Enablers: Uh Oh, There’s a Girl Deadlifting
Posted on Feb 5th, 2010 by Tony GentilcoreSaturdays tend to be our busiest (as well as our most “diverse”) day at CP. Within any given hour, you can walk in and witness some of our professional athletes training right alongside some of our college/high school athletes.
Moreover, it’s also the day when the vast majority our women come in to train as well, which coincidentally, is the one day out of the week they can actually throw some stuff around, listen to my mother never loved me music, and get after it.
During the rest of the week, however, many of the women are on their own following the programs that either myself, Brian, or Eric write for them. Not surprisingly, they’re often limited with what they can do at their regular gyms (equipment wise), but nonetheless, we’re still able to write effective programming to help them reach their goals.
That being the case, it’s not uncommon for some of the ladies to e-mail me throughout the week to touch base on anything from an article they read in some magazine to questions they may have on their program, or to just brag that they hit a new personal best on a particular lift (which I always love). As well, on occasion, I also receive e-mails like this one:
Today I set off a “lunk-alarm”. I wasn’t making any noise or slamming weights, but rather, doing sumo deadlifts. Apparently it is the policy that deadlifts are not allowed at this gym. Rather than…oh, I don’t know…giving me a polite heads up as to this rule, they PULLED THE LUNK ALARM. Humiliation ensued.I will concede, however, that in the definition of “lunk” it states “one who judges”. Oh I judge….FULL of judgement, this girl. grrrrrrrrrrrrr
Yep, that’s right. No deadlifts allowed. It’s amazing to me how much the industry enables this mentality that women shouldn’t (can’t????) lift heavy things. I realize, in this case, the rule applies to men as well. But I can’t help but recognize how ass-backwards this is.
This isn’t to say that I don’t understand why the “lunk alarm” exists. I get it. I mean lets be honest, sometimes it’s hard to ascertain whether that noise we hear across the training floor is a guy training or someone giving birth to a rhinoceros.
But come on. To make an example out of someone who’s making a concerted effort to better herself by purposely setting off the alarm because she’s deadlifting?
To her credit, she’s not some newbie who’s timid about lifting weights in the first place. She regularly lifts weights three to four times per week. But lets say, for example, that this was a girl who, after being brainwashed by the likes of Oprah and US Weekly for years on end- told to lift light weights for high reps so as not to become big and bulky- finally decided to read The New Rules of Lifting for Women.
As a result, she garners up enough courage to walk into the free weight area and, you know, train. To say that it’s intimidating is an understatement. Dudes reeking of rotten onions, walking around with invisible water jugs underneath their arms, yelling “it’s all you, just the pinkies, it’s all you” at each other. It’s not an easy environment to walk into.
She places a bar on the ground (no different than picking up a heavy bag of groceries mind you) and picks it up.
WOOOOOOOOOOOO WOOOOOOOOOOOOO WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Trainer Douchey McDouchington sets off the alarm and completely humiliates her in front of everyone. Really? Why? And don’t tell me it’s because deadlifts are dangerous. To steal a line from Dan John: driving without a seat belt is dangerous. Deadlifts, are not.
What are the odds that this (hypothetical) girl will end up right back on the elliptical machine? My guess is pretty high. I just don’t get it. It seems many in the industry are just a bunch of cynical enablers. With regards to this particular establishment (HINT: It rhymes with Worst Gym, Ever!), it’s pretty ironic that their way of dealing with “judgement” is to point fingers and call someone out. Pathetic.
This is, in large part, why we started the women’s only training group at CP. Why do women gravitate towards yoga and pilates? Camaraderie. Well that, and the whole intimidation factor that comes with free weight training. That being the case, twice per week, women can come in and learn (the right way) to strength train. And it’s no coincidence that many of them get stronger, leaner, and more confident than ever before. Too, we actually encourage them to make some noise. Fire up the ABBA!!!!!
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Comments ( 15 )
[...] TonyGentilcore.com » Enablers: Uh Oh, There's a Girl Deadlifting [...]
Stress, stress management, tinnitus and the road ahead « Becoming … | Women's Health Wisdom added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 7:13 pm |[...] just started adding weight to my pull ups and chins this week, so I love this inspirational video of a women doing pull ups with a weights vest which Tony Gentilcore has shared. The anecdote about the woman “caught” deadlifting in her [...]
Great links for the weekend! added these pithy words on Feb 12th, 2010 at 5:14 pm |Michelle Becker added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 1:09 pm |I think it’s time for you client to find a new gym for during the week. If it’s the gym I’m thinking of there is a reason that it’s commonly known as P.. Fatness.
