(The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) -- Be clean, respectful, and for crying out loud, cover up.

It doesn't matter how long you've been away from the gym, or if you have never been there at all. If you are going to start working out in public -- and freshening up afterward -- you need to know what to expect, and what others will be expecting from you.

Yes, there will be nakedness in the locker room, and it's entirely possible someone will want to chat you up while in the buff.

But that awkwardness aside, there are also some basic rules experts suggest -- a few laws to live by to make your workout and the workout of everyone around you more comfortable:

- Be tidy. A sweaty workout is a good thing, but leaving a pool of perspiration for someone to sit in isn't. Spray bottles of disinfectant or sanitary towelettes should be standard in any fitness center, and if they aren't, it's time to go elsewhere. Clean up after yourself, and be quick about it.

- Be polite. Don't stare at people, even if they look amazing or you are contemplating copying an exercise they are doing. Respect everyone's space -- in other words, watch where you are swinging your arms -- and be mindful of the signup sheet if there are lines cuing up for the treadmills, elliptical striders and other machines.

- Modesty is the best policy. No one is asking you to dress so quickly that you accidentally catch your foot on the inner ring of your underpants, lose your balance and topple over. Public nudity is a fact of life in a locker room or open shower. But few people will want to have a deep conversation with you standing there in your birthday suit. Also, if you must sit down on a bench while in the buff, put a towel down first.

Finally, in the men's locker room, there is the phenomenon of naked shaving in which the only thing that needs to be exposed is the face, yet there's so much more exposed.

To this, we say:

"No one wants you to be leaning up against the sink with your stuff out," says Mike Sweeney, a personal trainer and owner of Sweeney's Gym, 5311 S. Howell Ave.

"That's why we provide towels, and I'm not shy if someone is doing that to let them know they need to stop."

- Grunting is fine, screaming is not. You're going to the gym, not the library, so some noise -- such as the whirring of machines and clanging of weights -- will fill the air. And people go to the gym to exert themselves, so you'll hear sounds of effort. However, there is a difference between a straining and shouting.

"You don't need to scream your lungs out to get your last rep out," Sweeney says. "I'm not saying you shouldn't make any noise when you work out -- to some degree it is appropriate. It is part of the intensity. In all fairness, you can't take that away from anyone."

- Sweating is good, stinking is not. It might be tempting to workout unwashed -- after all, you'll be showering afterward. But no one wants to run on a treadmill next to someone funky. Keep in mind that many fitness centers keep cardio machines -- the contraptions that make you sweat -- pretty close to one another.

If you smell bad, you will make the people around you miserable.

- Be safe. Keep your locker locked all the time, even if you step away for five minutes to shower. The sad reality is that valuables can vanish in minutes in the middle of a bustling locker room, even when friends promise to keep an eye on your belongings.

- Be smart. Before you start using any weights or workout machines, get a personal walkthrough from a fitness professional. Otherwise, you're risking hurting yourself and breaking the equipment.

- Be realistic. "You need to crawl before you walk," Sweeney says. "Results are not going to happen right away."

(C) 2009 The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved