The 13 Types of People You'll Meet at Every Gym

Real talk: While working out with buddies is great and you *could* even wind up meeting the love of your life at your place of sweat, sometimes a girl just wants a good solo workout. But the reality is, you're likely going to wind up running into, chatting with, or passing by one of these characters—the 14 people you're certain to come across at every gym.

We think they're summed up pretty darn well in the workout gifs below (and who doesn't love a good workout gif?).

1. The guy made of solid muscle.

He can curl a dumbbell the size of the guy next to him, and you're afraid to get in his way because he just might turn green and rip his shirt off. Watching his muscles move is equally terrifying and fascinating.

2. The guy in jeans.

The forever-mystifying practice of working out in jeans. There's no way it can be comfortable (or even doable), yet there's always that one guy who wears them every workout, without fail.

3. The personal trainer who doles out support.

You never asked for that "Great job!" or that congratulatory tap on the shoulder (and no, you never worked with him before), but who can complain?

4. The shameless selfie photographer.

This offender could be a guy or a girl—and you might be one. There's something about sneaking a selfie every once in a while (this gym wants to open a selfie room) but when the only muscle sore from your workout is the arm you painstakingly extended to get the perfect selfie angle, you know there's a problem.

5. The creep.

You can see him stop what he's doing on the bench to watch you squat. And then he just happens to stand behind you during your cool-down stretch. Ugh.

6. The guy who gives unsolicited fitness advice.

Now you just need a great comeback when he warns you that weight lifting will make you "too bulky." (Ahem, mansplainers.)

7. The grunter.

This guy has his music bumpin' and isn't shy about letting the entire gym know how hard that last deadlift was. Other forms of this noise-polluting gym-goer can include the singer/rapper (who lets everyone know exactly what is on his playlist with his out-of-tune a cappella sing-along).

8. The napper.

You can find them curled up on the stretching mat with their iPhone, or doing never-ending Savasana. If they're really feeling motivated, you might catch them foam roll for a few minutes before they relax into their usual "stretching" sequence of doing absolutely nothing.

9. The competition.

You might not have *planned* to race it on in a spontaneous run with that runner on the treadmill next to you, but you both know the deal. (Related: Is Competition Legit Workout Motivation?)

10. The person getting a thumb workout.

They've been standing on the elliptical for 10 minutes, motionless, playing on their phone. After a while, you see them taking eternally long rest periods between sets, playing on their phone. You bump into them in the locker room and they're sitting on the bench, playing on their phone.

11. The fitness instructor you *love*.

You know: the one who tells the class to check out your form as an example of what to do. Yaaaas.

12. The clean freak.

Can we all take a moment to thank the ladies and gents who take the time to wipe down the leg press machine/treadmill/stair stepper/weights after they use them?

13. The girl who's an absolute beast.

She makes all the guys look wimpy, and makes squatting twice her body weight look like a breeze. Unlike the creep (see number ^^), when people stare at her it's in genuine admiration. Keep killin' it, girl.