Jo added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 1:23 pm |What? I mean I have been to gyms where there was no place to deadlift, but they actively forbid you from doing it? That just blows my mind. Now I want to make T-shirts… Deadlifting Is Not A Crime
Michael W added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 3:40 pm |Planet Fitness is hilarious. Here is a pretty good read on it: http://www.ruthlessreviews.com/884/planet-fitness-no-judgment-day/
They also have free pizza and bagels once a month. The location near me has a bowl of free tootsie rolls at the front desk and about half of its space is dedicated to tanning beds.
she who is not being a hero on the trap bar added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 4:09 pm |I had to comment because I AM that girl. Not the one who set off the alarm, but the intimidated one walking into the weight room, having bought NROL for Women after doing pilates and the like for so many years. And it just so happened to be said establishment I was walking into! Lucky for me, this particular location was a little different than the rest in that it had a larger free weights area, more old school strength training equipment — 3 squat racks? that’s unheard of! — and the management, for the most part, let you be (I even deadlifted barefoot). I sucked it up, kept to myself, and got it done (only minimal aggravations, or the occasional awkward “no I’m not here to meet morons like you” moments). After starting to train with you guys at CP, my knowledge and confidence grew. I actually became friendly with a bunch of the regular guys there. I’d be asked what I was training for (”ah, life?”), about certain exercises I was doing, and if I could show them. I was even coined the “crazy girl” by some, and had been told that they pushed themselves harder and made sure to use better form when I was around. Ha, silly! Sadly, I had to leave there due to the franchise forcing them to turn the weight room into cardio space and a recent move. Though I’m liking certain amenities at my new gym, (I never thought I’d say this) I sort of miss the nitty grittiness and the boys back at what I commonly referred to as “the ghetto”. Though I’ve heard most of them have left for the same reason.
Sorry for the long post! Waterloo…
Justa added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 4:58 pm |I know the chain involved, because I just read a similar story about them. Honestly, I don’t understand why a gym like that has any sort of free weights at all. Any of us that go to a globo gym realize that very few people there work very hard at all. They don’t want to be scared, shown up, or embarrassed by someone busting their butt. The woman involved should move on to another place. There is a pecking order even among globo gyms. Any place that bans deadlifts is not a place for someone serious about getting in shape and improving their health and performance. and, BTW, how is setting off that ridiculous alarm NOT judging?
Bill added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 5:11 pm |I know this isn’t the point of the article, but i wish that video kept going to see what that guy’s face looks like after it gently caressed those dumbbells in order to break his fall…
DL’g should be allowed at all gyms… Not our fault if we know more than your “trainers”…
Niel added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 7:34 pm |You just gotta shake the haters off.
Sometimes, shake really really hard.
Dave Chipit added these pithy words on Feb 5th, 2010 at 9:42 pm |I saw a brief exchange between Pink when she was on Oprah…………..She mentioned doing PX90 (strike 1), and then said she had to stop because she was getting bulky )strike 2) and now simply runs for extended durations (strike 3)……………..I almost threw a dumbbell through the gym TV when I heard that. With the massive audience the Big O (sorry Oscar Robertson) has, it’s disturbing to hear this type of stuff casually propagated, since it genuinely scares a lot of everyday ladies away from stuff that can only benefit them.
Natalie added these pithy words on Feb 6th, 2010 at 1:26 pm |**Thanks Tony for the solid analysis; I completely agree and that’s why I was so upset about it! I mean, I can handle it…but two years ago I would have crapped my pants and gone riiiiight back to the hamstermill. I did speak with the manager regarding the irony of their approach to instilling “judgement free” zones; but do recognize that I have to adhere to policy…aka NOT GOING BACK THERE! I understand completely trying to discourage people from being complete jerks in the gym - it IS intimidating; however, I think that seeing people attempt to get stronger and challenge themselves is always good to see. I always get so psyched up when I see a woman in the weight room really pushing herself! I am lucky to have found an environment that encourages camaraderie among women attempting to…well…just be awesome. :) Hooray CP!!
Zach added these pithy words on Feb 6th, 2010 at 5:02 pm |Hey Tony (or anyone else) can you tell my where you got the power racks in the top two video’s? They look close to the EliteFTS collegiate rack but not exactly the same. I have been looking for another rack with those monkey bar chinup bars. Thanks in advance.
Tony Gentilcore added these pithy words on Feb 7th, 2010 at 11:06 am |Zach,
The racks ARE from elitefts, and I’m 93% sure that they’re the collegiate ones.
Also, thanks for chiming in Carrie and Natalie——-CP is proud to have you two as clients!
Biskit added these pithy words on Feb 8th, 2010 at 11:36 am |I think people are scared of me when I say I had a PR on the trap bar @ 225 for reps! Women scream, men cower, children are kept indoors. Watch out! It’s Mighty Mom! She’s 51, she’s jacked and she’s taking numbers. I am a proud card-carrying client at CP, and I am proud of that fact. I love it when I can take an old couch out to the curb holding one end with no real problem, the end my 17 year old son just put down cuz it’s heavyyyyyy….what?
:)
JC added these pithy words on Feb 11th, 2010 at 8:13 pm |the guy holding the camera totally laughed. so did I but WTF!
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Tony Gentilcore is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Currently residing in the greater Boston area and co-founder of