(14e) Organisation of the gym
I belong to a chain of gyms and although I enjoy doing some exercises, there are many moments I think about all the other things I could do (such as meeting friends or practising my hobbies) if sport was not a necessity to keep body and mind in good health. But afterwards, in general I feel better and more relaxed unless I exaggerated. Before going to the gym, I eat something small to get some energy, thereby disobeying experts by eating a snack (e.g. snicker or bounty) so I don’t feel exhausted after a short exercise while life is also much too short to not enjoy the joys of life. But I agree, people who want to lose weight can exercise while getting energy from burning fat and thus should not eat something in advance.
Current situation
Recently many gyms were renovated: redesign of the different
areas and installation of new equipment so gyms improved, except their changing
rooms. In these areas, the gyms changed the system how water from showers is
collected but also the entrance to these showers so they are much more open and
people taking a shower are more exposed to people in the changing room,
although exhibitionists will not mind.
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| Figure 1: Current situation with holes (green) below the shower and person, two sinks (blue) and three toilets (red). Arrows demonstrates how water can flow towards the holes but also to the corridor between showers and even in changing room. |
Today, the water is collected and removed via a small hole
in the floor directly under the person and I think that is an inferior method
(Figure 1). Indeed, during a shower most water flows towards the hole as thus
also the person’s feet while after the shower, some water remains on the floor because
not all water disappeared in the small hole and thus people stand in this water
while they dry themselves after the shower. In addition, many people don’t like
to stand in (dirty) water after someone else’s shower because it may result in
fungal feet infections, and thus several of these people remove the remaining water
with fungi and bacteria to the middle lane instead of removing it via the small
hole because it is the place where they will stand. And thus, although they
don’t stand in the water they removed, after the shower they walk through it
when they return to the locker area. Indeed, I now understand why women are
often not happy when men clean as men sometimes simply move the problem from
one place to another. And because of the location and seize of the holes, if
many men take a shower, there is sometimes water flooding even outside the
shower area towards the changing area and thus a longer distance to walk
through (very) dirty water.
Changes to shower area
I think a better situation is a drain between the showers
and the corridor and a drain between the shower area and the other areas
(Figure 2). In that situation, there is a division between the shower area and
the drier region. Also, the drain will be much bigger (longer) and thus will be
able to collect more water that was splashed in every direction, certainly when
the floor has a small angle so the water is forced to flow towards the drain.
Further, if people want to remove the last remaining water under the shower,
they will move the water away from the place where they will be standing
towards the drain, still not to the corridor so that area remains drier and
cleaner. And when the corridor becomes wet or is cleaned, the drain between the
corridor and area outside the shower area will prevent water floods in the
changing area while the dirty water can easily be removed via that drain
without the need to remove it via the holes beneath the showers as in the
current situation. Doing so, water is always removed away from the shower while
it can’t spread to cleaner areas.
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| Figure 2: How the locker room could be organised to have a little more privacy. Green bars indicate holes to remove water from the shower area while green arrows indicate how people can walk. A wall even allows more space for toilets and sinks. |
Further, although I don’t mind being naked with other men and
take a shower together, I find the area has become too open as men in the
changing room can see men who urinate or take a shower and thus people may feel
exposed. And this while I think that for little money, privacy can increase
significantly (as was in the past). As I mentioned, there is no problem when
men taking together a shower can see each other, after all they are all naked
but it feels awkward if others can watch you. And thus, something as simple as
a curtain can separate the shower region from the changing area so having a
shower or peeing is a little more private.
Less amateurish than a curtain is a wall, be this a brick wall
or one that can be moved. Today, the toilets where men urinate are open and
having a wall would allow the separation of men changing their clothes from
those having a pee. This same wall can also separate men in the shower from
those in the changing area. Further, by having two entrances (and thus exits),
men who only need the shower can enter at one end while those who first need to
urinate can enter via the other side before going further to the shower. Two open
sides thus allow that men, after having taken a shower, can avoid walking
through the place where men with shoes have a pee and thus their feet remain
cleaner. Of course, a separation needs to be installed to avoid being able to
walk from the toilet area through the clean area as there will always be some
men who will feel the need to walk with their shoes through the clean area after
they urinated. Also, sinks can be attached to this wall so men can wash their
hands and face.
Another problem is that the showers can only be turned on or
off. But each person prefers another temperature of the water. And thus, a
system (a tap or a more advanced system as we’re living in the 21th century)
should be present so people can adjust the temperature according to what they
like; with the current system, many men at my gym, including me, complain the
water is much too hot and thus sometimes I continue to sweat after leaving the
gym. But at other gyms the water may be too cold.
Finally, also men want to see the result of their exercises
but in many gyms of this chain, the large mirror is removed from the changing
area so only small mirrors remain above the sinks. And thus, boys and men need
to lift their shirts in the gym area to see the result of their exercises. And
the result of exercises is best noticed immediately after the workout.
The myth that still has supporters
People who sport
produce internal heart and as a reaction, the body starts to sweat to cool
down. A little breeze removes the sweat and helps to decrease the body
temperature. In western countries, i.e. those with cold winters, there are
still some people who believe that "real" men (and women) sport in
cold temperatures without complaining and even claim it is good. And thus,
there are some gyms where temperatures are low. But I think this is not good
for reasons I will explain.
While exercising the
body warms up so the muscles become smoother and thus people are less likely to
have injuries. Indeed, before doing sport, people are advised to do warm ups.
But some people, the so-called alpha male, claim it is good to exercise in low
temperatures. However, look at the reality: most sports (tennis, swimming,
athletics (including running), cycling) are done in summer while other sports
(volleyball, basketball) are done indoor. Few sports are winter sports such as
football when people run short distances as the muscles are too cold to run far
while still people gets hurt easily. And often the best athletes come from warm
countries such as Bold with few having injuries as in warm countries the
muscles are not stiff. However, in colder countries or when the air
conditioners cool too much, sportsmen hurt themselves often when they train in
the cold as the body cools more than it can warm up. Each time scarf tissues
repairs the muscles so they become less flexible. Indeed, training is best done
in warm (although not hot) weather although not in direct sunlight as that is
another extreme as people can also overheat.
In addition, when
the surrounding temperature is low and certainly with a cold breeze as is
possible in a gym with air conditioning, this can be dangerous. Indeed, the
body hearts and sweat, also at the level of the heart and lungs. When cold air
blows on this, the body temperature of that part of the body goes down and
people can become ill. Yes, there was a reason why people in the 'good old
days' told children not to stand in cold air, even when dry and certainly not
when wet or they would catch a cold (evidence-based). One reason is that the
body part can cooldown below body temperature but another reason is that
certain people catch easily a cold is because certain viruses that cause colds
survive in the throat and lung region as they prefer cooler air. And thus, many
people sweating in cold drafts have a cold afterwards so, like me, are
sometimes out for 2 to 3 weeks.
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