Asking For a Spot / Help in the Gym

My journey through bodybuilding has really given me a lot in life. One such thing is the ability to interact with people more effectively and find ways to start conversations and engage someone. Many people probably won't believe it unless they really know me well, but I'd more or less consider my basal personality as more towards the introverted side. I only really need the social interactions that I feel are necessary to me in my life, but am mostly content with doing things on my own. Growing up I was shy, and even to this day I can sometimes feel a little cautious / anxious being thrown into a large social gathering where I am unfamiliar with the people or the place.

So you can imagine how I felt the first day I decided to dive into the gym culture, having never been a part of any kind of athletic team and never really being a part of or accepted into any kind of social groups / gatherings from my peers. I was completely intimidated and worried about how I would look stepping foot inside of a gym having absolutely no experience in that culture whatsoever. In fact, the very first day I tried working out, I was wearing jeans and was kicked out of the gym.

It's because of this that I can understand and connect with someone who is shy and apprehensive about trying to work out for the first time, let alone asking someone for help lifting the weight.

 

Source: Thinkstock

But for those of you starting out, I'm here to tell you that you should NEVER be afraid to ask for help in the gym. I've personally never run into someone who wasn't willing to help me understand or work on an exercise or piece of exercise equipment. In a gym environment, most people are willing to assist you or give you advice so long as you're open to what they have to say and are polite in asking them.

A lot of people who go to the gym do not consider themselves experts and are often times flattered that you would want their opinion or advice on how to do a particular exercise. For those of you intimidated by the people who DO consider themselves experts and are super intense when they're working out, I want to tell you that those kinds of people are actually the ones most enthusiastic and willing to give advice, because it's something they're super passionate about.

But how do you go about asking someone for help or a spot? It's pretty simple really. If you have a friend with you or see people you know, then obviously they're going to probably be your first choice. But what if you're new and none of your friends want to go to the gym with you?

My advice is to find someone who looks like they are in between sets or not immediately preoccupied with an exercise. If you can find a gym associate (like a trainer) who doesn't look like they're immediately interacting with a client, they are probably your best bet. If you choose to talk to someone who is working out, gym etiquette would dictate that you never interrupt them during a set. If they look like they're taking a break, walk up to them and politely ask if they wouldn't mind giving you a spot real quick. They will almost certainly say yes. Make sure to say thank you every time that person or someone else does this for you. Never lift an unsafe amount of weight without some kind of supervision. Being shy is not worth being injured and putting yourself in harms way.

 
 

Source: Thinkstock

If you're looking for advice on an exercise, find someone who you've observed performing that exercise with great range of motion and control with a good amount of repetitions and ask them for their opinion. You could also find someone who has overly developed muscles in the muscle group(s) you're trying to work out, but be careful about that. They might just have great genetics for those muscle groups but have crappy technique / advice, or could just be injecting synthetic drugs to over-exaggerate those muscle groups. If you can, find someone you know who was small starting out, and successfully developed their muscles. Catch them in between sets and ask "hey, what's your opinion on....". They'll be happy to give you advice and you'll meet awesome new friends. Just don't overstay your welcome and let them get back to finishing their workout.

The gym has really helped teach me how to become more social and how to interact with many different types of people. A lot of people are there to work out, but a lot of people are also there to interact with other people. If you need someone to help you push your maxes, or need to learn new perspectives from new people to help advance your lifting / fitness technique, don't be afraid to meet someone new and ask for assistance / advice. I promise you that everyone you ask will be happy to help you out!

-Jtrain

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