Gym Closures

Is it me or does every place gay men patronize seem to be the first on the chopping block in situations like these?

It never ceases to amaze me that there still some fat gays who can't comprehend the value of "eye candy."

I, for one, absolutely love going to the gym. Over the years, it has proven to be a needed healthy daily release.

Now with COVID, I have stayed away b/c:

1. the staff at gyms are not usually rocket scientists and I don't necessarily trust their ability to 'patrol' the floor for adherence to health precautions; which would mean I'd be left checking others

2. with all that testosterone flying around, if a fight was going to break out anywhere over the pro/con of these measures, the gym was definitely a prime candidate -- the video in the linked article clearly proves that

So now my healthy release comes from daily runs or long stints on a stationary bike watching The Crown, etc.

Once effectively vaccinated, I'll gladly return.

R3, you can easily do an hour long regimen with free weights at home. Get a dvd or watch it however - probably youtube has them.

You don't need a gym to stay in shape. You just don't.

Gyms are a MAJOR mental health outlet for a lot of people, and particularly uptight people. I was pretty bummed when mine closed again a week or two ago.

But I'm making do at home. I wouldn't be out there screaming about it.

You’re both.

[quote] It never ceases to amaze me that there still some fat gays who can't comprehend the value of "eye candy."

They’re too busy trying to pretend that there is value to actual candy.

Its a way to avoid too much hang-time with your roommate

[quote] Get a dvd or watch it however

Just don't display it on a shelf. As many have pointed out in another thread - that's tacky!

Who knew gym bunnies were so suicidal.

Yes, OP, but canceling a gym membership and working out at home (and saving a ton of money in the process, but we'll get to that next time) completely negates the "Look at me! Look at me! Look at me!" factor.

How can you judge people for not going to the right gym if no one goes to the gym?!

Maybe it's the 'roids; or the narcissism. I'm sure not [italic]all [/italic]of the members are screaming, probably just the manic ones.

I understand why it had to close, but I miss my gym very much. Jumping jacks and push ups get old. There's something motivating about going to gym. If you manage to get to the gym, you will work out, because what else are you going to do there, just stand around? I miss the swimming pool. And yeah, I miss the eye candy, especially in the locker room ;)

[quote]Who knew gym bunnies were so suicidal.

I have a friend who rails about people going to restaurants, who still has a stuff-spraying regimen for his mail and groceries, but who goes to his gym every morning (now that it is open again). He complains righteously about some queen who won't wear a mask, but I'm, like, "then stay the fuck home, bitch." But no, this he [italic]needs[/italic].

I admit I never liked going to the gym, and haven't set foot in one in years. I've never been inspired by "eye candy." To me, it's like going to a restaurant and only being able to look at the food. Yes, I am ancient.

I think closing the gyms is foodlish.

Working out increases the ability of your immune system to fight disease.

As long as you keep your hands away from your face there is little risk, and soap and water kills the virus, shower, go home be better.

Not to mention the hormones and aggression that are released.

Gyms are very important for both physical and mental well-being for a large number of people, and the measures that gyms took in response to the pandemic meant they were pretty safe in comparison to most other public spaces (mine felt very safe and well run during the two lockdowns that we've had so far in the UK).

Home workouts, unless you have all the kit and space at home that you have in a public gym, are just not the same.

You're a fat whore.

The gays that only want to go to the gym to gawk at the other muscle queens or hook up in the locker/steam room deserve Covid for being dumb sluts.

The people who think working out at home is the same as the gym either have an excellent home gym most can't afford/don't have space for, do crappy cardio exercises at home and think that's "just as good", or never work out.

I worked out at home using bands and doing cardio without equipment for months, and I showed up to my gym the day after it reopened. Now that the gym is closed again, I'm settling on controlling my weight with walking and dieting, since I hate using bands and doing high-impact/no equipment cardio that much.

I'm also hoping this won't be a repeat of March where "two weeks to flatten the curve" turned into three months.

I think the most telling part is the anger at the closures. You don’t, as OP says, see this confrontation of officials at most other venues. Why are gyms and gym-goers so angry and so demanding of special treatment? From my on-again off-again experience, gyms can only be as hygienic as its clients want it to be. Posters above who say it’s a necessary part of their lives and are saying closures diminish their quality of life will just have to wait in line for my sympathy. During a pandemic, with wildly uncooperative segments of the population refusing to give up what is essentially a luxury (even a much-loved and beneficial one such as “working out”), there remains a higher calling for the public good.

Most people hate change, like a change in their daily routine that was out of their hands. Going to the gym was part of many people's daily routine, and they struggle to adjust.

It’s an addiction and their stash is threatened

OP, one point you are missing is that the gyms are closing but the membership dues still will be charged. Autopay is historically difficult to stop (remember when you belonged to the Record of the Month club and how hard it was to stop it?).

PS. The “every man in shape is on steroids” troll must be on vacation this week!

R23, then the anger should be directed at the gyms’ bookkeepers. If every other service sector can switch their business model to meet the realities we face, then gyms should be no different.

R24 that’s a funny response. The bookkeepers do not work on the property of most big box gyms. The gym employees are responsible for responding to the concerns of gym members because...every employee is responsible for customer service.

ABC Financial, now ABC Fitness Solutions, handles the dues and invoices for most of the chain gyms in the USA. They are based in Sherwood, Arkansas. I doubt gym members, from say NYC, are going to risk driving to Arkansas to lodge a complaint since sending an email is like spitting into a black hole.

Well, I guess I look at it this way : there must be other solutions at hand. Not being able to get a refund or a prorated account extension is hardly reason for the outsize issue of gyms having more confrontations about closures than restaurants, bars, nail salons, bowling alleys, barbers, spas, etc. It strikes me as odd that gym closures always make the news in an "us vs. them" way when other service providers' stories are centered on the financial hardships of owners and staff, not the disruption of the daily routines of their customers. But the dues thing makes sense if not the reaction and the constant placement of gyms at the center of shutting down services.

The owner of the Crossfit gym at OP went on Fox News to rip up his $15k fine. I’m shocked. I never saw that one coming. Never!

He appears at 2:30 and I do not want to see any of you blind bitches calling him a “hot daddy.”

Fat whore

The gym is a mental and physical release as well as part of a daily routine. You can end up seeing the same people for years. There is only so much at home work outs one can do. I need to get out a lot of energy. I've been paying $300/month to work out at an outdoor Equinox that is on the rooftop of a parking garage. I have been going since it first opened in September and been major to be outside, getting a hard work in around other people.

[quote]I think closing the gyms is foodlish.

Fat whores - REJOICE!

They should close gyms again, along with restaurants.

But they won't.

Don't you people have gyms in your houses? What kind of third world hovels do you all live in?

I think people are upset because this is where a lot of married men go to have sex with other dudes. Now they can't and they're upset. 😁

Here's a clue R16: No one gives a shit about your tits.

I miss the people I used to see regularly, the trainers that encourage you & the nicer equipment that's hard to get at home, but given the circumstances, gyms are the last place you'd want to be now. I'm not surprised owners are losing their shit since their businesses are closed (or extremely hampered) and gyms are often a huge part of people social lives, not just physical well-being. But even pre-COVID, gyms were the best places to catch the latest virus going around.

I look forward to the safe reopening of the gyms and the resumption of "hot sauna encounters" threads. Until then I'm going to keep up a puny regimen of pushups at home and avoid both fatness and covid.