Paul Poulton shares his reflections on 'gym etiquette' and life.

Image courtesy of [duron123] at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I have been heading to the gym since I was 19. I'm older than that now and have noticed that gyms have changed for the better; also there seems to be more of them.

Gyms are an established part of modern life and a factor in many people's weekly routine. As gyms have widened their appeal, 'gym etiquette' has also widened its scope.

I recently helped design a few posters for a new gym that opened in my area. The posters have been hung around the gym explaining to people in a nice way, that they need to respect the rules of the gym; beware of other gym users and get the best out of the facilities available.

Wherever there is a community of human beings, life will move along with less friction if there are laws to lubricate people's interaction. Moses discovered this in the wilderness.

When you are in the gym - particularly if you are given to sweating and marking your territory on gym equipment - please wipe your beads of perspiration off the equipment when you have finished with it. Many gyms have paper towels for this reason. Think of the person who will be using the machine after you. You may not know that person, but so what? They will do the same for you and wipe their piece of equipment down, so you will have a nice odourless machine, free from unpleasant wet bits.

I like this rule because it's one we can take with us everywhere: Don't be a litter lout. Leave the bathroom like you'd like to find it. If your local fast food outlet doesn't have table service, then please clear away your tray and left-over food. Don't expect the next family who sit down at the table to do it for you. Jesus summed it up pretty well, "Do to others as you'd have them do to you."

This next rule is an unwritten rule, but one that people seem to appreciate. If there is a line of 10 cross-trainers and only one person is using one of them, don't choose the machine that is immediately next to that person. Let me explain: if you go to a church and find yourself sitting by yourself before the start of the service and someone comes and sits next to you, that's thought of as being friendly. If you are in the cinema sitting by yourself, because there's no-one else in there and someone comes and sits in the next seat to you, that's weird. In the gym, people prefer space. They don't want someone on the next treadmill to them coughing and sputtering when there are a number of other machines further away.

This rule is good for life in general too. People need some space. Although there are times when people may like someone to show some interest, there are other times when they don't. Who wants a busybody meddling with their affairs? The proverb is true: "Like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own." We ought to be approachable and interested in other people, but don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. Be sensitive and courteous in the gym and elsewhere.

Serious gym-users who go to the gym to exert effort and develop their physique have been pointing out a new rule that has begun to appear. These hard-working gym members do not use their 'time between sets' to mess around with their phone, (unless they are tracking their work out on a phone, which only takes a few seconds.) Normally, three sets on the bench press shouldn't take too long, but if the person sits on the bench between sets, distracted by social media, their time between sets can extend quite dramatically. This can be frustrating to other gym users who would like to get on the bench press. Apparently 55% of gym-goers waste time on activities unrelated to working out; and checking their phones is one of them.

This new rule got me thinking about why some of us find it hard to sit quietly for a minute or so between sets. I wondered, why do we need to be constantly distracted or entertained? There's certainly a reward to being still in body and mind between hard sets, because we are somehow restored and ready for the next set. This is another lesson we can take into our wider life. If the Lord came to us one day and said: "Can I take you to green pastures and lead you beside still waters to refresh your soul?" We might reply: "Yes Lord, please do, but can I ask if there's a Wi-Fi connection there?"

We sometimes avoid stillness at all costs, as if we are afraid of something we may come face to face with if we don't distract ourselves. But in those times we actually manage to be still for a few moments, we realise there is treasure in the stillness.

Some people seem to carry that peaceful stillness around with them, even when they are busy. Solomon said: "This only have I found: God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes." Perhaps if we are not used to laying down our distracted thoughts in order to be quiet and enjoy the stillness, then the short time between sets may be a good place to start.