Traveling Gym Fails #1

My career in education, like any career, had it’s perks and it’s hindrances. One perk, was the ability to access a national fitness program, which gave me access to gyms all over the country.

Once I entered the program and started paying for my membership, I was locked-in. It didn’t matter if I continued to be employed by the state and have the same health plan or not.

When I worked in education, even when I moved to Austin, this basically meant I could gym hop all over town. It was great for mixing up my routine and seeing which local gyms I preferred. I researched gyms along my commute and had the option to to escape the horrendous Austin traffic. I would grab a workout and hit the road once it was a little less slammed, or I was a little less apt to lose my mind.

Since I began bouncing back and forth between Austin and the southeast coast, this membership has paid off tenfold. Well more in worth than the cost of my monthly membership.

It gives me access to major gym chains. Once I am linked with one, I have access to all of them. While there are a lot of people who do not like major gym chains, I am not one of them.

I like the general consistency of equipment and options, as well as the size of the gym and number of machines. I am often dropping-in to grab a quick workout. I do not want to be bothered talking to anyone or waiting for my turn on the only leg press machine in the gym.

I have noticed though, just like any chain restaurant or gas station, the difference in ownership or management, can mean a large difference in quality.

Despite my love for these gyms and their conveniences, I have had my share of not-so-precious moments.

As I was preparing these, the list kept growing, so I’m going to break these up into smaller pieces and let you digest one Traveling Gym Fail at a time:

Shower Power

There’s nothing quite like jumping in the shower, rinsing off from your workout, then reaching for the soap dispenser only to see someone else’s short and curly right on the button you need to hit to get your soap.

After the initial near dry heave reaction while simultaneously jerking my hand away from the dispenser like it was going to jump out and bite me, it was time to quickly develop a plan. I need that soap, but I do not want anything to do with the pube covered button.

Gym showers do not always have the best water pressure or the ability to aim the shower head, and this shower stall was no exception to that rule.

After what seemed like 5-minutes of cupping handfuls of water and aiming them at the stubborn little hair, I was finally able to wash him away and get some soap.

Look for these traveling gym fails to continue to make appearances, as I do not see any shortage of material occurring.