Gyms
To an American, the existence of some basic physical constructs may seem
entirely normal. In the case of this particular construct, it is also normal to see it in
most modern developed countries. Even though it can be seen in other developed
countries, it is still a crucial component of the modern understanding of everyday
life in the United States because on some level it defines most Americans. This
physical construct is the gym.
Here on RPI’s campus we have a few gyms, including a gym I regularly go to
known as the Mueller Center. I often try to get there around 3:00PM, but most days I
have class until 3:50PM. I try to get there at this time because at around 5:00PM the
place is pretty full of people and there aren’t as many stations or machines free.
Today I arrive at the door at 3:46PM because my class let out a few minutes early. I
walk through the double doors and scan my ID as I pass the main desk. There are a
fair amount of people, mostly on bikes and treadmills, but most of the weight
machines are free. I screwed up my shoulder pretty badly in a ski accident two years
ago, so I always start with an arm bike that I used to use during my physical therapy.
It’s mainly just a precaution so I don’t have to worry as much how and at what angle
I am stressing my shoulder. There is little attention required for this exercise, so I
generally glance around and even occasionally catch a glimpse of the many TVs
mounted above the machines. I’ve always found it odd to have TVs for
entertainment during a work out. Maybe it is because I can’t figure out if working
out is really work or just an enjoyable pastime. To someone like me who doesn’t see
it as a chore, the TVs are just a distraction from doing an exercise correctly, but
really I have no right to comment because my own ears have headphones thrust into
them to simultaneously block out distractions, and provide some slight
entertainment.
After my shoulders are warmed up, I start to stretch out the rest of my
muscles to make sure I don’t damage anything else at the gym today. There is a
corner devoted to stretching that actually has some stretching machines. I find it
odd that these machines exist for a reason I cannot quite put my finger on yet. When
you go through your everyday routine with a critical eye, sometimes things that
have always made sense come into question. I walk to the paper towel dispenser,
fold the paper towel in four after tearing a piece off, and spray the cleaning solution
on it so that I can go clean off the machine. After wiping it down, I walk downstairs
to the free weights. I know red is one of RPI’s colors, but I have always found it odd
that the upstairs machine and cardio room has a black floor with bright lighting and
the floor and stairs that lead down to the free weights floor are red. It brings an
almost comical image to mind about walking down into the deep red-hot gates of
hell. Fittingly enough, the free weights are also located underground so there are no
windows and the lights aren’t overly bright. There is also a distinct change in social
atmosphere upon reaching the bottom of the stairs. There are occasional groups
doing or learning workout routines together, but there are also a lot of serious faces
focused on the task at hand.
I generally try and do an exercise that works multiple muscle groups initially
because it is unnatural to only work a specific singled out muscle and because
muscles work together and get hurt much less often if they can help each other out.
There are so many machines upstairs that isolate muscles, but with free weights
more physical control is required to maintain perfect repetitions. I jump up and grab
the pull up bar that is generally built in to all of the barbell apparatuses, only to
jump down an interrupt my routine as I see a student in the next barbell frame
struggling to re-rack the bar. It is sometimes dangerous to workout alone with
barbells because it forces the person to complete a set with arms extended after
having to push the same bar up a number of repetitions before. This particular
student hasn’t placed the safety racks so that they keep the bar from resting directly
on his chest so he struggles as the bar, now too heavy to lift from prior repetitions,
crushes against him. I quickly move into his field of view and ask if he needs help.
After his quick nod I lift the bar off him from behind. Luckily it wasn’t too heavy, but
upon reflection the strain and panic in his eyes probably indicated a more
dangerous situation then I realized. That’s one thing about going down into the deep,
everyone down here is straining against the heavy weights they themselves have
chosen to burden themselves with. Situations like this rarely occur upstairs because
the weights are fixed upon tracks. This marks yet another difference from the two
parts of the gym.
As I continue my own workout, my breaks between sets are spent taking a
critical view of the gym and it’s two distinct atmospheres. A lot of the students have
protein shakes with them, and the idea of them always has bothered me because the
nutrients are out of the context they are usually found in with real food. This
unnaturalness makes me think of how unnatural it is that gyms even exist. Surely
people did not stay in shape by lifting specially made weights of specific value in
more primitive times. What bothers me the most is the realization that we are using
energy to expend energy. Electric machines are often used to burn off extra energy
and the facility housing these machines uses electricity too. Surely there is a better
use for this energy. A long time ago, people would obtain the same result we do in a
gym by physical labor that helped allow the human world to function and develop. A
railroad worker would never have gotten off his shift and decided that he should go
to the gym to stay in shape. Upon this realization, this work out seems wrong on
some level. Why do we have such a surplus of physical labor? I can’t imagine going
to a developing country and seeing those people going to gyms. As Americans, we
don’t seem to have enough physical work to keep everyone healthy and in shape.
Someone must be providing the means for us to not have to physically work.
Essentially we are wasting human energy, and therefore probably wasting at least
some food on people who will inevitable have to go to the gym to work it off. I can’t
help but think there is probably a better use of humans as a resource as our minds
are stimulated and our bodies are underutilized. I must admit that these thoughts
aren’t entirely a product of this very moment of reflection, but they have been
steadily building to this point where I can finally put my stray thoughts to coherent
understanding.
In America we have plenty of people who are overweight, and unfit. This
waste of potential energy is an established part of our overconsumption and
conspicuous waste. As students our job is to think, but what is our bodies job? We
play sports and transport ourselves under our own power but there is still an
unfathomable amount of energy left to be exploited. Our waste, our consumption,
and the places we build to deal with these problems frame who we are as Americans
and define us culturally. As I finish up my workout I know I won’t stop coming even
if my expenditure of energy is a waste, but I will remember these reflections and I
do think it is important to address this issue no matter how deeply it is routed in our
culture.