WTF?!?!

Today I've got something that really pissed me off: college and public weight rooms that don't allow chalk, dropping weights, or grunting. Just yesterday a friend of mine was deadlifting at our college's gym. Apparently the clanking of the plates against the ground was enough to have him told to "please keep it down." Are you kidding me? The gym is where men and women go to improve themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally. Yet, these days it seems that most gyms promote mediocrity.

Well FUCK THAT! Hard work isn't pretty. It's not quiet. It's not docile and it definitely isn't easy! The gyms like Planet Fatness that celebrate acceptance and frown upon going hard don't deserve to even exist. Acceptance is great, but hard work should be mandatory. Hell, when a Planet Fatness opened in my town they had a bowl of tootsie rolls at the front desk. What kind of message are these places sending???



The United States has turned into a country of sedentary people who don't want to work hard. There was a time when gyms were inhabited by like-minded people who had solid goals: get strong and get big. Now the gym is turning into a social place where people can get together and be happy about being out of shape. I wouldn't want to interfere with anyone's happiness, but get the hell out of the gym!

Luckily there's been a recent movement wherein those with goals and the will to accomplish them are going "underground." Basement and garage gyms are springing up and are likely to be the saviors of serious lifters everywhere. These are places where a grunt signifies that you're pushing past your limits; where chalk on a bar is a beautiful sight and not considered an eyesore; where loud banging means that heavy weights and personal demons are being conquered. This is the type of atmosphere where results are expected and achieved. Here, mediocrity is a sin and competition, either with partners or oneself, is celebrated and anything less than your best isn't good enough.

So next time you're moving a heavy weight and some stupid employee who probably doesn't know what it means to give everything you've got comes up to you and tells you to "please keep it down," let them know that you're leaving because you're a different breed. Go find yourself a hardcore gym, whether it's a warehouse or a garage. Find some like-minded people and learn from those stronger than you. Just don't go as far as this guy: