Think aloud
“Alexa, what are the most surefire signs your gym crush likes you?”
Meeting people offline might be proving a little more challenging than you thought. When you’re out of college, your chances of meeting your one true love IRL are limited. Whether you rely on meeting someone at the bar, getting your friend to set you up, or meeting someone at the gym, you’re chances are pretty slim.
Wait, did someone mention the gym? Gyms are actually the perfect spots for a Hollywood-worthy meet-cute. You’re surrounded by annoyingly attractive people who clearly take care of themselves. You’re pumped with adrenaline that offers you the right amount of confidence to approach a stranger.
Sure, gyms are reserved for a one-minded purpose – a serious, focused workout that’s going to solve all your problems. But one of your problems happens to be the fact that you’re crushing on one of the gym bros at your gym. Before you chicken out because you’re scared of coming off creepy, you’re not.
On the chance that you’ve been wanting to ask out the cutie on the battle ropes for a while now, we’ve got good news. You can figure out whether your gym crush likes you by observing (in a non-creepy way) the way they act when they’re around you. You’ve got this and here’s why we think you do.
10 signs your gym crush likes you
1. They hold the door for you
Starting with a subtle sign, holding the door might simply mean that your gym crush wants to be a good person. When you hold the door for someone, you’re probably not doing that because you’re telling them that you’re in love with them, right? With that out of the way, though, there are exceptions.
When your gym crush sees you approaching from across the parking lot and decides to hold the door for you, that might mean that they’re looking for an excuse to talk to you. They’re going out of their way to ensure they get a chance to do something nice for you. They want to make a good impression on you.
While that might be a bit of a reach, know that holding the door might be your gym crush’s way of telling you “Look, I think you’re cute and I need you to think I’m cute, too.”
2. They smile at you
Smiling at random people at the gym might not be as sweet as some people think. When you share a good-meaning smile with a fellow gym bro to acknowledge the hard work that you’re doing, for example, there’s nothing wrong with that. When you stare at random people at the gym and smile at them – don’t.
With that in mind, though, smiling at your gym crush might be a good way to let them know you’re interested in them. Most people don’t look at other people when they’re at the gym – they’re too busy focusing on the fact that they’re practically dying.
When your gym crush does that, they might be trying to get your attention. They might want to see whether you’re going to smile back at them and give them the green light to approach you.
3. They always offer to spot you
We might be walking on thin ice with this one, but there’s a chance that your spotter might have a little crush on you, too. Spotting someone at the gym comes down to good manners, great spirit, and a way to help people who seem to struggle more than you do.
When your crush offers to spot you, though, that might be a sign that he’s interested in getting to know you better. We gotta be honest – when we’re interested in someone, we try our best to create a situation in which we get a chance to talk to them.
Because of that, we’re pretty sure that spotting you might be one of the surefire signs your gym crush likes you. What are you going to do about it?
4. They make eye contact with you
Again, making eye contact with someone at the gym doesn’t mean that the two of you are going to get married and have a bunch of babies together. At the end of the day, most people avoid making eye contact with the rest of the people at the gym because they’re focused on working out.
When you notice your gym crush throwing glances at you, smiling at you when you make eye contact, or even getting embarrassed because you caught them staring, they’re probably thinking of asking you out. What better way to let someone know you like them than to make eye contact with them?
Maybe they can’t help but stare at you because you’re too darn cute when you’re out of breath. Who knows?
5. They always work out near you
We do need to underline that most people like to walk around the gym when they’re resting or switch from the treadmill to the leg extension machine that happens to be near you. When you notice your gym crush switching from one machine to the other, you might not want to leap to conclusions.
We don’t recommend you stare at them at all times, but you might want to pay closer attention to what they’re doing during the workout. On the off chance that they’re switching machines at the same time as you are or that they’re actively trying to come closer to you, they’re probably head over heels for you.
Workout routines typically don’t match up like that which means working out near you (on more than one occasion) might be one of the telltale signs your gym crush likes you.
6. They talk to you out of the blue
Maybe your gym crush offers to help you every time you’re struggling with a set. Perhaps he strikes up a conversation with you out of the blue every time you’re at the gym together. Whatever the case might be, you might notice your gym crush trying to be near you no matter what.
When you talk to someone, you typically want to get to know them better. What does your gym crush ask you when you’re talking to each other?
Talking about the workouts, nutrition, and similar topics can mean they’re trying to be friendly, but talking about your likes and dislikes or even personal life can be one of the signs your gym crush likes you.
7. They ask you to work out together outside the gym
While we’re on the topic of personal conversations, we do need to mention the fact that your gym crush definitely likes you if they ask you to work out together outside the gym. When you think about it, you might come to the conclusion that nobody does that.
You don’t approach a random stranger at the gym and ask them to go running with you next Sunday morning. You don’t make friends at the gym by inviting them to the marathon you’ve been training for.
When someone asks you to hang out outside the gym, that means that they’re interested in being more than your gym buddy. What are you waiting for?
8. They’re nervous around you
We don’t even need to explain why that’s a great sign that your gym crush might want to be more than your gym crush. Chances are, you didn’t hide the fact that you’re crushing on them harder than you’ve ever crushed on anyone.
Maybe you stared at them a little too long or giggled at their jokes a little too hard. Perhaps you asked them to go on a hike with you or suggested that you might be a great running partner, too.
Whatever the case might be, when you notice your gym crush acting all nervous around you, that’s probably because they’re falling for you, too. We would like to be invited to your guys’ wedding!
9. They compliment you
“Wow, your form has never been better!”
“You’re doing an amazing job, keep it up!”
“Is that a personal best? Congrats!”
Sure, your gym crush might not be brave enough to tell you that you look absolutely stunning while lifting weights. But that doesn’t mean that they’re not trying their best to compliment your form or congratulate you on your personal best to ensure you know they’re paying attention to you.
Before you dismiss these compliments as a common way of hyping each other up, your gym crush probably doesn’t compliment other people at the gym the same way. When you’re the only one they pay attention to, that’s a great sign that they’re falling head over heels for you.
10. They’re asking about you at the gym
Gyms are often comprised of a tightly knit group of people who get together to work out, hang out, and have a great time. When you hear that your gym crush has been asking around about you, know that they’re probably planning on asking you out, too.
Whether they were trying to figure out how to do that or whether there was someone they needed to be aware of (a partner of some sort), your gym crush was trying to get the tea on you. What better way to know that someone reciprocates your crush, right? Good luck, you two!