Today, it’s common to see phones propped up on machines, or balanced against walls where gym-goers are filming themselves for social media – some even posting live.

If you haven’t noticed it, the chances are you’ve been in someone’s background footage without even realising. A survey by Velotric found that almost 1 in 10 had been photographed or videotaped without their consent while working out. As a result, just under 50% of participants thought gyms should ban cameras and smartphones to alleviate privacy concerns.

While privacy is a justifiable concern, phone use can also lead to a lot of time-wasting, where others at the gym have to wait for machines as people insist on playing back their footage, or get lost scrolling on Instagram.

For many people that go to the gym, their workout is their “me” time, and a break from the rest of their world. Unfortunately, the influx of people filming their routines and workouts has led to many feeling that they can’t go to the gym in peace.

With most not wanting to cause a confrontation, some gyms have taken steps to control the trend. Both Pure Gym and Virgin Active here in the UK have banned photography, recording or live streaming unless permission is sought.

Meanwhile, at places offering on instructor-led classes, some are following the likes of CorePower Yoga, where instructors are allowed to make their own decisions on whether they’d like a phone ban for the session.

Whilst the conversation has started, what gyms don’t know is whether people have cancelled their memberships already because they’ve either been upset or irritated by machine-hoggers, posers, or wannabe gym-influencers.

Tom Summers of Pinnacle Performance thinks gyms should be taking the idea of banning phones more seriously. After all, he argues, gyms are trying to sell scientific results – going to the gym means you should be learner, stronger, faster and lighter. How effective can you be in pushing yourself if your brain is still elsewhere?

Mobile phone distraction affects the intensity of your workout and diligence with rest times. Tom points out that development in the gym requires neurological and mechanical adaptation, and unfortunately being on TikTok at the gym means you are severing the pathways needed to train your brain together with your muscles for the results you signed up to get in the first place.

So mobile phones and earbuds can be a distraction, but they also represent isolation. As we have seen with the popularity of our phone pouches at comedy and music gigs, artists and fans want phone-free events to feel more connected. They miss the community of a shared passion.

So, why’s it any different at the gym?

A successful gym is a community and a safe place where together you should be pushed, encouraged, motivated, and celebrated through improvement. If you care more about an email or YouTube video, perhaps the ideology of a gym is being missed. After all, there’s 23 other hours in the day to look at Facebook.

Curious to see how things could be done different? Phone Locker® have helped create phone-free spaces across 20 countries with a simple lockable pouch. See how it works, together with the scientifically proven benefits.