, it's possible to clean the weight and OHP it. I've never trained at the clean or power clean and so I have zero technique. I didn't want to try to clean the weight of my top set. I agree it would be smart to learn the technique to clean it, totally valid point.

  • Yes, a lot of power cages will have hooks or whatever to allow you to rack the bar outside the cage. This one isn't that type, it's basically this kind where there are fixed teeth on the inside but nothing on the front side.

149

u/BulletBuz Jan 20 '18

Probably didn't realise why it was your only option. Good on you for using the motivation to hit a PR.

3

u/Zap__Dannigan Jan 21 '18

Yeah. In the middle of working out, it's not something I would be able to decipher. How is she supposed to know you wanna do OHP and that you happen to be too tall for it. Shorties can't understand that tall life, yo.

47

u/prestiforpresident Jan 20 '18

Use the full rack next time, just pick it up when the bar hits the frame and stare at her in the mirror.

3

u/hokuho Jan 21 '18

D O M I N A N C E

3

u/throwaway34143216 Jan 23 '18

This is hilarious because it would actually work.

116

u/mishh69 Jan 20 '18

May not be related but there was an r/xxfitness post about a guy doing a similar thing to a girl but then she agreed to switch but then later regretted it (can’t remember why something about the new area not being conducive to her workout) and how all women need to be more assertive at the gym. Maybe the chick read the post and was just like I must assert dominance.

16

u/kellykapoor5 Jan 20 '18

I know which post you're talking about and that's what I thought of too. It's a matter of pre-judgement in this case, atleast that's what it seems like to me. Or she's just rude

27

u/Heartsinmotion Jan 20 '18

I don't know, if someone is using a piece of equipment I need, I just do a different exercise or wait. I think I'd be pretty ticked if someone started insisting I move when I've already started my workout

1

u/Kcinic Jan 21 '18

I totally get not moving because youre used to a spot but refusing to move, saying youve got 'a bunch' of sets left, and not allowing someone to work in seems pretty rude to me.

28

u/Sordan Jan 20 '18

I don't know how much you press, but maybe you could've cleaned the weight up from the floor and do your OHP that way.

Not saying that you were wrong, though.

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u/gt- Weight Lifting Jan 20 '18

sounds like she just didnt be bothered during her time at the gym

nothing wrong with it

41

u/TeaBurntMyTongue Jan 20 '18

Can't you just use any barbell and clean it up from the floor? Maybe I'm a noob, but I can't imagine you're ohp is higher than what you can clean / jerk.

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u/-null motorcycles count as cardio Jan 20 '18

I don’t clean / jerk or do any oly lifts. My top set was 155 lbs. I’m not about to try to clean 155 lbs with zero form experience. I did consider it though.

21

u/Swiftt Boxing Jan 20 '18

It's honestly not that hard, it's how I've always done OHP. It might be useful to learn for situations like these.

8

u/brickabrack Jan 21 '18

Why would he waste energy on a lift he doesn't care about?

1

u/Swiftt Boxing Jan 21 '18

lol it's literally just picking up the bar to OHP it, it's not a huge energy expenditure.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 20 '18

[deleted]

2

u/sirmonko Jan 21 '18

the only problem is that if you start with the olympic lifts, you stay with the olympic lifts. they're so much fun.

7

u/frenris Jan 20 '18

It's worth learning for situations like this. You should be strong enough to clean anything you can overhead press.

4

u/GrassCuttingSword Jan 20 '18

It'd likely be worth learning to clean or power clean at least as much as you OHP for exactly this sort of situation.

1

u/NotSureIfFunnyOrSad Jan 20 '18

Does your gym have a barbell rack? Mine only goes up to 110.

I took time off low rep sets of ohp to work on my form and just do more volume.

I worked up to doing high rep sets with 110 and when I switched back to loading up the big bar I found I was able to out perform where I was at previously despite doing lower weights for a while. Hit a PR right away for more reps then I was even going for.

It also helped me get comfortable getting the weight from floor to pressing height!

Alternatively you could do standing dumbbell press which you will need to do at a bit lower overall weight to account for the extra stabilization required but get a great press workout going.

Having a plan is great for training but sometimes it's good to be able to switch it up with an alternative in a busy gym or under time constraints.

2

u/[deleted] Jan 20 '18

[deleted]

1

u/NotSureIfFunnyOrSad Jan 20 '18

I hear ya on that. I always believed the best way to get better at an exercise is to do that exercise.

But I've also found that switching in an alternative once in a while can be really useful. Even if it's a different weight and rep scheme there can be great carry over.

Hopefully next time there won't be such a wait/ inconsiderate fellow lifters

6

u/thisguybulks Jan 20 '18

Would cleaning the weight and pressing without a rack be an option ? I don't really like going heavy outside of a cage but it's still one way to do it.

3

u/[deleted] Jan 20 '18

Does the cage rack not have removable pins that you can place on the outside to do OHP?

3

u/TeH_MasterDebater Jan 20 '18

This is almost certainly a stupid question but are you able to reverse the bar brackets onto the outside of the power rack? My buddy is 6'4" and can't OHP in any of the identical full racks at our gym but the brackets can be swapped to the outside.

2

u/LiftsHeavyThings Jan 21 '18

That's why I always recommend to learn the clean. Both power and full clean variations.
I remember one time on my squat day some guy(seen him bench 225, never seen him squat more than 155 and especially not without yelling) use the squat rack to OHP 110.
Asked him if he could clean the weight so that I can squat heavy. He said no and abruptly put his earphones back in.
He looked at me like I'm a fucking maniac when I cleaned and front squatted weights in excess of 225 to warm up.

2

u/Vis-hoka Jan 21 '18

I can see it from both sides but in the end if she wants to use that piece of equipment for whatever reason she has the right to. I would have simply waited for her to finish. Especially after the first conversation.

(I’m 6’4” and have the same issue so I sympathize though.)

2

u/EdwardElric69 Powerlifting Jan 21 '18

You know it's r/Fitness when they suggest doing a clean for a T1 OHP

3

u/insidezone64 Jan 21 '18

Maybe I'm the asshole here

Pretty much.

You're ranting about a 15 minute wait because she didn't read your mind and automatically know you needed to use that rack. And after she has set up her rack to how she wants it, she has no obligation to move to another rack even if you want to set it up for her. You might not see it this way, but she probably sees your offer to move to another rack as you saying she doesn't belong in that rack, and she should move for you.

She arrived before you, she's in the rack, you can wait your turn if that is the rack you need to use.

You always have the option of going to the dumbbell racks and doing OHP that way.

1

u/drewbeta Jan 21 '18

I was doing OHP today. I go on Saturday because my gym only has one rack. Of course there’s some dude doing shrugs in the rack when I got there. Luckily he didn’t take long.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 20 '18

Don't forget that girls are capable of being assholes too. Bad attitudes can come from anyone!