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Old 01-23-2012, 12:16 PM   #1  
fake it till you make IT!
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Default I just had an extreme panic attack before going into the gym?!?!?!?

I just hada really bad anxiety/panic attack in the parking lot of the gym. It was too intense that I had to turn around and come home (luckily i only live 2 mins driving distance from my house to the gym).

I think it stems from a bunch of different things, which are...

1. I havent been to my gym since September & gained 29lbs since then (bad i know).

2. There is an instructor that works there & about 3 or 4 times when I took classes that she was teaching she made me feel very bad about myself. Some instances were 1 time she told me to sit aside bc the move she was going to show the group was too advanced for me. Another time she told me that theres a set of abs underneath "ALL THAT" & pointed at my stomach & 1 other time she compared me to this person and said "JUST BC U DONT LOOK LIKE BARBIE OVER THERE DOESNT MATTER" & yea that was mortifying. I felt like a huge ugly beast when she said that!

3. I know she teaches the early am classes which are spinning and aerobics, but Im not sure about the afternoon class, but I think I saw her name next to Monday 12:10 spin so im pretty sure she does. & I remember 1 time speaking to her in the bathroom & she told me when she teaches spin she seperates the experienced from the beginners, (which NO OTHER INSTRUCTOR DOES THIS!! Iv taken spin for a year now) which I thought was dumb bc were all doing the same thing at the end of the day, shes teaching every1 at the same time so why do that to people & humilate them? So immedietly I thought of OMG IF SHES THE INSTRUCTOR TODAY & THERES ALWAYS SO MANY PEOPLE AT SPIN CLASS SHES GONNA SINGLE ME OUT & EMBARRES ME LIKE SHE HAS IN THE PAST!!

4. I had way too much caffeine this morning & didnt sleep well so they are triggers too!

Soooo bottom line is I cant beleive it was that bad I had to turn and go back home. Good thing is I already did a turbofire workout this morning at 7 but I really wanted to spin too. I love the class and they shut the lights off & have strobe lights and loud good music and its fun. You dnt have to go crazy bustin your rear if u dont want to, you can go at your own place and the lights are off so noone really sees you.

SO anyway I just wanted to share this.

Has anyone else ever experienced gym anxiety???

Iv had anxiety before going to the gym and being in the lobby but once Im through the doors and inside working out it goes away. This time it was just way too intense I had to turn around.

Ugh.
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:24 PM   #2  
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Just a thought... it seems like this one instructor really is unhelpful to your weight loss journey. Is there any way you can call the gym and ask what instructors are there at certain times? Is there another instructor that you'd prefer instead? If so I'd just say something like I really love instructor X and I was wondering when they teach all their classes (no need to say you're actually avoiding someone).

FWIW, DH has this to some extent. There was one trainer at our gym that kept bothering him to be a client. It got to the point that he would ask me if the guy was downstairs when I just got back from a workout and wouldn't go if the guy was there. He's a lot better now (after going regularly when the guy wasn't there and building up more self-confidence) but it can be tough in the meantime!

Oh, and good for you for already getting a workout in this morning!!!!!

Also, what about skipping classes and doing some lifting or using some sort of cardio machine?????
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:33 PM   #3  
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Ah that just sucks! I hope you feel better by now!

I was wondering - people that work at the gym generally do so because they care for being healthy and helping people get into shape. If she has made you feel bad and you are nervous about facing her, maybe you could ask for a moment of her time and explain that you took it quite personal and it made you feel insecure about going the the gym to do what she should be supportive of: getting healthy!

It might seem confronting, but it could help you standing up for yourself like that and it will most likely atleast result in her not commenting on you. Maybe she will even be helpful after that. And also, if she is not aware of the effect she has on people she might be hindering others that feel uncomfortable because of her too. You could help those people by making sure she is aware of her behavior.
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:33 PM   #4  
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I'm sorry you had such a rough start this morning.

You know, I agree that you should call and see what time that instructor is working, so that you can avoid her. But I also think it's time to make a complaint to gym management. They don't really want one of their instructors making clients feel bad - it makes the gym as a whole look bad. If this wasn't a one-time thing, management deserves to know that she is scaring off customers.
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:34 PM   #5  
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Originally Posted by runningfromfat View Post
Just a thought... it seems like this one instructor really is unhelpful to your weight loss journey. Is there any way you can call the gym and ask what instructors are there at certain times? Is there another instructor that you'd prefer instead? If so I'd just say something like I really love instructor X and I was wondering when they teach all their classes (no need to say you're actually avoiding someone).
I agree with this, except I WOULD actually say you're avoiding that trainer. If she's scaring off customers, the gym ought to know and say something to her.
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:36 PM   #6  
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Oh, and I don't agree with the other posters about going to management straight away. It would be only fair if you gave her a chance to improve her behavior by making her aware of what she does.

IF you are certain she does it on purpose and has no regard for the feeling of customers then sure, go to management. But maybe she is just clueless or trying to somehow motivate you in a really weird way.
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:44 PM   #7  
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I agree with all they've said.
You should NEVER EVER let a person sabotage you, because no person on earth is worth this energy! It's your life and it's up to you to make the changes you want and you're making them for yourself. I know, it's hard sometimes, especially when someone is sabotaging you to make fun or perhaps because of unawareness I think you should just ask when some differet instructors work and take their classes. good luck!
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Old 01-23-2012, 12:58 PM   #8  
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Maybe she's a Jillian Michaels wannabe, thinking that putting people down will help them work harder towards it? That doesn't make it excusable by all means...

so If for some reason you don't want to call the gym and complain about her.
and If for another reason you don't want to face her or stand up for yourself when she's being a D-Bag about your weight etc...

