This morning, as I was working out on one of those hamstring machines that has you lying on your stomach, face forward and raising the weights with your ankles, a personal trainer approaches me from behind, puts his hand on my back and tells me that this position is exposing me, that I should preserve my dignity and there are other machines that I can use "without shame" that will exercise the same muscles (the machines he pointed to were for quads, not for hamstrings but that's just a small point).
I asked him to remove his hand and was touching a woman he had never met also a part of preserving her "dignity". When I complained to the general manager, however, that manager defended the personal trainer (who had interrupted a session with a paying client to monitor me). The manager said he himself touches people all of the time, that it's good to have someone stop women from being "exposed".
I think this is a terrible atmosphere for a woman to work out in, and I am now about to cancel my membership. Not that it's relevant, but none of my skin was exposed, nor should I feel restricted by what machines I use by someone else's (a personal trainer no less) mixed-up sense of "dignity". And to have his inappropriate touching and monitoring be supported by the manager? What kind of company is this...
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