Man Escorted From Planet Fitness Gym For Grunting
SLIDESHOW: Man Booted From Gym For Grunting
Is it ok to grunt while working out?
What other sports should ban grunting?
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Tony Aiello
Reporting

(CBS) WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. You can lift, strain, crunch and sweat all you want at the Planet Fitness in the Dutchess County village. But whatever you do, do not grunt.

Yep, "no grunting." It says so, in black and white, on a sign posted at the gym. One former member learned the new rule the hard way.

"This is really absurd, especially the part about the grunting," said Al Argibay, a corrections officer who learned first-hand "no grunting" means exactly that.

Argibay, a former competitive bodybuilder, joined the gym in September because it was affordable and convenient.

Planet Fitness is also somewhat picky, with a long list of dos-and-don'ts posted right inside the door.

"No grunting or screaming" is listed, along with "no bandanas or do-rags."

"We're creating an atmosphere that's not intimidating," said Carol Palazzolo, the gym manager, who yanked Argibay's membership on Monday.

Argibay said he was at a multi-press station, getting ready to squat about 500 pounds when the forbidden sin happened. "I let out a grunt, squatted down, back up, grunt again. That's it," explained Argibay. "Basically, grunt, grunt, basic breathing in heavy, and breathing out."

Grunting is commonplace at most gyms, but not Planet Fitness, which discourages so-called "musclehead behavior."

There's even a flashing light and siren on the wall, labeled a "lunk alarm," which sounds if someone grunts or drops weights on the floor.

Is it ok to grunt while working out?

Palazzolo admits she called the cops on Argibay. The Wappingers Falls police report said officers were asked to "escort a member out of the club for grunting while working out...which is not conforming with the rules of the establishment."

But Palazzolo said that's only part of the story.

"He did grunt, and when I told him he wasn't allowed to grunt, he got irate at me, he swore, and he yelled at me," Palazzolo said. "I asked him not to [grunt), he got irate and nasty, and I can't have him in my facility if he's gonna do those kind of things."

Argibay denied he yelled, cursed, or acted inappropriately. He demanded an apology from the gym and its manager.

"It's an attack on my character, and it's very embarrasing, and an insult," Argibay said. "At the end of the day, after serving your community as a corrections officer, the last thing I want is to be escorted out of the gym by the local authorities."

Palazzolo is standing her ground.

"I'm not out to hurt anybody," she said. "If he feels I hurt his feelings, I apologize for that, but I do not apologize for the way I handled the situation and I am not apologizing for our etiquette at Planet Fitness."

It's not personal, she said, it's policy. Grunters should go elsewhere.
http://wcbstv.com/topstor...35233.html

there really is no need to grunt.

sosgemini said:

Uhhh ~!

XxAxX said:

na na na naaaaa...

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

nick cannon?

purplerein said:

master p.

There's a sign at my gym that says "No loud grunting"

I hear lots of snake like hissing

ThreadCula said:

i want them muthafuggin snakes outta this muthafuggin gym!

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

sosgemini said:

Oh really? You ever tried heavy squats or dead lifts? Sometimes, you can't help it. I grunt, but not real loud.

XxAxX said:

...at the gym.

sosgemini said:

is it wrong of me to grunt whan i post?

XxAxX said:

:looking up whan in the dictionary:
[Edited 11/2/06 14:45pm]

what are you lookin' up "whan" in the dictionary for?

sosgemini said:

XxAxX is spelling challenged

If you have to grunt, it's too damn heavy.


The only grunting I've done in the gym was.....in the showers.


M

MIGUELGOMEZ said:

No pain, no gain!

uPtoWnNY said:

in the shower???

I had to change offices because of the grunting on the adjacent tennis courts. It's totally unnecessary as a regular practice, though I'd be okay with the occasional extreme-exertion type grunt.

purplerein said:

For Miguel, in the shower...for me, on the gym floor.

uPtoWnNY said:

that's it. I'm wearing 2 pairs of sandals when i go to the locker room.

if only my gym were so strict!

but seriously, i've never heard any grunting problems at my gym. then again, i play my earphones loud enough to drown out my gym's hideous techno muzak, so people could grunt to their heart's delight and i wouldn't know it. hell, i probably grunt and don't even realize it.

uPtoWnNY said:

Hmmmmm.....

M

purplerein said:

You should see some of the shennanigans that go on in the sauna room at my gym. It's why I never go in there.

uPtoWnNY said:

we don't even HAVE a sauna at my gym. i think that's why everyone's pretty much down to business there. go in, work out, go the hell home.

Anx said:

so you can do shenanigans in private?

purplerein said:

home is a great place for shenanigans!

I've never shenanigged in a gym shower. I kid.

....or have I?


M
[Edited 11/2/06 15:35pm]

The music is usually playing so loud at my gym that I don't notice any grunting.