There are times when you want to be social, and times when you really don’t.

And for many people, time spent at the gym falls firmly under the heading of ‘me-time’.

So what do you do if someone keeps talking to you at the gym, when you’ve made it clear you’re not interested?

What about if you’re a teenage girl, and the person talking to you is a much older man?

That’s exactly what happened to the girl in this story.

But after a conversation with her brother, she was no longer sure if the action she’d taken was the right one.

Read on to find out what he said.

AITA for complaining to gym staff about someone?

I am 17 and female, and go to my local gym almost daily.

There is a man who goes to my gym (he’s maybe about 48) who always seems to want to converse with me.

Last time, he stared at me smirking as I was trying to workout, so I gave him a rude look, hoping he’d look away.

Instead he told me I looked angry and said I should “take my anger out on the punching bag”.

Usually I go to the gym with a gym buddy, but today I went alone.

Uh-oh. Read on to find out about this girl’s most recent meeting with the older man.

Today while I was resting between sets, the man walked up to me from across the gym and spoke.

I kept looking down on my phone and I was listening to music.

He walked away after I didn’t respond and did a set of hip thrusts.

After finishing another set, as I was resting, the man approached me AGAIN and I tried to ignore him.

He didn’t walk away this time, so I paused my music and looked up at him.

The man asked me if I was missing my friend this time, and if I came to the gym everyday, and why I went to the gym so often.

He then proceeded to get on the lat raise machine directly across from me.

Yikes! Let’s see how she reacted to his creepy behavior.

I’m an anxious person and very hyper aware, and I took his questions as a way to figure out whether I was alone and vulnerable and when I’d be at the gym.

I cut my workout short and left.

I was so upset about it, I was worried he’d follow me or something (he did not).

I called the gym shortly after and told the staff I didn’t feel comfortable and did not want him to talk to me.

She apologized for me feeling uncomfortable, told me she knew exactly who I was talking about, and let me know she had no issue relaying that to him.

But that’s where the situation turned into a dilemma.

After relaying this story to my brother who also goes to this gym, I’ve been told that the man could be autistic or something of the sort, thus having a lack in social cues.

I understand that, but I still feel like I should be able to workout without feeling anxious or unsafe.

I did watch him talk to other people as he made his way around the gym.

I was aware that it wasn’t just me, so he really might just be trying to socialize and could be missing social cues.

Now I’m wondering if I’m wrong for complaining to gym staff about this guy who may have some disorder – maybe didn’t intend to be creepy?

AITA?

Sometimes we might make concessions for other people, sure, but if a young girl is feeling unsafe that is always the priority.

If the guy wasn’t intending to be creepy, then a polite conversation with the gym staff will be more than enough.

Let’s see what the folks over on Reddit thought about this.

This commenter agreed that, regardless of the guy’s situation, the young woman’s safety is paramount.

Meanwhile, this person congratulated her for listening to her gut.

Meanwhile, this Redditor shared a neurodivergent person’s perspective.

This girl should be proud of herself for what she did.

Creeper or no creeper, this guy shouldn’t be talking to her like that in the gym – especially when she’s not engaging in the conversation.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.