You can either make them sufficiently afraid of you that they leave you alone, or you train in a gym that is better controlled in terms of attendees.
I was squatting my 507lbs work set today, and during my 3rd rep, some idiot decides that now is the time to get within a few inches of the bar and grab a weight. I yell for my friend to "get this fucking retard away from me", and he does, and I somehow collect myself and finish my set of 5. I of course berated him for his idiocy and he responds with "my trainer is a former Olympian, I know what I'm doing" -- and then he goes and does his 135lb bench work sets. A little while later my girlfriend is squatting and the same thing happens with someone else. I told him to get the fuck away now! This guy is not at all receptive to the criticism, refuses to listen to me, and says "if I hit the bar, it will make her stronger". What the fuck does that even mean? How can I protect us from these idiots? Do I need to set up some kind of barrier between the rack and everyone else? I am legitimately concerned for our safety.
You can either make them sufficiently afraid of you that they leave you alone, or you train in a gym that is better controlled in terms of attendees.
Easy. Just turn him in to the gym staff for not social distancing. If that fails just randomly spot him while he benches. You can go two routes with this. 1- Put on your best Charles Manson stare and maintain eye contact throughout. 2- While standing uncomfortably close to his head rip a fart. Either way he will give you a wide berth going forward.
Yeah I would teabag him and fart in his face while he is bench pressing. Makes him stronger!
You would think that even the most idiotic of individuals wouldn't want to anger the man squatting 507 for reps..
Simple, find another gym. Like this one:
YouTube
How to stay safe from assholes violating your space?
Step 1: Move to a liberal state. A good one like CA or NY is preferable.
Step 2: Don’t wear a mask while squatting.
You can expect extreme social distance.
Downside: Police will be called on you since you’re “assaulting” other members of the gym, so get your sets and reps done quickly. If you’re lucky they won’t sit on your neck. If you’re not lucky, at least you squat 504 and probably have a thick neck.