The prevalence of “That Person” has been well documented in a variety of different locations: At work, while dating, within your group of friends, and so on and so forth. It's therefore unsurprising that “That Person” also exists in fitness settings — so in an effort to help you identify if and when you may be suffering for an instance of “That Person”-itis, I've unearthed an infographic for you detailing the six most annoying personalities you run into at the gym. Created by Muscle Food, it serves as a handy guide to spotting “That Person” in a couple of different fitness-related forms. You're welcome.
I'm lucky enough to live (and to be able to live) in an apartment complex that has its own fitness center. It's not huge — it's limited to a few treadmills, an elliptical, a recumbent stationary bike, and some weight-lifting machines — but it gets the job done. At the moment, I also live in suburban New Jersey, rather than in a big city. All of these factors combined mean that I pretty much see the same three other people every time I go to work out, and none of them are particularly annoying. (Except for the guy who started biking on Saturday mornings at the same time I used to. Now I have to bike in the afternoon because he's always on the stationary for upwards of an hour. I shake my fist at you, Saturday Bike Usurper.) But I realize that my situation isn't necessarily the norm, so I'm willing to bet that many of you probably encounter at least one of these six personalities on a regularly basis.
To be fair, though, I would actually argue that only three of them engage in behavior we're allowed to complain about. While it's true that the Model, the Grunting Hard-Man, and the Socialite might be somewhat irritating, but they're not being irritating at you; as such, it's probably worth refraining from being too judge-y about them. The Hoarder, the Lurker, and the Trainee Teacher, on the other hand? Those personalities, you can complain about. The Hoarder willfully ignores good gym etiquette, the Lurker is just plain creepy, and the Trainee Teacher gets all up in your face with unsolicited "advice" — all of which are behaviors you don't have to put up with.
So how do you cope with them? Well, the Hoarder may just need a tap on the shoulder and a friendly, “Hey, are you going to be finished with the elliptical soon? There's a line of other people waiting for it” — but for the Lurker and the Trainee Teacher, it'll be worth setting some boundaries. Lifehack has some excellent tips on how to set boundaries with difficult people, so head on over there to check 'em out; even if you don't need them at the gym, they're still good tools to have in your proverbial back pocket.
Also, try to figure out if you're one of these annoying gym personalities — and if you determine that you are, try to work on it. Everyone has to share the space together, so it's worth doing so courteously.
Check out the full infographic below:
Images: MattandAshley/Flickr; Giphy; RFox91/Visual.ly
