Man Escorted From Gym For Grunting

[MikeK]

Man Escorted From Planet Fitness Gym For Grunting
Nov 1, 2006 11:46 pm US/Eastern
Man Escorted From Planet Fitness Gym For Grunting
Image

Tony Aiello
Reporting

(CBS) WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. You can lift, strain, crunch and sweat all you want at the Planet Fitness in the Dutchess County village. But whatever you do, do not grunt.

Yep, "no grunting." It says so, in black and white, on a sign posted at the gym. One former member learned the new rule the hard way.

"This is really absurd, especially the part about the grunting," said Al Argibay, a corrections officer who learned first-hand "no grunting" means exactly that.

Argibay, a former competitive bodybuilder, joined the gym in September because it was affordable and convenient.

Planet Fitness is also somewhat picky, with a long list of dos-and-don'ts posted right inside the door.

"No grunting or screaming" is listed, along with "no bandanas or do-rags."

"We're creating an atmosphere that's not intimidating," said Carol Palazzolo, the gym manager, who yanked Argibay's membership on Monday.

Argibay said he was at a multi-press station, getting ready to squat about 500 pounds when the forbidden sin happened. "I let out a grunt, squatted down, back up, grunt again. That's it," explained Argibay. "Basically, grunt, grunt, basic breathing in heavy, and breathing out."

Grunting is commonplace at most gyms, but not Planet Fitness, which discourages so-called "musclehead behavior."

There's even a flashing light and siren on the wall, labeled a "lunk alarm," which sounds if someone grunts or drops weights on the floor.

Palazzolo admits she called the cops on Argibay. The Wappingers Falls police report said officers were asked to "escort a member out of the club for grunting while working out...which is not conforming with the rules of the establishment."

But Palazzolo said that's only part of the story.

"He did grunt, and when I told him he wasn't allowed to grunt, he got irate at me, he swore, and he yelled at me," Palazzolo said. "I asked him not to [grunt), he got irate and nasty, and I can't have him in my facility if he's gonna do those kind of things."

Argibay denied he yelled, cursed, or acted inappropriately. He demanded an apology from the gym and its manager.

"It's an attack on my character, and it's very embarrasing, and an insult," Argibay said. "At the end of the day, after serving your community as a corrections officer, the last thing I want is to be escorted out of the gym by the local authorities."

Palazzolo is standing her ground.

"I'm not out to hurt anybody," she said. "If he feels I hurt his feelings, I apologize for that, but I do not apologize for the way I handled the situation and I am not apologizing for our etiquette at Planet Fitness."

It's not personal, she said, it's policy. Grunters should go elsewhere.

(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
From Our Partners
© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I have to say the manager is right. She's shooting for a certain client el and has made that fact clear.

[Bill Glasheen]

Oh man... Where do I start?

First... You are right in one sense, Mike. There actually are gyms which go out of their way to seek a certain clientelle. The gym where I teach is one of them. It isn't called Muscle Beach; it's American Family Fitness. It's their business model designed to appeal to a target niche, and they're sticking with it. They're advertising to the "statistical norm" where the bulk of the population (= bulk of the $$) reside.

That being said...

The gym is treading on some shaky ground ousting members for "grunting." I'm sure there's a toublemaker lawyer out there itching for some self promotion who could make life bloody hell for Planet Fitness Gym. Think of the fun (s)he could have here. You wouldn't even need to win the case to "win."

Picture it now. Mr. "This is an Outrage!" lawyer calls a press conference, asks for input from Governor Arnold, and accuses the management at Planet Fitness of being Girlie Men. He could make life so unpleasant for Planet Fitness - publicity wise - that there might be a little money under the table exchanged just to get him to go away.

There was a gym in Charlottesville that had such an overt discrimination policy. They not only posted "No yelling or grunting!", but they forbade members from benching more than 225 or squatting more than 315. I knew a few people (wink, wink) who considered it an honor to get kicked out of this gym.

