Saturday, January 24, 2009

Gym jackasses revisited

Earlier, I complained about some jackasses in the gym who like to yell and bark like dogs during our cardio exercise classes. This serves no real purpose, and it's ultimately a mean for them to draw attention to themselves.

Mind you, I like to put some flair into my moves. I like to put some bounce in my steps, and I like to cover a good amount of ground during lateral movements. None of that is for the purpose of attracting attention, though some might perceive it as such. It's all for the purpose of getting a more thorough workout.

Today, I saw an especially egregious example. I was attending this step cardio class, and this one husky guy beside me kept barking like a dog and yelling "Yeah!" or words to that effect. The thing is, half the time, he wasn't even doing the exercises! While everyone else was stepping up and down, he'd be crouching over, but still barking like a dog -- acting as though he were having the time of his life. Sometimes, we'd be doing knee raises, and he would be barely lifting his knees. That didn't stop him from yelling out enthusiastically, though.

Mind you, there are times when I don't have a lot of energy in these classes. There are also times when I don't get the moves right. I would never bark or holler in such circumstances, even if I were the kind of guy who liked to attract attention. Why? Because only a jackass tries to draw attention to himself when he's doing things badly or not making any real effort.