- Comedy
- RELATED
117 - Gym Cheetos
Phil asks if gyms are unhealthy. K Sera dislikes gyms. Micah discusses the gym of life (mixed zoning laws, civil engineering, the detriment of suburbs, and more).
Note: This episode was originally recorded in the Summer of 2022, one year prior to the publishing.
Show Notes: N/A
K Sera's after thoughts:
Welp.
Yeah, gyms are not for me. I'd rather be outside. Or just sitting. For me, exercise for the sake of exercising just doesn't give me that rush of dopamine. I love going for walks and being out in nature (so long as the flies and bees stay the heck away).
I do think gyms have the potential to be sacred spaces. For the folks who want a dedicated and safe place to go to move and strengthen their body, a gym can be great. You pay for access to special equipment to use for whatever strengthening goals you may have. So long as everyone is polite, sanitary and they pick up after themselves, gyms are awesome. There is a lot of potential for active community activities and forming health-focused social groups.
Most of my experiences with gyms have been of boredom and disgust, however. I don't personally like being around a bunch of sweaty people. I don't like the smell. I don't like being stuck inside, moving my body on a stationary piece of equipment with unchanging scenery. I definitely don't want to pay membership dollars for any of that, either. But that's me. I don't have to like it. These spaces are not built for me. Gyms are for the people who want to use them ... and can pay to use them. (Let's not forget capitalism!)
I also just really dislike the obsession people have about weight loss. If exercising brings you joy, do it. If you are doing it to justify eating brownies and ice cream, or because you think you're supposed to, or because someone else thinks you need to "be healthy" - whatever the fuck that means - then maybe have another think about the why of it. There is this constant conversation about weight and health that I'm just... kind of tired of having. I don't care if I'm thin. I don't care if you are either. Granted, I'm also not trying to attract a partner, either, so maybe my lizard-self is creeping in again.
There's so much unsaid meanness and shame surrounding the conversation of diet and exercise. It's obsessive and mentally unhealthy. It's frustrating to listen to people I know talk about how little they ate that day, or how their clothes aren't fitting right, or how embarrassed they are to not be a supermodel. It's okay to want to look nice. It's normal to want others to look at you with admiration or appreciation. It's also normal to want to be able to move easily and be strong enough to take care of yourself and house chores and whatever activities might require some physical exertion. I think if you are balanced and the choices you are making aren't coming from a place of shame, you are on a positive path.
Anyway, gyms. Can't do it. Not today.
Phil's after thoughts:
Since starting my new job I have access to a free gym. Because of the "work-remote policy" this gym is rarely busy and most of the time much of the exercise equipment is freely available. There are times where it is busy and people do not wipe their equipment, but I do my best to make sure that everything is clean around me (before and after I use it). The nice part is that while the gym itself isn't super fancy or anything, it has all the stuff needed to stretch, warm up muscles, and do light cardio workouts. It also has showers, towels, and lockers; and for some reason it is not busy (I bring shower slippers) and each shower has their own individual door that offers a lot more privacy (and spacious enough to change in/out of in the shower stall).
I have come to realize that I only go to this gym because I have two options: either stay at work and do more work OR for an hour I can combine all my breaks and workout for 1 hour right in the middle of my shift. Honestly, I feel like this is equivalent to some strange "tobacco smoke break" but instead of contaminating my lungs with fumes, I am inhaling air from other people who are working out. Also, this facility (worksite) highly discourages people from coming in sick (the culture has definitely shifted on this, before if you didn't come in sick, you were considered not a team-player. Now it is extremely rude to come in sick). Also the production shift people (who may not have the luxury to work from home) aren't using the gym hours as the support staff do, typically because they cannot combine their breaks together (the perks of an office worker).
So why am I mentioning this? Because given the alternative of staring at a screen and doing more work, I can actually go move around and do something physical. And in this case, gyms are healthier for me. I still don't like the idea of going to the gym after work or late night hours, but at least in this case it isn't so bad. I still agree with you (and Micah) that gyms are gross and that the motivation behind working out is usually coming from an obsessive and mentally unhealthy space. And, the better alternative is to enjoy nature for a nice long walk (which my campus is next to a nice green park), so that is also an option (although not this summer since most of the time it is either too hot or too polluted with wildfire smoke).
So my conclusions that GYMS are still unhealthy remain valid with some caveats: people go to the gyms for the wrong reasons. It is mentally unhealthy compared to enjoying green space alternatives. It is also mentally unhealthy because of the motivations and desires of "being fit" for no other purpose of social pressures and compounding shame. Being healthy also includes being brain-healthy, and people that are obsessed are not exercising (ironically) moderation. In my belief, people need to reduce pain and suffering, and that includes ensuring that our brain, body (and apparently luxury bones like teeth) are in good condition, or at least maintained often).
Long story short: Gyms can be very bad for many strong reasons. But in some situations, it is better than the alternative. Just like a Big Mac.