Do you wear your wedding ring at the gym? - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

ncuneo · 08-20-2010, 09:58 AM

So I used to always wear my ring at the gym "just in case" even though back then I was obese and really what was the risk of getting hit on? Well now, I'm lifting more seriously and I wear gloves some of the time and I just cannot wear my ring. In general it's not an issue because the gym I go to is 80% elderly. The area where I live is mostly retired older people and we share a community gym. With the economy being what it is many are renting out their second homed and were getting more younger people like myself using the facility. Anyway, I've kinda made friends with a guy about my age who started coming a few months back and while I wouldn't say our relationship is flirty by any means I feel like I have to tread very lightly because I'm not wearing my ring and I don't want to give him thewrong idea. He doesn't where a ring either so I don't know if he's married and I wondered if there is some gym standard or something. Does anyone really wear their ring and is it safe to assume that everyone is married or otherwise in a relationship and I don't need to worry about getting hit on? This is fairly new territory to me as I was obese for most of my relationship with my husband. In the beginning I wasn't buy I was a teenager and things were different. So I guess I'm just wondering what to do if and when the day comes I get hit on at the gym. I guess the obvious answer is to say I'm married, but I know it will be akward because I can be a flirty person and possibly sending the wrong message. Oy, this wasn't something I expected to deal with...

Meg · 08-20-2010, 12:01 PM

I can't stand to lift with my wedding ring on so never wear it. And I have tons of gym buddies who are male -- because I lift in the big boy section of the gym and there aren't many women there -- but I've never felt that it's anything beyond a lifting partner kind of thing. There's a lot of camaraderie in the weight room that doesn't seem to be male/female, just a shared love of lifting. To be honest, anything beyond spotting each other never occurred to me but I'm a lot older than you, so maybe it's not an issue for us geriatric gym members.

caryesings · 08-20-2010, 01:49 PM

<sigh> my experience similar to Meg's. I'm single and was moaning about the fact that I was going to have to try on line dating when a male friend commented that if I go to the gym nearly every day, aren't men hitting on you there? Nope, have a few married ones that are workout buddies but have never had a single one even try to chat me up.

mandalinn82 · 08-20-2010, 01:57 PM

If you're concerned about walking around without a ring on, but can't lift weights with your ring on, why not go with a simple and elegant solution that'll also make your lifting (in my experience) better...lifting gloves!

They'll cover up your lack of ring-ness. Plus they really improve my grip. Win-win!

mandalinn82 · 08-20-2010, 02:14 PM

Some people have trouble with gloves, some do well. I sweat more than most people just in general during exertion, and sweat on hands led to slipping (unrelated to grip strength, just due to moisture) that the gloves prevent. I do some exercises with them and some without.

Obviously, use of gloves is a personal choice, but I don't agree that they have no benefit if your palms sweat and slide. Just my opinion.

mandalinn82 · 08-20-2010, 02:57 PM

LOL, that's OK, I completely missed that she was already wearing them in her post!

They're definitely not for everyone, but they're a lifesaver for me with my palms so sweaty when I lift that I'll slip even on weights I can easily use when I'm not exerting myself so much.

pinkflower · 08-20-2010, 03:18 PM

I rarely wear my rings because they have pave and are delicate, so I don't want to damage them while working out/lifting. If I know I'm going to be doing treadmill only, or aerobics calss, or step etc that doesn't require me physically holding equipment, I'll wear it sometimes.

On occasion a guy does try hit on me when I'm alone, but I squash it pretty fast, so it's no biggie. Plus it's pretty rare. I also work out with a work out buddy about 75% of the time, so I think it helps that I"m totally engaged with a friend.

How about getting a thin (2mm) plain band? You could even get a stainless steel one for less than $20

nelie · 08-20-2010, 03:21 PM

I never wear my 'official' wedding ring because it is 2 sizes too big and I never got it resized. I will sometime.

I've worn inexpensive rings as my quasi wedding ring off and on but since I started working out more, I hardly ever wear a ring anytime. I'm not worried about getting hit on because I have no problem saying 'sorry I'm married' and some guys wouldn't care if you had a ring on anyway.

There is someone at work who I think is hitting on me but I'm not quite sure. If they are then eventually I'll have to shut them down. There is another guy at work who has hit on me off and on (it is rarer these days) and he knows I'm married and knows my husband.

GreenTeaYum · 08-20-2010, 11:01 PM

I don't wear my ring either when I'm lifting weights- I'm also afraid of it damaging my ring. It also pinches when I'm holding the free weights or heavy bars. I have been meaning to get a small, simple gold band that I can wear at the gym and for doing yard work, etc., but I just haven't gone out and done it.

EZMONEY · 08-21-2010, 07:51 AM

Is it possible to wear your ring on a necklace at the gym?

Windchime · 08-21-2010, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EZMONEY

Is it possible to wear your ring on a necklace at the gym?

That was going to be my suggestion, too. Put it on a chain around your neck. Then you're still wearing your ring, but not on your finger where it's painful or could get damaged.

Mickeypnd · 08-21-2010, 12:41 PM

when I used to go to the gym I wont wear my engagement ring I'm too afraid something will happen to it, or something will damage it.
But I don't go looking for others to talk to me or chat me up. My ear plugs are in my ears the second I step onto a machine and I even wear them when going to the next one. So I've never really noticed if anyone has tried, I stay in my own little bubble.

Josh W · 08-21-2010, 07:22 PM

I know I'm just a new guy here, but maybe in conversation with this person, you could just use the phrase "yeah, my husband does that too"...something to that effect. Just letting it be known, that even though you're not wearing a ring, you are indeed married.

sarahyu · 08-23-2010, 01:03 PM

I haven't worn my wedding ring for years now. I work in a science field. When I was younger, the gloves all were powdered and the powder would get into all the little crevices of the ring and I'd have to get it professional cleaned (used to do it at work but they put a sign on the sonicator "not for jewlery cleaning" -go figure) Or I'd be working with delicate insturments and snag my ring on something important and have to repair it. Just became easier not to wear it.

Then I put on weight and it was too small and I never got around to re-sizing it.

If I get hit on, I make a joke about how my husband wouldn't appreciate me going on a date, "but thanks anyway"

DH doesn't wear his either, again-science field. I don't know if he's ever been hit on. Then again, he's kind of clueless and wouldn't recognize it in the first place.