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Utopia Talk / General Talk / Dire question about women's fitness
Palem
Person.
Wed Mar 16 11:25:14
Do girls work out at gyms together? and if so, how?


Not being anything of a gym rat, I just can't envision any possible scenarios in which a group of girls attend a gym and work out together that doesn't end in the group actively hating each other (and not that thing where all girls deep down hate each other, but just never bring it up. I mean like outward hatred targeted directly at that fucking bitch).


Also yes, I realize that like 90% of all women's fitness is generally geared towards more "relaxed" activities (jogging, yoga, ect), but I know that girls do go to gyms and that they do work out. I'm just not sure on the social etiquette.
pillz
Member
Wed Mar 16 14:46:01
I've seen them in pairs but never a group of 3 or more. But I'm not exactly a regular.

Usually see them alone or with a guy, though.
Cherub Cow
Member
Wed Mar 16 18:55:09
Definitely! Even if excluding swimming, lyra, pole fit, trapeze, etc. and just talking about lifting heavy objects in certain repetitions ;p , it is definitely a thing. But yes, pairs, generally.. which is mostly just a scheduling issue (tends to be difficult to get groups bigger than 2 unless we re-accept lyra/gmnastics or a gym's spin classes and such). I didn't think this was a secret?
Palem
Person.
Thu Mar 17 08:14:28
It's as much of a secret as computer coding is a secret, in that it's absolutely not but it's something I've quite ignorant of lol.

I guess being confined to pairs would root out a lot of the friction I was envisioning, but even then, I still have trouble envisioning even two girls motivating each other to keep pushing. When I think gym buddies I tend to think ...well basically just a big vast ocean of testosterone and two guys challenging each other. In my experience three things women have issues with are

1. Direct confrontation
2. Thinking rationally all the time
3. Forgiving

and it seems like all 3 of things would be important with having a buddy at the gym that's trying to push you to do more to get the most out of your time. It seems like two girls going to the gym together would only be a ticking time bomb before something falls through the crack and then they're fighting with each other. Whether that's because Jenny is losing so much more weight than Clair and so she's obviously just trying to make Clair look bad or whether it's because Becky just couldn't possibly do another 5 and Cindy should have known better because they've been friends for 10 fucking years or something equally fucking crazy that only girls seem to come up with lol

So either girls approach the gym way different than guys do (maybe they just kind of work out...near each other, instead of like actually being workout buddies, which sort of defeats the point but whatever lol) or I'm missing something, or I have a far too generalized view of women. All are possible.
Korp
Member
Thu Mar 17 10:55:05
Depends on what group of women you talk about, there is Group A, the serious ones that commit to the gym as much as any guy. But as with guys you rarely see them in bigger groups than 2-3 its just ineffective. Too much rest between sets and it takes too long.

Group B, the ones you imagine all women to be, goes there to do some cardio mostly, spending 1 hour on the threadmill. Then do some basic core exercises.


Sounds like you fetched your view on women from soap operas on tv.

Ive never seen women at the gym behaving like you picture them though, even group B who just does some cardio are there for the exercise nothing else. Maybe my Gym is just very dedicated...
hood
Member
Thu Mar 17 11:09:50
I can't speak to gym workouts, but I can definitely speak about exercise based on my days on track and xc.

Guys were much more aggressive in how they supported other guys during competition or even practice. Phrases like "man up" or "don't pussy out now" would often show up during practice on difficult days. But the perspective was always that you could perform better, you must perform better.

The women were much more nurturing in their support. They'd excuse a poor performance day and attempt to build the person up. "No, don't worry, you did fine." Other cheering methods involved a positive outlook: "you're doing great, keep it up!"

It wasn't so much a difference in dedication but instead a difference in approach. Maybe there was more tension in girl runner relationships, but I never heard anything about that. It seems that while they were "softer," and more forgiving, it was all about making the other people feel their best. This isn't necessarily a bad outlook. To me, I enjoyed both the aggressive and nurturing support depending on my mood, performance, etc. I don't see how these observations, assuming they're accurate (at least with the group of women I've experienced), would break down in a weight room.
Kaylana
Moderator
Thu Mar 17 18:45:01
Absolutely, I miss the gals I used to work out with. We motivated each other and it made the time pass much faster. Felt more like I was having fun with my buddies than miserably grinding off calories.
Palem
Person.
Thu Mar 17 21:16:30
Interesting stuff

@Korp

1. The only soap operas I watch are Spanish ones, and I don't know what they're saying to fetch a view about anything lol

2. Would you say the gals in Group A typically fall into the "nurturing" motivators?
TheHighQueen
Member
Sun Aug 21 22:11:06
I am not sure how anyone who is seriously working out has time to chat or whatever. Besides, I want to associate my friends with positive relaxing things like watching a movie or idle chatter. Man or woman I don't invite anyone to the gym with me, for me it's just not a social experience unless you need someone to spot for weights. If I choose something super boring like walk on the treadmill, I will binge Netflix or do sudoku puzzles. There is no catty aspect to it, just preference.

The REAL question is... those people who run on the treadmill and watch cooking shows?! WTF?!

;) ;)
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