Anyone who can squat 500 is in a special class. We're talking world class athlete calibre. Those on the U.Va. football team who could do this had names like Tiki Barber. Ever heard of him? And I can tell you from personal experience that when you get up to a certain weight in squats, you either grunt or you blow a blood vessel in your brain. Breathing is a must, and it must be done against a resistance. That means you're going to make some noise.

In any case, the Metrasexuals can have their gym. God bless the girlie men, and the women (??) who love them.



- Bill

[Van Canna]

That's it," explained Argibay. "Basically, grunt, grunt, basic breathing in heavy, and breathing out."

Try that in a traditional Uechi dojo, and you will be 'kicked out'

[Van Canna]

[Valkenar]

Breathing is a must, and it must be done against a resistance. That means you're going to make some noise.

Well, the whole thing has a bit of a mountain/molehill aspect to it, but I don't think grunting is really obligatory. You can definitely exhale under pressure without engaging your vocal chords. You can use your lips, or just partially close your glotis, for example. There may be a psychological difference, I can certainly believe that someone might feel more powerful with a manly grunt, but I'm not really seeing how it's a physiological necessity.

This issue doesn't really matter to me, though I will say that I can see someone's point about a gym filled with people who are there to grunt and show off more than just work out. Not that grunting means you're showing off, but there definitely are guys who will make a big show of it for the audience. And it seems reasonable to find that annoying.

[Van Canna]

This issue doesn't really matter to me, though I will say that I can see someone's point about a gym filled with people who are there to grunt and show off more than just work out. Not that grunting means you're showing off, but there definitely are guys who will make a big show of it for the audience. And it seems reasonable to find that annoying.

I agree with this. Some real A!@@$ in gyms.

[MikeK]

In any case, the Metrasexuals can have their gym. God bless the girlie men, and the women (??) who love them.

Sadly I can't bench 225 or squat 500, so I guess I'm a girlie man and my wife is somehow less of a woman for loving me.
IMO the goal is to get people(skinny, fat, young & old) into the gym, get them working out and getting them healthy. If some grunting muscle head is keeping them out of the gym and someone offers a gym that's "grunt free", then they should be applauded and not made fun of.

[Bill Glasheen]

Well...

First, I can't squat 500 either, Mike. But I could squat more than the "legal limit" at the Charlottesville gym. The rules became a game for serious lifters in the small town. Word travels about how people get kicked out. And truth be told, every situation operates on a Pareito distribution. For example, everyone knows that a small percentage of people in any dojo know the vast majority of martial arts. If you kicked these people out, there would be no martial art. The fascist rules in the Charlottesville gym may have contributed to its ultimate failure.

AFFC - where I work out and teach - advertises to and gets middle-of-the-road people. But a small number of people (including yours truly) know how to lift properly. I don't lift at 52 what I did when I was 30, but the quality of my lifts (necessarily) are superb. I get "ordinary" people coming up to me all the time asking me how to do what I do, and I don't hesitate to help people who I see are doing things which I know won't help them because I understand physiology and a few basic laws of physics. Most basketball players are normal playground players at the gym, but 2-time NCAA player of the year Ralph Sampson shows up now and then. Do we ban him because at 7 ft. 4 in. he can almost dunk on his tiptoes?

Again, these rules border on discrimination. I frankly would love to see them challenged just to see the law at work (from an academic point of view).

To Justin's point, I disagree with his assessment. If yelling didn't help, then there would be no kia in karate. Perhap he's never had twice his weight on his back with thighs parallel to the floor, or tried to heave his body weight over his head. Personally when my epiglottis resists past a point (it works much better than the lips, BTW...), the vocal chords start sounding. I cannot stop it. I've tried, but it affected my lift. Past a point, you just say F it and do what your body tells you to do. It's Scott Sonnen's philosophy of "being breathed" in play. Understand, Justin, that I know "screamers" when I see them. I know karateka who huff and puff, but it's all show and no go. But when you've been doing this stuff for decades and done tens of thousands of repetitions of things, your body solves the min/max problem by its lonesome. I don't need some tiny-balled fascist telling me how to breathe when I've got enough weight on my back to destroy my spine permanently if I mess up. I don't need them telling me how to breathe when I'm heaving my body weight over my head. That's just dumb.

