Approaching someone at the gym that is doing something wrong, would you?

[BillyBatts]

I have been working out on and off for close to 40 years. Yesterday, someone who I occasionally say hello to in the gym POLITELY approached me to give me some advice on my form (or should I say lack thereof). He pointed out that I was bending my back way too much when I did lat pull downs and cable rows. In essence, I was incorrectly using my lower back to perform the movements instead of my arms and lats. He of course was 100% correct. I appreciated his advice and I thanked him several times.

Weight lifting is a lot like golf. You can fall into bad habits that need correcting from time to time. My advice is to be friendly, approachable and humble in the gym. It will pay big dividends in the long run.

[nsxmatt]

It's amazing how far a little polite greeting will take you in a gym. I joined a gym 3 or 4 years ago and I only had 2 friends that I spoke with after about a year and a half. Within the past 6 months, I have taken the initiative and said hello to a lot of the familiar faces in the gym. Now I am on a friendly basis with 30 to 40 people in my gym.

That is good and bad. I for one want to go workout and go home. I've been at my gym for 3 years and have talked to many people. But the more you know the more you are constantly stopping and having to talk which drags out a workout and breaks your focus. You also then become one of the annoying people who lean up against a machine and talk loud for 30 minutes when other people try to workout.

Friends are good, being the social butterfly at the gym is not. Gym = place to workout.