24hr Gyms and safety

SophiaSilfaery

Hey everyone,

I am just wondering if any other female bodied people have ever gone at stupid o'clock to the 24 hour gyms in their area. I have a good opportunity to join one at a pretty good cost per week. I'm a nurse and mostly live on the night shift so 24 hours is pretty much my only option for joining and actually going to a gym.

I went to check it out today - the bike parking is round the side and not covered by CCTV but the showers are individual and lockable so that's a plus. I asked the guy about security and he said 'oh we have cameras everywhere' but turns out no one is on the end of those cameras so should anything happen at 3am it won't be caught until the next day. I'm just a little concerned and want a bit of feedback/encouragement before I take the plunge and join.

ZebsterBC

I go between midnight and 3am on occasion, but I always drive there and park close to the entrance. My gym is in a strip mall with a 24 hr fast food place next to it, which increases the amount of people in the area at that time. Even so, I wouldn't want to bike or walk to it at that hour.

annamontalvo920

My gym is also 24hr. You can always call them ahead of time & ask if there is anyone who can watch you walk to the gym and back to your car. Worth a try!

Machka9

Yeah, I've wondered that too.

My husband and I checked out one place near us. It is located on one end of a maze of a shopping centre but I'm not sure where the parking was. I don't think there was any close to the door, but I could be wrong. The guy giving us the tour told us it was all perfectly safe because of those individually locking showers etc. and because of the 24-hour cameras, but he didn't seem to want to answer any more questions about safety ... he had his little script to recite, and that was that.

But I'm afraid I envisioned scenarios where a member gets drunk at the bar and then decides to bring all his friends to the gym to "work out/show off" ... and things get out of hand ...
Or someone slips in behind a member ...

The whole thing just turned me off.

SophiaSilfaery

They're not staffed after 7pm so I don't think ringing ahead is an option here but a good suggestion for anyone who can do so to take up - thanks

I don't own a car so biking is my only way of getting around. I guess one option is I go before work which starts at 11pm so not quite so late - if I don't show up at work people will notice fast.

Kind of sad that we have to think about this stuff - and that the men selling us the contracts don't really get it when we do.

DoctahJenn

Is it an option to get permission to bring your bike inside so you're not fiddling with locks in the dark? Most places would probably be ok with that if you mention safety.

Machka9

SophiaSilfaery wrote: »

They're not staffed after 7pm so I don't think ringing ahead is an option here but a good suggestion for anyone who can do so to take up - thanks

No, that was the thing ... the guy showing me around emphasized that there would be no one available after about 7 pm. In fact, sometimes they left earlier. I think one day each week (maybe Sunday?) they were all gone by 2 pm, and another day (maybe Saturday?) they were all gone by 5 pm. And there would be absolutely no staff available for any reason after those times.

I was hoping to use it anywhere between 8 and 10 pm ... not really late, but still ...


My husband and I discussed and it and decided to set up a home gym instead.

galgenstrick

I'm not a female, but I was a member of a gym once. When I hit the cardio at 3am there was an employee that would always came over to me. He would stare at me for like 10 minutes and go "working pretty hard huh?" It was awkward.

BodyByBex

galgenstrick wrote: »

I'm not a female, but I was a member of a gym once. When I hit the cardio at 3am there was an employee that would always came over to me. He would stare at me for like 10 minutes and go "working pretty hard huh?" It was awkward.

Nightshifters sometimes aren't the best at communicating when we become desperate for social interaction....

MikaMojito

I think it would be wise to go before work. Maybe let a trusted colleague know which gym you go to. But IF something happens, these measures won't really help. Maybe you could try and find a gym buddy who keeps similar hours? Maybe you could even get a work colleague to join?

teresaish

I'm a nightshift nurse also and my gym is 24 hrs/lifetime. I go between 11 pm - 0200 and park at the very front of the gym. Being very conscious with my surroundings. Usually there's a couple to a few people left at the gym, before 0300. (I realized) . Be safe!