Bad-mouthing irks gym client

Dear Abby: My boyfriend and I work out at the same gym. Over the past several months it has gotten back to me that one of the trainers, “Bob,” has been talking negatively about me to some of the other members.

My boyfriend works out with another trainer there, and during his workout, I approached him and his trainer and expressed my anger about what Bob was doing. I said I was fed up and that I wanted to confront him.

My boyfriend told me to keep my mouth shut and say nothing. He said I shouldn’t take it personally, that Bob is just being a hater. He also said the person who told me shouldn’t have. I disagree. I don’t think it matters how it got back to me — it did!

Last week, while his regular trainer was away, my boyfriend trained with Bob! I feel it was disloyal, but he disagrees. He thinks I should just let it go. What do you think? — Gym Dilemma Dear Gym Dilemma: Because the bad-mouthing has happened more than once, talk to the manager of the gym about what’s going on. Bob may not like you, but that doesn’t give him the right to make the gym an unpleasant place for clients to visit. If your boyfriend were loyal, he would have told Bob to knock it off. And he would not have worked out with him when his regular trainer was away; he would have chosen someone else.

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