BY JACOB GUNNER
Metal clanking against metal, music blaring from the radio in the corner of the room, sweaty teenagers gulping down water from blender bottles.
The school weight room is a place for hard work and self-improvement, but for those who aren’t frequent flyers, it can be scary and foreign. Follow these simple tips and you will do just fine.
- Welcome Everyone
Some people are in the weight room for sports, some are there for personal gain. Some people lift heavy weight, others lift less–and that’s okay. Just because girls aren’t your prototypical “lifters” does not mean they don’t have the right to be there. The weight room serves a purpose to help students, and it is open to anybody and everybody; welcome everyone.
- Share the AUX
Some people like to listen to country, others need rap to get them going. Make sure everyone gets an opportunity to listen to what they want to listen to. No Pitbull, no techno, no exceptions. Be mindful of of who’s in the room when you choose your music. For example, if there are females, do not play the song “Me So Horny” by 2 Live Crew (actually just don’t listen to this song at all).
- Rack Your Weights
The simplest rule happens to be the most commonly violated. Putting away your weights when you’re done using them is so easy to do and so important. Nothing is more annoying than taking time away from your lift to clean up after others. Show respect for your peers and the room; rack your weights.
- Know Your Weights
Rubber weights go on the squat racks, metal weights go on the weight trees, that’s just how it goes. It looks more organized and makes the different weights easier to find.
- Don’t Mix Weights
The easiest way to look like a dork in the weight room is to mix and match your weights. Just because the weights have the same number on them, does not make it okay to use a metal 25 pounder on one side and a rubber 25 on the other. Aside from that fact that they could be slightly different in weight, it just looks wrong when your weights are two different sizes. You will lose some respect right off the bat if you mix your weights.
- Have a Purpose
Don’t be that guy who wears khaki pants to the weight room and sits on the bench. Don’t be the one who stands in front of the squat rack talking with their buddies. Above all, don’t be the jerk who just walks around critiquing others. The room has a purpose, and so should you when you’re in there.
- Lingo
A particular jargon is used to describe things in the weight room. Understanding what these words mean is a key to success. “Free weights” is a term used to describe the lifts where the weight is readily changeable- like sliding different sized weights onto a bar. “Plates” are the big 45 pound weights (also the heaviest of the free weights). “Trees” are where you put the free weights. “Cables” refer to the machines that do not utilize free weights, but rather use a system of cables.
The weight room is a special amenity we have at our school. It’s a dojo to strengthen the mind and body; treat it like one.