Several Olympics ago, NBC (?) did an amusing story on "screamers" in the Olympic games. And wouldn't you know that the preponderance of them were in the power events such as shot put, discus throw, javelin, and classic Olympic lifts. What do these world class athletes know that the "silent majority" don't? Do you think they do it for show? Do you think people who practice power events have something to teach martial artists? Hmm????

And to my point, American Family Fitness Center is cleaning up in the Richmond area. They advertise to the center of the statistical distribution, but do not discriminate against the outliers. In my view, it is neither legal nor wise to do so. There is a most pleasant, representative sample of the human population in that gym. You see women suffering from MS working out right alongside boys at home from college sports trying to stay in shape. I regularly see both pregnant women and bodybuilders lifting. You get my 12-year-old (some time back) son playing basketball with Ralph Sampson. And you know what? Gold's Gym can't make it in this city, while Bryan can't build his AFFC clubs fast enough. The West End location was full the day they opened it. That's why it went to 24 hours.

Food for thought.

- Bill

[Mary Chant]

The discussion on this thread reminds me of an old employment management maxium, "90% of the employment law is to deal with 10% of the employees;" just substitute rules and members for employment law and employees, and it sounds like there is a fit.

I always hate it when we have to resort to codifying what civilized behavior is because of a few people.

Couldn't there be separate grunt-free and grunt-friendly zones?

Mary

[Stryke]

There may be a psychological difference, I can certainly believe that someone might feel more powerful with a manly grunt, but I'm not really seeing how it's a physiological necessity

that just means you dont get it , the voice is a link between the physical and mental , the lesson of the kiai esapes Uechi ryu it seems .


seems some gyms are going the way of generic karate clubs and catering for the weak , nothing to do with totals and lifts , but weak character being intimidated by those acheiving .

shame on the guy who calls himself a man who is scared of by another exerting and grunting .

personally would make me want to try harder .

maybe there insensitive to the acoustics ...

If you cant get primal in a constructive way , well your already dead .

Sadly I can't bench 225 or squat 500

500 is a lot my man ... thats juice territory

if you cant tell this pisses me off , Gyms were once for training .... I have had issues not from grunting but from putting weights down to heavily ...

I mean really you pick that up ........... it affects no one who has a set .....

[AAAhmed46]

There may be a psychological difference, I can certainly believe that someone might feel more powerful with a manly grunt, but I'm not really seeing how it's a physiological necessity

that just means you dont get it , the voice is a link between the physical and mental , the lesson of the kiai esapes Uechi ryu it seems .


seems some gyms are going the way of generic karate clubs and catering for the weak , nothing to do with totals and lifts , but weak character being intimidated by those acheiving .

shame on the guy who calls himself a man who is scared of by another exerting and grunting .

personally would make me want to try harder .

maybe there insensitive to the acoustics ...

If you cant get primal in a constructive way , well your already dead .

Sadly I can't bench 225 or squat 500

500 is a lot my man ... thats juice territory

if you cant tell this pisses me off , Gyms were once for training .... I have had issues not from grunting but from putting weights down to heavily ...

I mean really you pick that up ........... it affects no one who has a set .....

Hear, Hear, a gym is a gym, for exercise.....HARD exercise.

If they dont want people to take thier shirts off...i can respect that.

But grunting?

[Rick Wilson]

McGym?

[Willy]

I have had issues not from grunting but from putting weights down to heavily ...

I remember how pissed you were!

They haven't progressed in your absence, they never will.

[fivedragons]

This is totally absurd.

I have this great visual of ten or twenty miscreants scattering while I make a bunch of animalistic sounds.

[fivedragons]

Seriously, kiai jutsu is the basis of karate. Movement is sound.

If you sound like an animal, you become an animal.