Reasons NOT to Go to the Gym

January 14th, 2009

There are few areas of fitness where I’ve experimented quite as much as with gyms. As a child I was too skinny, as an adult too fat. I’ve been trying to find the right equilibrium since forever. I’m closer now than ever before but it took a lot of trial and error. Now, after much frustration and needless expense, I exercise at home. Here are my veteran thoughts on gyms and why I no longer use them.

My Gym Résumé

For a long time I believed that if could just find the right gym, getting fit would be inevitable. Due to this misconception I’ve sampled the gamut of gyms ranging from under $20 per month to over $100, including:

1. The local YMCA
2. City run recreation centres
3. Big chain fitness clubs
4. Small discount gyms (by proxy)
5. Suburban racquet clubs
6. Upscale financial district fitness centres

As a result of this diversity of experience, I feel qualified to discuss the cons of gyms. It won’t require multiple articles discussing the various types; in truth they’re all pretty much the same, even the high end “status” fitness centres.

Cons of Gyms and Gym Cons

Here, in no particular order, is my “Bottom 10″ list of reasons to avoid gyms and fitness clubs altogether:

1. Motivational hurdle factor: It’s hard enough to exercise without knowing you’ll have to pack your gym bag, drive across town, check in and get changed all before you even break a sweat.
2. Having to look good: Real exercise isn’t pretty. If you’re truly working hard you’ll be grunting and sweating and spilling your drink on yourself. Having to reduce your exercise intensity to avoid embarrassing yourself makes exercise less productive.
3. Clothes and laundry: Coordinating gym clothes with non-gym clothes whilst trying to keep everything adequately laundered is an added chore and a motivation killer.
4. Naked people and the whole changeroom experience: The general consensus (to which I subscribe) is that changerooms are creepy and disgusting. Rusted lockers, disagreeable naked patrons, and questionable hygiene all form this unpleasant fugue.
5. Cost: Most gym memberships are abandoned. Everything thinks they will “really, really go this time”, but in actuality, they don’t. Since memberships are usually substantial and ongoing expenses, they are not to be considered lightly: you don’t want to stay unfit and become financially worse off in the process.
6. Pushy sales people: It’s rare that a gym will even allow you to take a look at the facilities without signing something. Often saying it’s simply a waiver or check-in form, this old sales trick gets people in the psychological mindset that they’ve already signed up. In most gyms these manipulative mind games are constantly being played by commissioned sales staff.
7. Contracts: As businesses, gyms are looking to profit first and get you in shape second. Knowing that most people will abandon their membership in only a few months they often require a contractual obligation of a year or more, so rather than having you waste a few months of fees, you’re forced to waste many.
8. Difficult to cancel: Many companies see cancelled accounts as disaster and will put up one hell of a fight to make sure you keep giving them your money.
9. Add-on sales: The membership alone is often not enough. The juice bar, personal trainers, laundry service, and locker rental all add to the cost of not exercising.
10. Self-esteem considerations: Gyms make be great venues for musclemen to show off their bulging pecs, but what about people who aren’t quite there yet? It’s a huge tax on one’s self-esteem to be the huffing sweaty beast in the room full of svelte hardbodies.

In short, gyms can be frustrating, demotivational, and expensive. While this is a list of my own personal thoughts and experience, there are plenty more valid reasons not to go that I will resist mentioning.

Alternatives and Recommended Reading

Being a fan of running and living in the great white North, I’ve found a plethora of ways to exercise inside without the membership fee. Getting good gym equipment on the cheap helps, but isn’t essential. Consult Leo at Zen Habits’ article Minimalist Fitness for a laundry list of alternatives. And remember, when nothing seems to work, perhaps it’s just a question of actually getting motivated.

Are They “Bad”?

Despite the many cons of gyms I’m reluctant to say a gym membership is a bad choice. Obviously they can provide a selection of equipment and a good place to meet with exercise partners. That being said, a gym is a business and not a panacea. If you can’t get in shape without a gym, you probably can’t with one either; focus on motivation first and memberships second.