Dogtown Athletic Rules
- Have Fun,
- Check in When You Arrive. All members MUST check in at the front desk for all classes and Open Gym. If the kiosk isn’t working, please notify the coach or our front desk person.
- Arrive Early and Stay Late. Cheer, clap and encourage others. Anything less is to cheat yourself of the experience and to rob others of the gift of your presence and support as part of the community. Give yourself enough time to sign in, change, and warm-up before class starts. Those of you with smaller bladders (AKA CJ) may also want to reserve some time for a bathroom trip. Most likely that means showing up at least 10 minutes prior to class.
- Clean Up and Put Away Your Toys. Put away all your equipment after each workout. Clean up your sweat, blood and puke. We wish we didn’t have to say this, but don’t spit on our floor. EVER!! Don’t chew gum, and really don’t spit gum on our floor. Pick up your used tape, pens, notebooks, scrap papers, chalk, band-aids, water bottles and sweaty clothes. Pack it in, pack it out, as they say. Put away all the equipment you used back where it belongs. Stack the boxes neatly, put the bars in the racks, stack the plates in order, hang up your jump ropes.
- Keep the Bathrooms Clean. We don’t expect you to be janitors. Just do the simple things like making sure your paper towels and tape end up in the garbage can. If you splash water all over the floor, wipe it up. If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat.
- Work Hard. Form follows function and intensity drives adaptation. What does that mean? The harder you work, the better you’ll look naked. Effort (assuming you can maintain reasonably good form) is more important than any other attribute. Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed if you can’t lift as much or perform as well as other members. It doesn’t matter so long as you push the envelope each and every workout.
- Be Loud. We are respectful but we are not politically correct. We joke, yell, swear, grunt, scream, sweat, bleed, etc. You will too. There is such a thing as gentle, quiet strength, but most of us haven’t mastered that yet.
- Brag Tell your family and friends… Tell them how you’re getting in the best shape of your life. You’re having fun. You’re doing things you never thought possible. Be proud of this. Shout your bad-assery from the mountain tops.
- Dress Code. We don’t need no stinkin’ dress code. Dresses are totally optional… So are shirts and shoes for that matter.
- Get Involved, Introduce Yourself. Dogtown Athletic is more than just a gym. It’s a community. We are a family and you can get as involved as you like. Dogtown Athletic holds social events, contests, sporting events and charitable events. There are many opportunities for you to get involved and if you have any suggestions, we would love to hear them!
- Attend Class. Get in here on a weekly basis! A workout may suck before and during, but you always feel better afterward. You won’t believe the kind of results you’ll see by coming at least 3-4 times a week. All you have to do is get your butt through the door… We take care of the rest.
- Bring things to our attention. If you notice that equipment is broken, lights are out, there’s no toilet paper, bring it to our attention so we can do something about it.
- Go heavy or go home. The only way to get stronger is to increase the load. Always strive to go a little heavier and a little faster, but always maintain good, safe form. Never say, “I can’t.” When you want something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. Push your limits.
- Take ownership. Be responsible and respectful and take pride in your gym. Don’t let others get away with things that are bad for them or bad for the gym. Remind people to take their clothes with them and pick up their water bottles. If you see someone doing something that you’re pretty sure will hurt them, tell them to cut it out. We don’t care who it is — if someone is deadlifting with a rounded back, you can call her out! Safety first!
- Pay attention when the coach is giving instruction. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been training for 1 month or 5 years, it’s disrespectful to have your own private conversation or do your own thing when the coach is trying to give instruction to the class. You may know how to perform each movement off the top of your head, but not everyone does, so just be patient and quiet and let everyone get the full benefits of the coaches’ knowledge. Besides, you might learn something new about the lift that you would have otherwise missed.
