After reading the "How Much Do You Spend on Food a Week? " and the “How to Convince Gym to Buy Power Rack” threads I realized how lucky I am in my training. I spend very little on food compared to people like VTballa who live in DC. My gym has a squat rack, dumbbells up to 120, etc… I figure that some of us are spoiled and instead of hating all the time, we should realize how lucky we are.
This thread is dedicated to the awesome things that happen in your training.
My gym is full of regulars so everybody knows everybody by sight for the most part. Last week I was stretching and some dude was actually curling in the squat rack. He looked at me, recognized me, and asked if I need to use the rack to squat. I said no as I was dead-lifting that day but it definitely made me love my gym that much more.
I used to train on a military base, college gym, and my sparsely equipped garage solo. Now I train w/ a group of serious individuals out of a guy’s garage. We have chains, bands, GHR, jerk boxes, bumper plates, and close to all of the relevant shit.
Plus, there is a guy pretty much my exact mirror in terms of bodyweight/height, so we get competitive. He can kill me in powerlifting, because he has 100lbs on squat, but conditioning, bench, deadlift, olympic stuff, we can compete and push each other. We haven’t really got into it yet, but we are approaching it rapidly, so I expect many good sessions where we both have to step up, which will be a very powerful training atmosphere.
Additionally, being with a group of serious lifters, we tend to run into more serious guys and recruit them to train with us. We have a couple female lifters too, who show up and train without being intimidated.
Being part of a team or group is cool, as we all push ourselves to do more things. Good sessions will happen when you have a bunch of serious lifters in the gym, but getting outside of it is something different entirely; There is a strongman gym close to us, that we went to the other day to give it a shot. I probably would have never went by myself, but as a group I showed up and did relatively well. I got to lift some stones, deadlift a car, and pick up a frame with more weight than I would have thought possible. I got some good feedback from a pro-level guy, that makes me want to train harder to get better.
My main gym is just a regular commercial gym, but the rack is free most of the time, I have a DL platform, and most people who train there are OK.
I have a decently equipped gym at my work for 100$ a year that comes in handy at lunch, or after work if I think I’ll be too tired to hit the other gym later.
I have access to great coaching at a weightlifting club where my daughter trains, both of us have been coached by Pierre Roy and she trains alongside Marilou Prevost, which gives her (and myself) an amazing source of inspiration.
AND, I can go to a PL gym downtown that is fully equipped not only with Elite racks and competition benches but has chains, ropes and bands, a prowler and sled, big tire and strongman stuff. The best part about that gym is that it is run by a woman who is an all-round great athlete and another source of inspiration.
So yeah, overall I got nothing to bitch about.
I train in a University gym and even though I have a girlfriend, it still feels awesome to have girls stare at me when I squat twice what their boyfriend could.
I train in my rugby clubs gym. It’s upstairs from the changing rooms and bar and it’s literally come and go as you please. It’s only for members use but once you’re a member you get a key and it’s basically yours to use whenever you feel like it. 3 o clock in the morning and you feel like some squats? No problem.
It’s got a GHR, two racks, two benches, four barbells, trap bar, bits of cardio equipment, heavy ass chains and a nice load of plates. Got a nice stretch of car-park for prowler/sled pushes/pulls too.
In fact, here’s a video I took last season while I was recording my buddy’s form for something(that’s him doing assisted chins)
A bit messy but it’s cleaned regularly enough and I can use chalk and put my iPod in the stereo and work away whenever I feel like.
I’d have to say I am pretty happy with my gym. It’s a Gold’s Gym. The old gym I went to previously closed and Gold’s took on all their memberships. So I get to see some people I lifted with 2 years ago. So that’s cool. The old gym was targeting senior citizens when I GTFO, so we now have more old people than before. They dont give anyone shit and neither does the staff. I usually dead lift and squat in my socks and they dont say anything. Its cool to drop weights and make noise. One of the trainers is a competitive powerlifter and he makes noise with his deadlifts so I know he wont say shit.
There’s one squat rack and 3 smith machines. That should be the other way around but you have to take care of the old people.
People are cool. There used to be a dude that lifted in the mornings when I did. He had a shitty attitude and I actually almost got in a fight with him once. He’s not there any more. There are several bodybuilders that work out there. One guy just won first place at a regional BB show. Another female MILF that used to compete and still works out harder than most people. We have the trainer that powerlifts.
Also probably more of a thing for me, free childcare run by people that I have known for 4 years. I totally trust them with my kids for an hour or so.
Honestly I’m not a big fan of lifting a lot more weight that the guy next to me. It’s a bit awkward to me. I’d much prefer to be lifting next to a guy doing about the same weight as me
[quote]dianab wrote:
I have access to great coaching at a weightlifting club where my daughter trains, both of us have been coached by Pierre Roy and she trains alongside Marilou Prevost, which gives her (and myself) an amazing source of inspiration.[/quote]
Training next to an olympian is always cool, and if I’m not mistaken Pierre Roy coaches some of the top weightlifters in Canada (I want to say he’s Luna-Grenier’s coach but I’m not sure). Totally jelly.
