Gym Etiquette

We all share this space. Let’s care for our gym and each other like we actually like being here, treat equipment like you want to continue using it for a while, and help keep the space well kept so it’s ready for us to return again tomorrow. Our community is important to us. It’s at least a part of why we’re all here. Introduce yourself to new members. It is intimidating to come into our crazy family. Remember how you felt on your first day in the gym. Make sure to be encouraging of your fellow classmates. Be willing to share equipment if need be. Try to avoid running out the door at the end of your workout when your gym mates are still working hard. Help new members on the warm-up, especially learning where the run routes are.

Signing In

As a member, it is your responsibility to sign in every time you come to the gym. If you’re taking class, Crossfit, Olympic lifting, and Gymnastics all included, sign in for that class. If you’re taking two classes in one day, sign in for both classes. If you’re working out during open gym hours, sign in for that as well. If you’re in on Sunday, sign in. If you’re late for class, sign in before jumping into class.

This will become even more important in the near future, as we will be adding a class cap to all of our scheduled classes. All classes will be capped at 16. Due to this cap, we will be moving to signing up for class ahead of time. We will have more info to you on how to do this and when you can do this very soon!

Please make sure you have accepted you Front Desk account. You received an email with a link to access this account when you first signed up (or when we first moved you from our old software to Front Desk). If you no longer have this or are not sure how to access your account, visit the front desk next time you’re in this week and let us help you out. You will need this access in order to sign up for your classes.

Another change to accompany this class cap will be the addition of a fee for not signing in before class as well as a fee for not attending a class you have signed up for. Hopefully this will help to keep people from having to miss a class they could have attended.

Safety FIRST!

• We preach safety first and part of that is “never save a bar.” So… NEVER. SAVE. A. BAR!
• That being said, we do NOT drop empty bars (or bars with only small plates on them. Set them down gently. Dropping them damages the bars. This includes warming up and in workouts. You will not ruin your workout by taking an extra second to set your bar down gently. It will ruin your workout if there are no nice barbells to lift with.
• Don’t walk in front of someone when they are lifting heavy (ie: attempting a personal best lift).
• Do not bench press without a spot. Also, do NOT put clips on the bar when bench pressing. This is for safety. If you disagree with this please ask a coach so that it can be explained.
• Do not walk/run in front of someone swinging a kettlebell. It is very hard to stop a bell in motion. They are hard and heavy. You will lose the battle. Just give those swinging ample room to avoid injury.
• Don’t workout right in front of the doors when a workout has running in it.

General Etiquette

• Write your numbers on the board. This will help keep you accountable when it comes to knowing your numbers. Get a notebook and write your stuff down. This will come in handy during our lifting cycles when we work off of a percentage of our 1 rep maxes as well as showing any improvement when we repeat certain workouts.
• The beverage fridge and merchandise are NOT self-serve. There is a staff member in the gym at all times. Please find one if you would like something. If there is someone at the desk, but they are busy, please have patience and wait until they can help you.
• While we love dogs, because of the size of our gym we can not have visiting dogs at Dogtown Crossfit. We have two resident gym dogs and they are usually pretty good at staying out of the way. This requirement is the safety of all of our members.
• Throw your trash away. Clean up after yourself.
• We have cubbies by the bathrooms and the front door. Please try to keep your things off the floor so we can use as much of the gym as possible.
• Lose something? Check the lost and found basket by the back door. Lost something small and valuable? Check with a staff member at the front desk.
• Be respectful in class by leaving your phone alone, listening to your coach’s instruction and tips, keeping your conversation volume low so everyone can hear important instructions. Be respectful of the coach(es) running class by keeping post class conversations at a low volume or taking them outside.

Equipment

• Barbells are stored in one of 3 vertical storage racks or horizontally in the wall racks.
• Stack the weights where they belong and in a neat and organized manner. Bumper plates are stacked by weight. Dumbbells are stacked by weight. Kettlebells are grouped by weight. Notice a pattern? Small plates go on the weight tree by the barbell storage.
• Boxes are stacked against the back wall. Smaller boxes get stacked in a pyramid. Stacking them on top of each other causes a great difficulty in attempting to pry them apart. Larger boxes may be stacked on top of each other.
• Rowers are stored standing on end. Make sure to fold the arm of computer screen down and release the handle from the hook.
• Wallballs are stored on the wall shelves and the floor directly underneath. 8 lbs balls go on the top shelf, 12 lbs balls on the next two shelves, and 14-16 lbs on the next. The shelves are labeled on the right hand side. Storing heavier balls higher risks ripping the shelves out of the wall. All 20 lbs balls and higher are to be stacked on the floor under the shelves.
• RX Jump ropes are stored on the wall hooks in the corner. Please make sure that you return your rope to the appropriate hook based on the length of the rope (easily designated by the color). This helps to keep them untangled (which helps them last longer) as well as easier to find when we need them. Other random ropes that have been left behind can be found hung on the stall bars (wooden bars on the wall). If you have lost a rope, look here first. If you use one of these ropes, return it here.
• PVC pipes and metal pipes used in warm ups are stored in the large green trashcan in the corner.
• Abmats are stored stacked on the wire shelved under the pull up rig.
• Rollers/lacrosse balls are stored in the red buckets by the kettlebells.
• Hand chalk is kept in the buckets. Please do not remove chunks of chalk from the buckets. This leads to hand chalk being crushed and wasted. If we all leave the chalk in the bucket, then there is chalk for everyone when we need it.
• Sidewalk chalk is kept in the small green bucket on top of the stereo. These are used for marking your rounds in an amrap. A tip for new members is to draw a line on the floor near your equipment and mark through the line with your finger for each round completed. This also helps to keep sidewalk chalk from getting turned into piles of colored dust.
• Basically, equipment should be returned to where you got it from, and in the manner it was found or better! Never worse. Always put your equipment away.

Your Membership / General Inquiries / Updates

We love you guys and we love this gym! If you have any questions or suggestions please feel free to email us at: info@dogtowncrossfit.com or stop by and see us in person.
Have an issue with or question about your membership? Having a problem with another member? Have a suggestion for the gym? Need help with a movement? Have something you want to share with the gym? Contact Kelly at kelly@dogtowncrossfit.com.