That’s been my relationship with Golds Gym since the very beginning. I think the first time I joined a gym right out of college they required me to have one consultation with a trainer. It was one of the most terrible experiences of my life (and probably his too). There was a lot of yelling: him calling me fat and saying I needed to lose weight, me telling him that he obviously didn’t know what he was talking about because THE AVERAGE AMERICAN IS OVERWEIGHT SO I CAN”T BE ABOVE AVERAGE SMARTASS. I was so upset I called my dad and asked him if he thought I was overweight (obviously, no), and then I Googled it to make sure, and then I came to the conclusion that I hated the entire fitness industry because no matter who you are and what your actual needs are, they will tell you whatever they need to sell you their goods. Even if it’s actually detrimental to your own health.
And that hatred hasn’t gone away. I went to Golds Gym recently and that happened again. All I wanted to do was use their machines to check muscle mass, body fat etc… and after the readings, the guy told me I needed to lose 16 pounds. I told him he was insane. He looked at me and said no, I needed to lose 16 pounds that’s what the machine says. I wanted to ask him if the machine said to jump off the 3rd story would he do that too, but I held my tongue and just smiled and said thanks. I went home and Googled to make sure, and yes, yet again, the geniuses at the gym were incredibly incorrect.
But I think the thing that gets me so upset is that this whole industry (alongside media) is really shaping the way we see ourselves, and they are just exploiting every insecurity every man women and even child has to make a buck. It isn’t surprising it just sucks because I don’t think I can believe any article I read out there (academic publications the exception).
I mean at this point, i don’t even know what I want. Health? What does being healthy even mean? Exercising for mental sanity? That’s definitely up there. For dance? Yoga? I don’t even know.
I guess it’s just back to the drawing books for my own fitness goals.
So I Quit My Job and Moved to India 
Hi Anu…I’v been following your blog for sometime…but never felt obliged to put forward my views (mostly because your point of view was worth considering)…well, that is until now…I request you to read this article…I believe this can help you 🙂
View at Medium.com
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I just switched gyms and had to pay for a “fitness consultation” with the new membership. I had a similar experience to yours. I was told that I needed to lose 20 lbs and that my “health age” was 15 years older than my real age. This even though I am within the high end of a normal BMI, I work out with weights 4 times a week, I run for 20 minutes 3 times a week, I don’t smoke, I don’t drink, and I eat healthy.
The part that made me feel really bad though was the woman used software to make a digital avatar to represent me, when she showed it to me it wasn’t anywhere near realistic. I told her that looked ridiculous but she was incredulous. All they want to do is sell me the idea that I am a lost cause without their supplemental packages and personal trainers.
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Absolutely! It’s so frustrating! I think we just have to listen to what we think is right, and just go from there. Because everyone else is trying to make a quick buck- at least that’s what I think!
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