The pros & cons of working at a gym!

I've been working at the front desk and in sales at a gym now for a year and three months. Post college graduation, I was so lost. I worked as a receptionist at a law firm, as a dance teacher, as a substitute teacher in public schools (worst experience EVER), and interviewed to be a nanny. Then on a whim I applied to work at a new gym opening in my town and it's one of the best things that's ever happened to me. But with any good thing, comes some bad, annoying, and downright strange things. Here are the pros and cons of working at a gym.

PROS:
+ You own 20 or more pairs of black leggings, and that's all you ever wear.

+ You're a local celebrity. Almost anywhere you go in town, people recognize you as the front desk girl. Autographs, anyone?

+ You get paid to socialize with people and talk about fitness all day long. Great if you're an extrovert like me! (Possibly horrifying if you're an introvert.)

+ You are in close quarters with your coworkers and will spend hours and hours with them. You'll probably make some of your best friends here! Friends who lift together stay together. #squadgoals

+ You stay inspired by these amazing weight loss stories of your gym members. They are the ones that keep you smiling and remind you why you love this job, one before-after picture at a time!

+ You get a free gym membership and when you clock out, you're already at the gym! No room for excuses there kiddo!

+ If you don't know what to do for your next work out, there is at least one personal trainer on staff who will be more than happen to write you a workout plan that will kick your ass into next week as they stand by watching you and snickering to themselves.

+ You get to listen to bumpin' gym music all day long. And dancing at the front desk is usually not discouraged.

+ If you don't reach your daily step goal every day, you're not trying hard enough. You have a big ass gym to walk around all day. Between hourly walkthroughs of the facility, dancing at the front desk, and even walking to the bathroom, I usually hit 5,000 steps alone while I'm at work. Bam, bitches!

+ Sometimes people are in the best mood when they come in to work out. They ask you questions, engage in conversations about fitness, and make you feel like a powerful, all-knowing, expert-on-everything health and wellness goddess. Bow down.

+ The feeling of selling a gym membership to someone who is just so damn excited. You can tell how much this means to them. They're taking their health into their hands and they're committed. They're excited. They're asking questions and signing up for classes. These people are the bomb. The easiest sale and the most inspiring, by far.

CONS:
- You own 20 or more pairs of black leggings, and THAT'S ALL YOU EVER WEAR.

- You're a local celebrity. You can't even go buy a box of tampons at RiteAid without someone recognizing you as the front desk girl.

- For the most part, all of your coworkers are good-looking so there's a good chance at least a handful of them have hooked up with each other. Drama at the workplace, woohoo!

- You are in close quarters with your coworkers for hours and hours. You will get sick of each other. They'll do infuriating things and be stupid af sometimes. But isn't this true of all jobs???

- You spend nearly all of your 8 hour shift standing and walking around. Ouch, legs.

- You can't work out at your own gym for more than 10 minutes without someone who recognizes you as the front desk girl asking you for help on how a piece of equipment works. Sigh.

- Strange humans will hit on you, ask you out, and maybe even propose to you. Hey, it happened to my manager. It can happen to you. Consider buying a fake, plastic (but shiny and convincing) engagement ring for yo'self.

- Sometimes people are in the worst mood when they come in to work out! They can be a little dark cloud of frustration and angst. Your job is to break through this and make them smile!

- Any kind of billing issue. Damn, people sure can get pissed about their money.

- Trying to sell a gym membership to a frustrating person. There are those people who walk into the gym in a confused daze, are convinced they know everything about fitness and don't need classes, or need more time to "think about it". These people are so irritating! I'm sorry but if you have let yourself get to a point where you know you need a gym membership, there is no time to think about it. Especially if a doctor is telling you to. Trust me. I have your best interest at heart. I want to be the first chapter of your success story and I want to witness you achieve your goals. Trust me! Get a gym membership! Take the classes! It works if you work!


In all honestly, working at a gym is super frustrating sometimes but it changed my life for the better in all ways. I'm more active, happier, more social and outgoing, and I really have met some of my best friends here. If you're thinking of working at a gym and don't know if it might be right for you, ask yourself these questions:

• Do you genuinely enjoy being around people constantly?
• Is fitness and health a major part of your life? 
• Could you stand being on your feet for almost your whole shift?
• Do you handle rejection and frustration well/are you able to shake things off easily?
• Can you be over-the-top, enthusiastic, and motivational for a whole bunch of people who NEED you to inspire them to even enter the gym?

If you answered YES to these, then go for it! And let me know how it goes.

Do any of you work in a gym?

What are the front desk workers at your gym like?

Would you even consider working at a gym if you don't now?