Gym Cleanliness - A Deciding Factor?

[dmccarthy]

I've seen quite a few gyms (just from checking out the schools I wanted to attend) and I began to notice that even though sometimes the school seemed good, the gym was DIRTY and NASTY on the inside.

To me, it seems that a clean, sanitary, well kept gym is a sign of a sensei who takes care of their students more than another.

I've had a couple of friends who went to some "dirty gyms" and we've been discussing it for awhile... so my question to you is...

Would you go to a school simply because it was "the best" in the area, even though it was dirty? Or would you sacrifice the "best" in your area for a gym that was clean and sanitary?

My opinion is that I'd rather go to a school that is sanitary because regardless if I'm getting the "best" schooling around, I can still get sick (really sick for that matter) and that isn't worth it to me.

Just for conversation - what are everyone elses thoughts?

[flying gogo-plata]

i wouldn't mind if the gym was dirty as long as the mats get cleaned at least once a day, that's all u got to worry about, and u've got to take into account that most people who are into mma and bjj are prolly 15-29 year old males who aren't exactly known for their cleanliness, hehe, just ask the main instructor a couple questions and try and slip in a question about how often they clean the mats. (i wouldn't ask that only as it could seem insulting and give them the impression that you don't think he does a good job on the upkeep of his gym.) as long as they get mopped down don't worry about any crud on the floors around the mats or stuff lying around, it's the mats ur gonna be rolling on.;)

[Ryan]

Sometimes a place looks "warn down" because of age or constant usage. I mean, if a place was dirty as in sand, dirt and obvious grime I probably wouldn't go but dust and stuff probably wouldn't bother me.

[Oneiros]

Hygiene is important...
for me anyway...
________
Dodge Srt-4 History (http://www.dodge-wiki.com/wiki/Dodge_SRT-4)

[Ghosted3]

Mats need to be cleaned all the time, and the entry way to the mats needs to be clean too. No sense if having clean mats if you have to walk through alot of dirt and stuff to get to them. Like Ryan said, if the place looks like it needs a cleaning but isnt really "dirty" it wouldnt bother me at all. Also it might not hurt to ask a student ther (if you know any) if there have been many cases of staph or ringworm, and that kind of stuff.

[batsugan]

Cleanliness should be very important to all. If an owner/instructor of a dojo won't keep his place clean he is putting his students in danger. It takes very little effort to mop your mats, clean your showers and keep waterless antibacterial soap near the mats. It is pure and simple a safety issue. A staph infection is potentially fatal. That in itself makes the clenliness of the dojo the number 1 safety issue.

[virginiamma]

It depends on what you mean by clean though.

My wife thinks my gym is nasty because it smells like a gym ( sweat and socks ). I think its very clean and well kept though, we clean the mats every night, have good well kept bathrooms, and everything is pretty well kept.

It all depends on your perspective

[PhxRph]

I'm not sure that any level of instruction is worth an infestation of ring worm and/or staph. I stopped going to a gym that I liked b/c I got ring worm all over my arms and legs.

[Ryan]

I remember though in high school that we would shower after every practice in the locker room, clean the mats before and after every practice and even roll up the mats after they dried so nobody else got on them when they weren't supposed to and we still got ringworm. Mostly though through other schools, competitions and wrestling camps. It is damn near impossible to prevent ring worm if you compete a lot. Anyway, I agree that cleanliness is numero uno but like Virginiamma said, his wife thinks his gym is nasty and he doesn't so everyone has an opinion of what "clean" is. I mean, some may think a gym is nasty if the mats aren't "brightly colored"

[dmccarthy]

Thanks for the feedback.

I see what some are saying. I understand some general dust, I'm not asking for a 5 star hotel, but I am asking for basic necessities to be clean.

I've seen the following:

- Shower - FILTHY. Doesn't look like the shower has been cleaned in over a year. The sink is nasty. Its a glass door shower and it looks CREAM colored from all the soap scum, and nastiness. I was bugged out.

- Bathroom: Doesnt have a door for the stall. Floor is grimey as all hell. Sinks dont work that well at all. They SPRAY you with water.

- Mats: I've heard from guys that go to this one gym that they have no idea how often the mats are cleaned. They say they're mopped every once in awhile. The floor surounding the mats and entry way to the mats were very dirty as well.

I bumped into an old friend this last weekend who actually goes to this said gym and I asked him if he thought it was dirty and the first words out of his mouth were: Oh hell yes... the sh*#! is nasty.