I have a squat rack, two barbells, an EZ bar, an adjustable bench, dumbbells up to 120 lbs. 600lbs of Oly weights, a 10lb medicine ball, 100lbs of chains and an empty two-car garage to work out in. No one fucks with me, I listen to whatever the hell I want to at whatever volume I want, I can go from a workout to the bbq in less than 30 seconds, the college’s women’s cross-country team runs by every Saturday and Sunday while I’m working out (the high school’s team does too), I never have to wait for anything and when the weather is warm enough I can and do lift naked whenever the mood hits me. I’ve got it pretty good.
I never have to wait for anything and when the weather is warm enough I can and do lift naked whenever the mood hits me. I’ve got it pretty good.[/quote]
Just wait till you get older and you sit on your balls while box squatting.
I never have to wait for anything and when the weather is warm enough I can and do lift naked whenever the mood hits me. I’ve got it pretty good.[/quote]
Just wait till you get older and you sit on your balls while box squatting.[/quote]
Too late he has already done that.
DB and his famous naked lifting to impress the HS track team.
I work at a college and get to work out every day on my lunch break. Free. 18-22 year old hotties all over the place, Olympic swimming pool and an indoor basketball court where I work on my J.
If I feel like getting crazy (like today), I’ll pass on the lunch workout and workout in my basement. I own my house so I get as loud and crazy as I want. I’ve got a power rack, 480 lbs of weight, dumbbells, curl bar, speedbag, and a bunch of home made accessories.
I also pay $21 a month to go to the local gym where they have almost every piece of hammer strength equipment you can ask for and an Olympic platform. Alot of the dudes that workout there are bigger, stronger and leaner than I am and the eye candy ranges from ages 20-40 unlike my college gym. I’m all about variety.
There is a kid that I have seen twice at my gym doing on handed (one armed?) snatch with the big plates. He cranks out a bunch of them pretty much like nothing and well I just find it awesome to watch. He looks like a wressler and he looks young.
[quote]Hallowed wrote:
There is a kid that I have seen twice at my gym doing on handed (one armed?) snatch with the big plates. He cranks out a bunch of them pretty much like nothing and well I just find it awesome to watch. He looks like a wressler and he looks young. [/quote]
how does that work? I used to do one arm dumbbell snatches, but i can’t imagine holding on to a couple of plates once theyr up!
My gym isn’t perfect but I can’t complain. Got a squat rack, good selection of dumbells up to 60kg/132lbs, loads of weights, all machines bars you could want.
Only thing I wish we had was a power rack and deadlift/olympic platform with some bumper plates. The owner is an absolutely great guy though, even if some of the patrons aren’t.
He’s moving to a new unit this weekend, hoping it’s gonna take the gym in a good direction
Military gym…so yeah, a lot of college aged kids that have no clue what they’re doing. On the bright side, training hard is encouraged, they don’t mind me being a little noisy with the weights, they provide chalk, have a sled to drag, and are free…so I really can’t complain.
My gym sucks. Twice as many smith machines as squat racks, DB’s only up to 100 lbs, can’t find a 10 lb. plate to save my life(for all the jackasses using three on each side for curls), 10 bench presses to the two squat racks, no fat bars, no chains, no weighted belts, mostly older people and illegal ass work out there, and the actual “free weight” room is tucked in the back. It’s a big gym too, so being a small facility is no excuse. I’ve had to SERIOUSLY adapt/invest and I’m lucky that I work there, otherwise I couldn’t get away with some of the shit I do in there(Ex: barefoot lifting, chalk, etc.)
Be thankful guys. I would move to another gym but that’s something I can’t really afford right now, especially given that the current memebership is free(due to my employment there). If anyone has any recommendations for any gyms they know are of good quality, let me know, for the day I must move to another gym will be GLORIOUS… I’ve heard Gold’s is good.
HOWEVER, one awesome moment I had in this gym was when a guy had shown up that I didn’t recognize(I have been going to this gym for a while). I noticed him because he was one of very few legitimately built guys to pass through. Not to mention he was wearing bright yellow hammer pants and a t-shirt with “get some go again” on the front. He was big enough to pull it off. Anyway, heavy squat day for me and working on depth. He passes by during my last set and I can see peripherally that he’s stopped. After I finish and rack the bar, I get a thumbs up and a SUPER german “That is some good depth.” 2 legit. Not to mention I’m walking funny on the way out lookin like I’m bout to puke and from upstairs I hear (with thick german accent) “Leg day is a bitch!” with another thumbs up. I could only respond “I DO IT THOUGH!” Good workout.
