Amy Carmichael, CTVNews.ca Published Sunday, Jul. 15, 2012 6:30AM EDT

A U.S. yoga instructor isnt alone in expressing concerns about cellphone use at the gym.

Both a personal trainer and an etiquette expert say its a problem and that Alice Van Ness, the yoga instructor at Facebook who says she was fired after trying to stop a student from texting in class, was doing the right thing.

People think their life is so much more important than others and that they can disturb a class or other people in a gym. Its completely out of control, in my opinion, says Melissa Wessel, who specializes in strength training and leads boot camps in Toronto.

Van Ness wrote about her experience at Facebook for elephantjournal.com. Van Ness said management at the Facebook gym encouraged her to let students do whatever they wanted, including come in late and take phone calls. In June, she glared at a texting student while she demonstrated a difficult pose. This, she says, prompted her firing.

Van Ness writes: I said nothing, but Im sure my face said it all. Really? Your email is more important than understanding your body? Its more important than taking time for you? Its more important than everyone else here?

A Toronto etiquette expert sides with Wessel and Van Ness on the issue of phones in gyms and fitness classes.

Rude, says Louise Fox, an etiquette expert certified at the prestigious Protocol School of Washington, host of mannerstv.com and owner of The Etiquette Ladies.

Wessel has her clients leave their phones in their locker. But she says that many gym clients and trainers are phone addicts who cant detach for a workout.

I personally think its ridiculous, Wessel says.

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Etiquette expert backs yoga teacher fired by Facebook