I agree with some that there is no way to 100% escape dirt or sickness, but a dojo should take pride in their gym. That's just my opinion.

:)

[flying gogo-plata]

our instructor has a janitor come in aand clean and mop the mats every other day, but mats should really be mopped every day, so a couple of the students are gonna buy swiffer mops so we can just wash the mats after every practice

[jakem]

at our gym anyone who gets there early mops the mats or our instructor picks a couple of guys to mop before he will allow us to train. makes sense he dosent want anyone to get staff,mrsa,ect.

[Ryan]

Thanks for the feedback.

I see what some are saying. I understand some general dust, I'm not asking for a 5 star hotel, but I am asking for basic necessities to be clean.

I've seen the following:

- Shower - FILTHY. Doesn't look like the shower has been cleaned in over a year. The sink is nasty. Its a glass door shower and it looks CREAM colored from all the soap scum, and nastiness. I was bugged out.

- Bathroom: Doesnt have a door for the stall. Floor is grimey as all hell. Sinks dont work that well at all. They SPRAY you with water.

- Mats: I've heard from guys that go to this one gym that they have no idea how often the mats are cleaned. They say they're mopped every once in awhile. The floor surounding the mats and entry way to the mats were very dirty as well.

I bumped into an old friend this last weekend who actually goes to this said gym and I asked him if he thought it was dirty and the first words out of his mouth were: Oh hell yes... the sh*#! is nasty.

I agree with some that there is no way to 100% escape dirt or sickness, but a dojo should take pride in their gym. That's just my opinion.

:)


totally agree. Those examples you said are pretty bad

[Ghosted3]

Offer to clean that place up for a few private lessons ;)

[dmccarthy]

Good idea, however - you couldnt pay me enough to clean that place I saw, trust me.

[CEB]

I've trained in some real rat holes. What I mean by that is very low rent facilities. Namely because there is very little money in real Okinawan Karate and Judo. One place was this old warehouse with a wood burning stove. God that was a cold son of a bitch in the winter.

But the floors were are always clean. Part of our warm-ups used to be cleaning the floors with towel. It is functional and it is a pretty good exercise. Holding a towel in your hands running up and down the floor is a pretty fun time.

[BadKarmaRising]

I've trained in some real rat holes. What I mean by that is very low rent facilities. Namely because there is very little money in real Okinawan Karate and Judo. One place was this old warehouse with a wood burning stove. God that was a cold son of a bitch in the winter.
.


Hey man, round here Judo clubs have Air conditioning and heat! Air in the winter, heat in the summer. :p

[HarryLarry]

I remember though in high school that we would shower after every practice in the locker room, clean the mats before and after every practice and even roll up the mats after they dried so nobody else got on them when they weren't supposed to and we still got ringworm. Mostly though through other schools, competitions and wrestling camps. It is damn near impossible to prevent ring worm if you compete a lot. Anyway, I agree that cleanliness is numero uno but like Virginiamma said, his wife thinks his gym is nasty and he doesn't so everyone has an opinion of what "clean" is. I mean, some may think a gym is nasty if the mats aren't "brightly colored"
Yeah, that's what I was about to say. You can clean the hell out of the mats every day and you still get ringworm every once in a while.

We busted our asses to raise money to buy a couple new mats. When we finally got them, we treated those things like they were worth their weight in gold. They were cleaned and disinfected before and after every practice and tournament. They were rolled, bagged and put in a storage closet every night, but everybody on the team still got ringworm at least once.

I agree that cleanliness is important. I wouldn't want to roll if there was a bunch of filth everywhere, but ringworm isn't necessarily indicative or an unsanitary environment. It just happens sometimes.

[the viking clan 777]

I would not train if the gym is dirty,boxing gyms can be dirty but if you use your own stuff your safe.mma bjj gym"s need to be santary because of the close contact even when the gym is clean the people can be. Dirty I won't roll with a dirt bag iwill tell them you stink if they get mad .to bad they should bath

[Vin 10thPFC]

all i can say is thank god where i train the mats are done 3 to 5 times depending upon classes:) :)

[Ryan]

I've trained in some real rat holes. What I mean by that is very low rent facilities. Namely because there is very little money in real Okinawan Karate and Judo. One place was this old warehouse with a wood burning stove. God that was a cold son of a bitch in the winter.

But the floors were are always clean. Part of our warm-ups used to be cleaning the floors with towel. It is functional and it is a pretty good exercise. Holding a towel in your hands running up and down the floor is a pretty fun time.

Judo isn't a big money maker? Kinda surprising