Can't A Girl Use the Bathroom, LA Fitness?

If a towel is left on a fitness machine at a gym, more than likely it
was forgotten there by its owner. Even if it is obvious one is
attempting to reserve the machine, I think the policy at most clubs is
essentially, "Move your feet, lose your seat." You don't own it, your
name's not on it, it's fair game. I don't believe it's fair to make
others wait while someone goes to the restroom, others who perhaps
took care of all their business before venturing out onto the gym
floor. I suggest you visit the bathroom upon arrival, then choose a
machine.

If someone puts their towel or anything else on a seat, it's
universally understood as a placeholder. Most well-meaning people
read that placeholder as "I'm coming back, please don't take this
spot."

I have no doubt she understood very well that someone had reserved the
bike with the towel, and that her response to the signal for "I'm
coming back, don't take this spot" is "who cares; I don't care about
anything but my own immediate needs and wants, and courtesy is not a
priority for me, so I'm going to take your spot anyway,
nyaanie-nyaanie-nyaah-nyaah."

The front desk clerk wasn't hovering around the bikes waiting to usher
customers to available bikes. The front desk clerk more than likely
had to be summoned by Princess here from behind the desk to remove the
towel and validate her bike-rustlin' scheme.

She roped in the front desk clerk, probably not in the friendliest
way, to help her claim the bike, which spells "passive aggression" in
96-point Arial Bold, as far as I'm concerned. Aggressive enough to
take the bike you'd marked, but too cowardly to do it without
enlisting the front desk to do it for her.

I'd have just gone out to the open area where the stationary bikes and
ellipticals sit, and worked out there, instead of in the class. But
if I saw a way to sabotage the passive-aggressive wench on some other
occasion, don't think I wouldn't take the opportunity. If you see the
beeyotch get in the showers, for example, pick up her clothes (or an
integral part of them, such as her pants or skirt) and leave them in a
sink in plain view, fully saturated with water.

People know what the towel means. You wanna play that way, and
pretend like you don't know what the towel means and you had to get
the staff to remove it for you, I think you deserve whatever you get.

The employees aren't wrong in giving up the bike to another member- in
fact, how would you expect them to know that you went to the bathroom?
They may have just thought it was someone else's towel left from the
previous class. How were they supposed to know? Where is there to
admit wrong and assume responsibility? For what?

It reminds me of lounge chair hogs on cruises! Not that you were
hogging the bike, I see the logic and necessity, it just struck me as
similar with the whole towel thing.

I'm torn on this. When I used to goto the gym it was a smaller one in
town that was privately owned.

It used to drive me nuts when someone would plant their stuff down on
a piece of equipment and then just leave it there. I had to get the
manager quite a few times to remove it, but he would always ask to
wait a few minutes to see if the person just ran to the bathroom.

A couple of times he would remove the stuff and the person would show
up 10 minutes later yelling at me.

Sometimes the stuff would be there 20-30 minutes.

On the other hand I understand that if you finally get that piece of
equipment and have to run to use the bathroom its tough to give it up.


I guess it would have to come down to whatever the gyms rules are.

If it was filling up, couldnt you just tell someone nearby to watch
your stuff, while you run to the restroom quickly.

Perhaps this may have helped



Good Day

I've never joined a gym, so I guess my opinion of the matter is based
on what the "official" rule of the gym are in dealing with this
matter, and not what the patrons "make up" for the rules. I haven't
checked on their website or whatever, but when OP mentions the gym
"changing the rules without notice," was this an actual rule of the
gym? Or was it a form a courtesy utilized by the patrons and NOT a
rule of the gym?

I do think the clerk was out of line saying that OP "should have went
to the bathroom" before she left her home. A simple "bikes cannot be
reserved while others are waiting for them" (if this is indeed policy)
would have been more professional and less accusatory.

You're right...in my gym there are two types of spin classes - the
more popular times you need to reserve a bike, and the others it's
first come first serve. I go at 6:30 in the am before work - I put my
towel on the bike and then go to the locker room to change - as does
everyone else (and it is encouraged by the instructor to make sure you
get a bike). Everyone respects the fact that you have "reserved" a
bike.

I suspect the other responders aren't frequent gym goers.

My only advice is to not only use a towel next time, but also put your
water bottle, and maybe even a magazine/book (even if you don't intend
to read while you're on the machine), on the machine, to indicate, "I
was here, I'll be right back."

The person who got on your machine knew full well that you would be
back to use it.

i've never heard of reserving a bike before a class either.

although you're annoyed i can see the gym's point of view.


if they simply left all bikes "untouched" where someone had left a
towel, then the people who workout and leave towels behind would
therefore have a bike "reserved" for the rest of the day.


more importantly if the class fills up and there's perhaps one or two
bikes left that have towels on them... then yes they have the right to
de-towel the bikes.

as far as they know the person who "reserved" the bike scampered off.


and yes their suggestion of using the restroom first isn't a bad one.
even if you disliked the suggestion it does solve the issue.

they are under no obligation to enforce rules that the patrons invent
for themselves

I agree with the OP completely. This is standard at many gym classes.
The towel indicated "I'm here, I'll be in this class, and I will use
this bike."

As a frequent gym attendee, this is standard practice and MANY people
do this. THe gym staff handled this inappropriately.

Maybe LA Fitness doesn't go by this rule. Did you see it posted
somewhere that equipment may be reserved by placing a towel on it?

"Her comment was inappropriated and insulting."
How is explaining that you can't reserve equipment with a towel, and
if you need to use a restroom you should do so before getting on the
equipment insulting?

"The manager ... never said the clerk was wrong for removing my towel
from the bike. He offered me a sport's bottle for my troubles. How
insulting." The manager apparently didn't feel the clerk was wrong.
He offered you a small token to smooth over the misunderstanding on
your part that you didn't understand the procedure. You didn't accept
the resolution, and translated his offer into to an insult.

"Have professional staff members operate the facilities." From my
read, Kim and Phil acted professionally. I didn't feel they were rude
or insulting as they explained the procedures to you.

"The employees should admit when they are wrong and accept
responsibility." I didn't see evidence the employees were wrong, but
it is possible they were if the customer is always right.

should another paying member sit around watching your towel hog the
equipment? You know it's a popular class,and you want fairness for
everyone. That includes not tying up the cycles while others are
waiting. Do you really need them to have a sign saying this? You say
they should "not change the rules without giving the members an
opportunity to know the rules are changed". Do they have a sign saying
that you *can* reserve equipment by leaving a used towel on it?