Gym Membership

[BettyBoop416]

Planet Fitness was dirt cheap, and they are a real gym-no lunkheads, pretty little barbie dolls (darn-I wish they had those! ) or psycho fitness people. They have HUGE gyms, are open all the time, and are a great gym overall!

My husband and his buddies are big-time into olympic style weight lifting. If you want to start a laugh riot, just mention Planet Fitness in their presence.

 

[EasterJoy]

Here’s our deal:

We have twins, and they’re outgrowing what they can do in the house and the garage when the weather is bad. The gym I’m the most interested in has raquetball courts for them, which the local community gyms don’t have, and the basketball courts are more likely to be available when we want them. (We’re looking for a family membership.)

Although it is January, the place was barely occupied when we checked it out–I mean the whole place, the courts, the weight rooms, the cardio machines, everything–which was mid-afternoon. Not many people go to the gym between 3 and 5 pm…also in keeping with what we’ve seen at the community center. Luckily for us, right after school would be a good time to hit the gym.

As for me, I like exercising outside when the weather is nice, but I used to do circuit training at my high school when I was in track, and I liked it. From past experience, I watch what I eat a LOT better when I’m exercising. I also have gained enough weight that running is more difficult than it used to be. Machines are in my future.

We have an elliptical at home, the boys use it, but they’d be more likely to do so if they could use side-by-side machines…which we are definitely not going to obtain at home! The place I’m interested in is kind of interesting to me because they have a small area with extra machines that is for women only.

I’m definitely going to look into whether there are health complaints or difficulty getting out of the month-to-month contract. (I don’t want to sign on for the 12 month until we’re habitual gym rats.)

It just occurred to me that I should also ask around to see if any of my gym-membership friends have preferences.

Thanks, everyone, and keep the advice coming!!

 

[PaulinVA]

Uhm, I have two gym memberships.

One at work is a corporate membership, and I also have a membership to the no frills gym a mile from my house.

The one by work has pools, a huge locker room, showers, sauna, basketball courts, huge cardio area, huge weight area with machines and free weights.

The other has cardio and weights and is in a warehouse by the railroad tracks.

They each serve their purpose. The idea is to find one that has what you want/need that you will get in the habit of going to regularly.

 

[Luvz2travel]

Look into your local YMCA, cheap membership and at least my local YMCA offered before and after school care. I used to belong to the YMCA, but the stress diet has done wonders for my weight loss.

I’ve belongs to maybe 6 gyms over the last 20 years. The YMCA is still the best in my mind but right now it’s too pricey for my budget. They usually have a track, pool, plenty of machines and free class so it’s well worth the money. Most of the franchise gyms are ok. I got nothing but bad service from GOLD’s gym. Powerhouse was a little old but cheap. Right now I’m back with Club Fitness who are cheap and fairly clean. I pay like $10 a month but that doesn’t include classes. I don’t have the time to attend fitness class it’s about all I can do to make it to the gym but you can get the classes and go to any Club Fitness location you want for $20 a month not a bad deal. Most Gyms offer a free trial pass for anywhere from 7-14 days where you can try out the facilities and see if you like them I would take advantage of that if you’re gym shopping. Also be aware that many gyms charge maintenance and start up fees. Sometimes if you come in and talk to them but don’t sign right away you can get them to waive those fees to get your business but it doesn’t always work. Good luck.

 

[Rascalking]

My husband and his buddies are big-time into olympic style weight lifting. If you want to start a laugh riot, just mention Planet Fitness in their presence.

Cool. I’m into fitness, am fairly strong and in shape, and still go to Planet Fitness. Maybe I go there to avoid people like your husband.

 

[EasterJoy]

Cool. I’m into fitness, am fairly strong and in shape, and still go to Planet Fitness. Maybe I go there to avoid people like your husband.

People have chosen to attend Mass at one parish or another for lesser reasons!

 

[The_Bucket]

I just hit the corporate gym during my lunch hour, the wife has a membership at Gold’s. She took up one-day-a-week working in the daycare there and presto! Free membership, free childcare and a few extra bucks a month. Worked out well for all.

 

[BettyBoop416]

Maybe I go there to avoid people like your husband.

I don’t doubt that a bit.

 

[KostyaJMJ]

Cool. I’m into fitness, am fairly strong and in shape, and still go to Planet Fitness. Maybe I go there to avoid people like your husband.

Don’t avoid people like that. You might learn a thing or two from them.

The thing about Planet Fitness that irks me is that the appeal of the gym is that you get to exercise around people who aren’t superior to you. The whole non-judgmental, “you’re beautiful just the way you are” marketing gets under my skin. If I join a gym, I want someone there to motivate me and yell at me.

 

[Luvz2travel]

Don’t avoid people like that. You might learn a thing or two from them.

The thing about Planet Fitness that irks me is that the appeal of the gym is that you get to exercise around people who aren’t superior to you. The whole non-judgmental, “you’re beautiful just the way you are” marketing gets under my skin. If I join a gym, I want someone there to motivate me and yell at me.

