De Agony of Defeat

Q A couple of months ago, while I was on the cross-training machine, after about 30 minutes my left foot fell asleep! Considering that my left (as well as my right) foot was always in motion, I couldn't believe the sensation. Then it happened a few more times on subsequent days. I switched to an elliptical machine and, after a week or two, it happened again. It doesn't happen every time I'm on an elliptical, but it does happen one or two times out of five. It interferes with my exercise because once the foot falls asleep it is very uncomfortable to keep on pedaling.

-- Lily

A Your first impulse is probably to curse the machines, but before you do, look down.

District-based podiatrist Erika Schwartz recommends that you start by examining your footwear. Foot docs are always ranting about how flip-flops and heels will result in agony, but even supportive sneakers can be a disaster if you pick the wrong ones. And, according to Schwartz, most people do. If you shop in the morning but work out at night after your feet have swollen, your sneaks are probably too tight and pressing down on your nerves. If your feet aren't happy with the position the shoes put them in, they may rebel by going numb. That problem is easily fixable with a trip to a shoe store with a knowledgeable staff.

Another possibility, Schwartz says, is that you've developed a neuroma, an enlargement of a nerve resulting from pressure on the foot. Remedies include icing, injections of steroids, orthotics and, if needed, surgical removal (of the neuroma, of course, not your foot . . . ).

A visit to a podiatrist can take the guesswork out of the diagnosis. Whatever it is that's sending your left limb to sleep, make sure you're not numbing your brain while you're at it with a boring workout. Five days of nothing but elliptical each week is a prescription for feeling blah, and maybe even burning out.

I bought a seven-session package with a personal trainer at my gym. When the package is done, assuming I'm pleased with the results, should I tip the trainer? And if so, how much?

-- Jamie

Although they make you look hotter, personal trainers are not hairdressers (who would expect a tip). And although they make you feel more confident, they're not therapists (who wouldn't). "So, it's a bit of a gray area," says self-styled "etiquette advocate" Nancy Mitchell, who gives local seminars and courses on manners.

She supports people who tip after each session with a trainer, as well as ones who offer up something only when they've reached a milestone and at the holidays. In your case, Mitchell says it's appropriate to wait until the end of the seventh session and then give a tip worth 20 percent of the package price. "Have a little envelope in your gym bag," she advises, rather than pull sweaty $20 bills out of your sports bra.

But ask first at the front desk if your gym bans cash tips. (Results the Gym, for instance, does so, and even some private trainers will refuse a check.)

Also, notwithstanding Mitchell's generosity, from my completely unscientific poll of local trainers, 20 percent is neither the norm nor expected. If you do decide to tip, what you give is up to you. Gift cards are popular because they circumvent a gym's cash-tip prohibition and because they can show the personal bond that's been formed through hours of perspiring (and being perspired upon). But the biggest vote of confidence might be a referral to a friend or your signing up for another training package.