Letter: Gym rat responds

Dear Nick and his advocates,

On behalf of all the gym rats, I have a few things to say. I'm not sure what I find most disconcerting about your recent letter to the Kaimin: Your willingness to judge others on basis of their appearance; your obvious desire to be like Thor – muscles bulging before a mirror, nipple just seconds away from the not-so-accidental slip into plain sight, or the hypocrisy of thinking yourself better than those so called "narcissists," who might be pleased enough with their progress to give it a check in the mirror.

No, I'm sorry, none of that actually bothers me quite as much as the wonderful diction you employ. Take, for example, "meathead." A word you only feel confident using in your "Disclaimer." Here's a tip, from writer to writer: If your argument needs a retraction, try reworking your argument.

Should I tone it down a bit? I think not. You certainly didn't pull any punches. You clearly had no qualms attacking every deodorized man and attractive woman in compression shorts, who, perhaps, walks by the free weights to get to the squat racks or roman chair.

And to those women, who manage to feel comfortable in their own skin, despite the gawkers, tabloids, and occasional peers who write poorly of you, I have my own two cents, carry on. Rock your shorts and sports bras. Keep feeling good about yourself. If we go slack jawed, it's because you look that good.

Personally, Nick (and his supporters), the audacity you possess, to judge me on basis of my biceps, regardless of my 4.0 GPA or 84 credits in three semesters, leaves me baffled. It also leaves me hoping that you'll come give Judo a try. Practices are M,W,Fs from six to eight.

Finally, next time you walk into the gym, take note, almost everyone there is too focused on not dropping his/her weights to worry about getting laid. Do we want to look good? Of course. Do we want guys, girls – whatever floats our boat – to think we look good? Hell yes. But check on how many people walk in separately and leave together and then you will realize, people don't go to the gym to get laid; they go to the gym so that when they're getting laid, they can glance in the mirror and think, hey, we look pretty damn good.

Best,

Adrian Wassel

Sophomore, Creative Writing