That’s what a trainer is for…yes I’ve had them from time to time. Also heavy weight lifters can often be really cool people. A friend of mine does it and goes to competitions as well. By the way she is also a trainer and one of the most down to Earth people I know…just don’t mess around with her and your fine… .

 

[Rascalking]

Don’t avoid people like that. You might learn a thing or two from them.
.

Actually, I’ve been involved in various forms of martial arts since I was about 7. I’ve met ALOT of muscle heads, sterioid jocks, and chicks who look like they could shot put a small car! I

So, yes, I’ve met them, and no, I’m not stereotyping or being judgemental, (and even if I am, I don’t care) but many of them are not types of people I’d like to be around.

I’m sure this ladies husband is a great guy, and I’m sure there are alot of lunkheads who are wonderful people, but it’s just not my thing.

 

[Brendan]

We’ve got a membership at Lifetime fitness. It’s pricey but we like it since they have child care included.

I can go put the (6) kids in child care while I swim laps, and then pull them all out so we can do a family swim.

And meanwhile, my wife gets some time away from the kids

 

[Brendan]

I had also checked out the LA Fitness in my area. I didn’t like it, as it seemed to involve some constant high pressure sales for their personal trainers.

We found the Lifetime when they had a series of homeschool gym days, 2 hours every Wed from 2-4 for 9 weeks. One week it would be rockclimbing, the next gym, third swimming, and repeat for the 9 weeks. It ran 50 per child, 150 per family. Again with a large family, we could not beat the price.

We liked the place and got a membership

 

[petitfleur]

One thing about the Y is that not all are created equal. The one where I used to live is AWESOME! The one where I live now is awful and badly maintained.

 

[Jguerra]

I joined Freedom Fitness in 2008. Best staff, clean facilities, you sign up for a personal trainer–or not. At home, I might go 12 rounds with the heavy bag, skip rope or go walking for 30 minutes.

Joe

 

[ChiRho]

Actually, I’ve been involved in various forms of martial arts since I was about 7. I’ve met ALOT of muscle heads, sterioid jocks, and chicks who look like they could shot put a small car! I

So, yes, I’ve met them, and no, I’m not stereotyping or being judgemental, (and even if I am, I don’t care) but many of them are not types of people I’d like to be around.

I’m sure this ladies husband is a great guy, and I’m sure there are alot of lunkheads who are wonderful people, but it’s just not my thing.

I’d be surprised if you knew what oly lifting was without googling it, Rascalking

There’s no one more annoying in the gym than the skinny, unathletic trainee who cant bench his bodyweight but feels the need to dub people more successful than them at their fitness goals as “lunkheads”. This is generally why they want a “judgment free” training environment, because they’re so insecure about it. The most experienced people in the gym are often the most helpful, because they were themselves helped when they started out, and like to give back to the community. So gyms like Planet Fitness do their members a great disservice because no one there knows much about how the body adapts to stress to become faster, stronger, and in better shape – this is because they chase all the experienced people out by saying they are “judgmental”. So the gym turns into the blind leading the blind, and people are taught by staff that 10 mins on the elliptical on the easiest setting is a workout that deserves a high five and a gold star, careful not to damage their ego

 

[EasterJoy]

Don’t avoid people like that. You might learn a thing or two from them.

The thing about Planet Fitness that irks me is that the appeal of the gym is that you get to exercise around people who aren’t superior to you. The whole non-judgmental, “you’re beautiful just the way you are” marketing gets under my skin. If I join a gym, I want someone there to motivate me and yell at me.

I see this as a difference in taste more than anything else. Some people perform better with “soft” encouragement, and others do better with “harder” coaching. Still others achieve more in absolute terms with harder coaching, but hate it so much that they don’t stick with the program. Obviously, different people will also have different training goals. As long as you’re finding a sustainable situation that brings the best out of you, what works for other people is kind of besides the point.

So that’s what I’m looking for: what are the different gym situations out there to be aware of, and why do you prefer some over others? Do not worry; I won’t take any answers as if they apply universally!!

 

[cviolette]

I belong to a family gym. We have a little for everyone. A woman’s only weight area, classes, daycare, powerlifting. They even have non-sanctioned powerlifting meets. I think I overpay for my gym. 45 a month and i have been there 9 years.

The gyms like planet fitness and Golds are cheaper but they don’t have the equipment I need and do not allow chalk and deadlifting. I belonged to Golds and found there were no real weightlifters. The members used machines and maybe free weights for their biceps. It was pathetic. Even the classes were too easy. Not my kind of gym.

I prefer a gym where there are people I can learn from.

 

[Cat]

My husband and I joined a great gym about five years ago. As you might know from some of my other posts, I have lost over 80 pounds in the last couple of years, and working out at the gym has definitely played a role in that weight loss.

