The gym boom has led to an unpleasant mild phenomenon: “People of all ages are guilty of it” – 2024-02-17 13:08:50

A group of five teenage boys has conquered the performance place at the gym. One is making movements in between, the others are staring at their cell phones and talking loudly. One is wearing sweatpants, the others are wearing jeans.

It has come a long way from the old-time pound hall, where the older members of the hall maintained discipline and order with the help of a code handed down from generation to generation. If the weights didn’t fit, it became an immediate and harsh feedback.

A big change is going on in the gym world, as the visitor base has gotten younger. Easyfit entrepreneur from Helsinki Maarit Koskinen has noticed that it is not necessarily always a good thing.

“They make a lot of noise”

The high cost of children’s and young people’s sports activities has been talked about for a long time. When families could no longer afford to pay for expensive hobbies, many have already moved to the world of gyms at middle school age, which can be accessed at the cheapest price of a couple of tens a month.

Maarit Koskinen emphasizes that it is good in itself that young people have found their way to the gyms.

– The style of this generation Z, however, is to hang out at gyms without proper equipment. Other customers are upset when they reserve equipment for a long time and make a lot of noise.

Koskinen has noticed that people often come to the gym without shoes or in beach sandals.

– I once asked a young person about it and he said he doesn’t own indoor sports shoes. I said what if the weight falls on the toes. I felt like going to buy her shoes.

– How do they get decent equipment even in school gym, for example, Koskinen wonders.

The style of the boxing era was to twist the iron in your own conditions – as long as someone occasionally came to verify the bench press record.

– Young people are looking for more experiences. Few have a proper sense of how to actually train.

We wrestle, kick and run

According to Koskinen, there have been complaints about bad behavior in the customer feedback. Sometimes, some have even stopped being a customer because of it.

– You could say that the situation will not improve much in the neighborhood either.

Koskinen has had to fire a few customers because of bad behavior. The worst night owls often arrive in the evenings.

– We wrestle, kick and run around the hall. Even big and rough men don’t dare to get in between. They will be sniffed back.

The police have not had to be called to the scene, but the security guards have gone to take the keys away from the troublemakers. One person who was fired came back and wondered why he suffered such a harsh fate.

– He asked why there was no warning about this.

Clothes on in the sauna

The youth is by no means the only group that shows its worst sides in the gym.

One problem is going to the sauna with clothes on. It is forbidden for hygiene reasons. A towel on the hips can get on the rafts.

One age-old problem of gyms, on the other hand, is that weights are left all over the hall. People of all ages are guilty of it.

And we know how to live in the dressing room like in the field.

– Especially in men’s pockets, you have to try to see if the paper flies there until it ends up in the trash. You could then lift it up if it doesn’t fly.

Others are better taken into account

A long-time Helsinki gym person Toni Lötjönen pulls Voimalaitos Roba and Voimalaitos Merihaka. He has also seen the culture change in the halls.

– When gyms used to be in basements, and only 120-kilogram bodars went there, the clientele made sure that the rules were followed. Now that this has become the business of the whole nation, all kinds of things can be involved, says Lötjönen, who himself practiced bodybuilding at a competitive level.

– When I went to the big boys’ gym when I was young, I was quite timid about what to say and what to touch.

Lötjönen has noticed that more weights are left lying around and people come to the gym without shoes.

– Young clubs could take others into account better and give training peace. Devices are often taken over for a long time.

The number of instruction sheets has increased a lot in gyms. In the old days, the walls were mainly a reminder of cleanliness.

– An older hall keeper just told me that he hasn’t kept notes and tickets for 25 years. Those who don’t know how to behave, don’t even read notes.

Lots of good points

Pipsa Lahti owns several Liikuntakeskus fun gyms in Pirkanmaa. He too has noticed that young people have found their way into the world of gym training.

– Etiquette reminders have to be done from time to time, for example to clean up traces. Even if there are workers there, you should leave enough bangs to be able to carry them to their places, says Lahti.

– Sometimes things are pointed out to the staff and they don’t dare mention it directly to the target. Maybe it’s because we’re just in front of the devices without human contact and we don’t dare to talk to people we don’t know.

The use of smartphones has exploded in gyms. And they are not only used as music devices.

– Filming in gyms is not prohibited per se, but it would be good if only the photographer himself could be seen in the photos, Lahti reminds.

Although the development has gone in a bad direction in many ways, the gym owners do everything they can to ensure that the customers’ training peace remains good.

Maarit Koskinen reminds us that there are many positive aspects of a gym environment and training in the gym.

– You get a lot of health benefits from gym training. And community spirit is an important thing, especially now after the corona.