Then is it possible that you find another gym where you can feel comfortable without someone like that around? I'm sorry you went through that it must have been awful but you're going to have to face her at some point in time because it doesn't matter that you gained 29 pounds after she's seen you. It doesn't matter that she's a horrible D-Bag, what matter is you are doing something about your weight gain! If the end result leads to you filing a complaint about her or standing up for yourself that's good on you!

(do you watch the biggest loser? well last season there was a woman I think her name was sunny, who was terrified to go to the gym because when she was heavy a bunch of skinny dumb barbie girls started laughing at her and making fun of her because she was fat and doing something about it. You know what she did? She quit...and finally went back when Bob Harper took her back to that same gym...she had to relive her fear from it all over again. Even though those girls we're there...it was still that fear and anticipation of them being there that caused her to stop going in the first place! But going back helped her move on from that fear!)

Don't let bullies bring you down, maybe this is all a relfection on how she feels about herself possibly when she was younger and over weight and now she's bringing it upon you to make herself feel better, because people did the same thing to her? Either way I bet you it really has something to do with you as a person, she's just a sh!tty humanbeing to begin with.

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Old 01-23-2012, 01:05 PM   #9  
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Oh, and I don't agree with the other posters about going to management straight away. It would be only fair if you gave her a chance to improve her behavior by making her aware of what she does.
IMO, that's management's job. It's highly unlikely she's going to be fired based on one member complaint, but the proper role of management is to address it with her. I'd agree that firing her right away would be unfair of her manager, but it's not a customer's job to manage employee behavior and give "warnings" to have them modify behavior.
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Old 01-23-2012, 01:21 PM   #10  
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Oh no! I don't like this situation. An instructor at the gym should never make clients feel this way. I wonder if there are other people at your gym that are having the same issues with her? Maybe you could leave an anonymous tip or complaint, or make a phone call. The management would definitely want to know about this.

The best case scenario would be to go directly to her and let her know that some of the things she says to you are hurtful, unhelpful and make you not want to come to the gym at all. But I understand that anxiety might get in the way of doing that. I've struggled with anxiety my whole life and have had my fair share of panic attacks, so I know how scary and helpless of a situation it is.

You will try again, though, and make it in Sometimes it's just a combination of not being on your game and all the "what if's".
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Old 01-23-2012, 06:17 PM   #11  
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OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, so I myself am a group exercise instructor and this is ABSURD!!! I teach a step aerobics class, a sculpting class, and a core class, and that is NOT OKAY for an instructor to be saying those kinds of things to you.

Sometimes I shadow other group exercise classes to either provide feedback or get some new ideas. I were shadowing a class, and heard an insturctor single out someone in that fashion, I would call them out AS SOON AS class is over!

The fact that she asked you to sit it out is even more appalling/WRONG. As a group exercise instructor, it is her responsibility to offer 3 options: 1) the "normal" way 2) a modification and 3) a more advanced version. ANYONE CAN CHOOSE THEIR OWN MODE!!!

This seriously bothers me as an instructor, and if you don't want to go to management, usually fitness centers have a group exercise coordinator. You should at least talk to the group ex coordinator at the gym you go to, and report this.

Group exercise is supposed to be fun and motivating. It is called GROUP exercise for a reason - so that no one feels singled out/awkward when exercising! If I were you, I would definitely speak up. If they don't do anything, either go to classes that she doesn't teach, or switch gyms! lol
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Old 01-23-2012, 06:18 PM   #12  
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I were shadowing a class, and heard an insturctor single out someone in that fashion, I would call them out AS SOON AS class is over!
I meant "If I were shadowing a class..." lol
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Old 01-23-2012, 08:21 PM   #13  
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If you suffer from anxiety disorder, you shut cut caffeine out of your diet entirely.

As to this instructor- one, I'd report her to the gym. What she did was unprofessional and out of line. Then I'd find out when she teaches, and avoid her--- or I'd find another gym. I have actually reported one instructor at my own gym for being disrespectful to me. The gym took it seriously and had a discussion with her about it.
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Old 01-25-2012, 08:34 AM   #14  
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Oh, and I don't agree with the other posters about going to management straight away. It would be only fair if you gave her a chance to improve her behavior by making her aware of what she does.

IF you are certain she does it on purpose and has no regard for the feeling of customers then sure, go to management. But maybe she is just clueless or trying to somehow motivate you in a really weird way.
Actually, the same way these trainers train us into a healthy lifestyle, they are also trained on the way they approach customers. As any customer service job is.

There is no motivation in feeling mortified & something needs to be said to correct it. Even if she did go directly to her and expressed her feelings, there's no way of knowing that this trainer isn't treating others the same. The most effective way to see that this trainer realizes her method isn't okay for some is to receive corrective action from management.

This will also allow her to file a complaint anonymously to prevent feeling awkward around said trainer.

Last edited by MissGuided; 01-25-2012 at 08:36 AM.
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Old 01-25-2012, 08:51 AM   #15  
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...i know where u r coming from
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