3/12/2014

Weighty Wednesday: Yes, I'm Trying to Avoid You

I took some personality quiz a while back that was supposed to determine if you were an introvert or an extrovert (I would link to it, but since I just wasted 25 minutes on Facebook and couldn't find it, you'll just have to trust me). Apparently now there's something between the two, called an ambivert, which is what I supposedly am.

Unless you try to talk to me while I'm at the gym.

I hate making small talk at the gym.


I'll be honest with you, here on the internet, in a way that I can't be in person. Yes, I'm trying to avoid you at the gym. Here's why:


  • I have never looked cute while working out, not even when I was young and cute and slim(ish). I don't wear make-up at the gym, I sweat like a boy and my face turns bright red. This is not how I want to greet anyone, let alone the acquaintances that I always run into there.
  • My workout is my quiet time. I don't have to answer questions or try to follow complicated stories; I can just read or meditate or stare at the CNN headlines. And I like it. 
  • I'm horrible at small talk. I think I've forgotten how. Or possibly I've always been terrible at it and I didn't realize it until I had the wisdom you get from being over 40, I don't know.
  • I'm trying to keep my heart rate at 80%, which means I'm pushing myself, which means I'm probably too out of breath to talk anyway. 
  • I only have a limited time to work out. If I have a chat with you, I will lose workout time. And unless you're telling me what's going to happen next on Downton Abbey, my workout time is more important to me than whatever we're talking about. 
  • I always wonder whether you're wondering how I can sweat so much so often and still be so fat. Then I start wondering the same thing, and the shame cycle starts and I wind up at Dunkin Donuts on my way home. 
  • I don't want to do spin or Zumba or whatever class with you. Having an authority figure around when I exercise turns me into a recalcitrant teenager. 
  • We're not close friends. If we were, you would already know that I'd much rather talk to you over drinks than over treadmills. 
I think it's safe to say that my introvert side definitely comes out at the gym. What about you? Do you like chatting with acquaintances while you work out? 

35 comments:

Maddi'sMommy said...

I am the exact, same way. It brings out my introvert in a way that I don't think any other social situation is possible.

Ckrusch said...

You need to find out what will help you meet your needs. It took me a year to figure out what I was doing that was wrong and start losing weight! Good luck!

Emily said...

Ditto!

Jessica Cassidy said...

I hope you will reach your goal very soon. I need also to lose weight :-( I wish you good luck and do not give up :-) You can do this :-)

NetWorkingWitches said...

Love this post! I don't like chit chat at the gym. I want to get the job done and get out. It's not that I'm antisocial but I'm already trying to add extra time to my day to exercise, I don't have time to make it social.

Tonya said...

I don't actually go to the gym, but if I'm working towards pretty much anything and concentrating on that, I don't feel like talking to people. I'm horrible at small talk too and avoid it whenever possible. So, I totally get where you're coming from.

Jeanna said...

I am totally the same way too. I am actually fairly introverted anywhere outside the comfort of my own home. I do all of my working out at home except the occasional kickboxing class where my inner a$$ kicker comes out to play..lol. Oh, and I sweat like a boy too, get the tomatoe face as well ;)

Unknown said...

I am with you on the quiet time. i want to get in and get out quick.

Michelle F.

LisaLisa said...

I don't chat at the gym, I'm on a mission when I'm there. I just want to go , workout and leave. Good luck , I too am trying to lose weight!

Emily Enchanted said...

I pretty much agree with everything you said! My face turns red like a tomato! lol And I learned a new word: recalcitrant.

Unknown said...

I put my ear buds in and haead down, do what i have to do and get out.. I do not like going to the gym, but i know i need to.

mystylespot said...

Haha love the pic! too funny! I know the feeling! lol

mail4rosey said...

lol!! I used to like to go work out with my sister-in-law at the gym because we knew and liked each other. IT was not as fun going alone because people who are acquaintances come over and want to talk. It's hard to chat when they're lounging and you're running (or whatever).

Erin Slocum said...

I know what you mean. People are all about making exercise social, but if I'm actually expending energy to lose weight I'm probably not going to be able to talk to you.

Diana Chastain said...

I agree. Don't talk to me at the gym. I have to put in ear buds and just pretend people aren't there. Otherwise I think everyone is staring at me.

Unknown said...

This post made me laugh I love it!

Lisa said...

I Always Hated The Gym All The Women Dressed Up Like It A Dating Scene!1 LOL!

TerinAleah said...

I'm the same way - I can be an introvert at times or an extrovert, guess it just depends on my surroundings!

Kisa Johnson said...

I don't want to go to a gym because I am big and I know people will make crappy comments like they did the last time I went to a gym.

Unknown said...

I totally agree with you on all of these! So true!

Unknown said...

Although I haven't been to the gym in a long time I do remember those awkward moments of not wanting to chit chat with the other people lol. Working out at home is just as bad but they are little people instead lol.

Kenneth C. Agudo said...

I am an ambivert person since I can be extrovert or introvert. The quiz? I was curious about what it was

Mel Cole said...

Lol for the picture! Hey, it's ok. You are doing awesome in your goals. Keep it up!

Amber Nelson said...

I always keep my earbuds in at the gym. I hate being distracted.

Petro Neagu said...

I like your sense of humor, sounds so much like my husband's :) And I totally agree on the gym thing, I'm so like you when I'm there (which is once in a blue moon, by the way)

Lisa said...

Come on you can do it better you than me!

Bibiana Bailey said...

I am the same way in the gym. I love to go with my friends so I don't stick out like the "weird" girl :)

Unknown said...

This is totally me when I'm at the gym. Well said!

Barbie's Beauty Bits said...

Great sense of humor! I need to keep going to the gym myself. Friends are a great push for me!

Jordyn @ Almost Supermom said...

Ha! Love it! I feel the same way at the gym, I like to be in my bubble and be left alone :)

Debi@The Spring Mount 6 Pack said...

I am shy anyway, but I never want to talk to anyone at the gym or during a work out.

Kathryn said...

I am definitely similar!

Unknown said...

I definitely do much better at the gym when I have a buddy.

Unknown said...

Oh do I ever hate it when someone tries to talk to me at the gym. I'm there to work, not chat! ...and I'm usually looking pretty nasty, so why would you want to talk to me anyway?

Mary Jo - Savin' Green Mom said...

I am crazy horrible at Small Talk, too! AND I haven't seen the inside of a gym in years...I really should get off my butt and just go!