I’ve also had two big foot surgeries (both feet), and the gym was essential for regaining my strength and mobility. I did several months of physical therapy at the clinic, but the PTs taught me exercises that I can do at my gym, and I still do them. They taught me which machines are valuable for keeping my arthritic knees supple and pain-free.

So that’s one of my suggestions–get with a physical therapist. Ask your doctor for a referral so that insurance will cover it, and then spend several weeks or months with the PT learning what kind of physical shortcomings you have, and how to overcome them. This step will help you to avoid getting injured at your gym.

IMO, the main reason why overweight or out-of-shape people quit working out is that it just hurts too much. But WHY does it hurt? So often, we assume it’s because we are too fat, and if we would just lose weight, it wouldn’t hurt. Well, that’s not true! We need to figure out the real reasons why we hurt, and then do workouts that don’t hurt so that we can lose weight and get strong.

I never realized until I started working with the PT for my feet that I had osteoarthritis in my knees. No wonder it hurt me to walk! The PTs worked with me and helped me to find exercises (other than swimming, which I’m not very good at and don’t really like) to get my knees in better shape and keep them relatively pain-free. Of course, losing weight helped, too.

IMO, the most important trait that a gym should have is that it is very close geographically to where you live (or where you work/go to school). If you have to drive any distance at all, I promise that you will go about six times and then never go again, and it will be a waste of money and a source of guilt.

I can honestly say that for the last three years, I have worked out faithfully at least a few times a week at our gym, and in the good weather, I’m there almost every day. Our gym is only a few blocks away from our house (but we can’t walk to it because we would have to cross the most dangerous intersection in our city, and I won’t do that). I see our gym when I drive to and from work, so I can’t just put it out of my mind!

My husband works out after his ice skating practice. We are fortunate that our gym has two locations in our city, and one of those locations is right across the street from the skating rink. So he can’t just put it out of mind, either!

Another trait that I think is extremly important is that the gym is open all the time. Ours is open 24 hours. Certainly I never work out at 3 A.M., but I have been in there as early as 5 A.M., and so has my husband. Do not compromise on hours . Do not join a gym thinking, “Well, we’ll work out an ideal time and plan our lives around our workouts.” No, don’t do that. What you should do is figure out your ideal time to work out and then find a gym that is open during YOUR ideal time.

Don’t worry about the clientele. The jockiest-looking person or the thinnest-look model may have once been hugely overweight–that’s the case in our gym. Most people at a gym are thrilled to see anyone working towards a goal, and they won’t look down on anyone.

(continued on next post)

 

[Cat]

(continued from last post)

As for cost–it’s going to cost. There’s no use looking for a “free” gym, because you won’t find one. Someone has to pay for all that equipment and more importantly, the maintenance on that equipment. Someone has to pay the salaries for all the people who work at the gym–from the receptionist to the towel boys and girls to the trainers and in some gymns, the dieticians, PTs, and even doctors. And of course, someone has to pay for the liability!

So expect to pay. My suggestion is to try to pay it all up front. There are usually substantial discounts for paying the entire yearly fee rather than dividing it up into monthly payments.

I don’t agree with those who say to find a gym that doesn’t require a contract. My feeling is–commit to working out for the rest of your life.

If you aren’t certain whether you’ll like working out in a gym, then yes, share this concern with any gym that you are looking at, and hopefully buy a “trial membership” to see how you like it. Maybe a gym workout isn’t your cup of tea. Maybe you would do better taking ice skating lessons (!) , or ballet, or joining a volleyball team, or doing Zumba in your church basement.

I can tell you right now that for the first few months, you will hate going to your gym. When I first tried to get my arthritic knees to do even the simplest workout on a recumbent bike, I could only do about five minutes before the pain was so great that I had to leave, and often I walked out in tears from the pain and the hopelessness that I felt. I also hated sweating so much (back when I was really fat, I sweated a lot whenever I did the slightest amount of activity) because I had to go home and take a shower, and this meant more time and more laundry–honestly, gyms are not fun places to go if you are not in good shape!

But if you stick with it and go slow at first and build up your strength and endurance slowly and carefully (following the advice of your physical therapist), you will develop a love-hate relationship with your gym.

The point is, you have to be willing to pay for it. The money that my husband and I were spending on eating out in one month was the equivalent of our year-long gym membership. You probably aren’t as decadent as we were, but I’m guessing that there are certain pleasures that you could give up to pay for that gym membership.

Make SURE to check to see if your workplace (or spouse’s workplace) offers some kind of financial incentive for fitness investments. My workplace gives a $100.00 rebate, while my husband’s work place gives $300.00!

Also, if your gym offers any kind of “once in a lifetime” deal, GO FOR IT! My husband and I did this about four years ago. They told us we could join both locations of our gym at the cost of one location, and that the cost would be sealed at the same rate forever.

We said, OK, and paid around $750.

But when we got our rebates back, it cost us $350.

Now that same membership costs around two thousand dollars. And we get it for $350, every year! We can’t even join the Y for that cheap! What a deal! So be on the lookout for this kind of opportunity.

I hope this advice is helpful.