Looking for feedback on gym memberships

Hope228

I joined through my insurance. It's called Blue365. For $25 a month I can go to gyms throughout the country that participate. There are about 6 in my area that do. I love it. Right now I am going to one called Rascals. Great people & equipment. Sometimes they close early so on those days I go to Anytime Fitness which I also love. Great support & people.

spartan_d

AnvilHead wrote: »

spartan_d wrote: »

Unless you're dead broke, don't let price be the overriding factor. Those ultra-cheap gyms may seem like a bargain at first, but they're generally less efficient at producing results. Given how expensive health care can be in the long term, saving an extra $10-20/month probably won't be worth it.

This is especially true if you're knowledgeable about exercise and are willing to work hard.

Anytime Fitness is on the more affordable end. It's not one that I'd strongly recommend, due to their light weights and limited equipment, but it's not a horrible choice.

Apparently there are a lot of differences between locations for Anytime Fitness. The one I go to has five squat racks (not Smith machines, although there's one of those too), tons of olympic plates, and dumbbells from 5 to 120 pounds - in addition to all the machines, TRX setups, kettlebells and tons of cardio equipment. About the only thing missing for a "serious" lifter is a powerlifting platform, and they don't have the Crossfit-type stuff (tires and sledgehammers, prowler sleds, etc.). For anybody but a serious/competitive powerlifter or olympic lifter, there's more than enough weights and equipment available. I wouldn't trust the trainers on staff for any reliable information beyond "where's the bathroom?", but that's pretty normal for most big box gyms.

That is very interesting indeed. None of the Anytime Fitness locations that I've seen have had that kind of equipment. The one near my home only has kettlebells that go up to 20lbs or so, if I recall correctly. It's great that your gym has much more than that.

I wouldn't put much stock on "tons of cardio equipment," as most gyms will tend to have plenty of those. If they also have TRX rigs, Olympic plates, and the like though -- well, that's another matter. Those are most certainly game-changers.

natruallycurious

I think everyone seems to have covered all of the main points, but I will go ahead and just share my experience with you as well! I started out by going to a local gym that only had the one location, and loved it at first. It was a great way to slowly get into different types of exercise and get comfortable. After awhile though, I found that the gym didn't really provide any motivation for me, and I recently switched to a chain gym (LifeTime) that I LOVE. So much more motivation and many more options/things to do. I will say that I don't feel intimidated at this gym at all, though I don't know if that is because I worked up to it, or if I would have felt this way regardless.

ritzvin

That totally depends on you and what you need for a gym and what time you can get there. Do you need classes? Do you need/want a pool? Do you need external motivation/trainers/etc?

Personally, I'm never going to use a gym for cardio - I find hampster wheels mind-numbingly boring and aerobic classes silly (and for me, yoga/pilates is a waste of time compared to what I can accomplish in that time period running or lifting or dancing). I'd much rather run, cycle, hike, or dance (and there are groups for those activities as well).

I go strictly for weight training, with a template or plan for that session written down that I can run through as quickly as possible before heading to work. I go to the LA Fitness (a chain gym) around the corner from where I work.. it's convenient (I can work up until about 10 minutes before I need to be at work), has everything I need (barbells, dumbbells, benches, various machines), and isn't busy in the time slot before I head to work.

MelanieCN77

I have an Anytime Fitness membership and I really like it. It's my first gym and I was kinda reluctant at first but it was a really good decision for me and it reasonably priced. The manager is great and the place is always spotless. It's only about 2 years old so all the equipment is new as well. I have a treadmill and stationary bike at home but when people are sleeping in the morning I can't use them because of noise so having the equipment at the gym is a good backup but I use all the machines there and don't have heavy enough weights or machines at home to really lift effectively. I'm doing some really nice sculpting thanks to my $45 a month.

AnvilHead

spartan_d wrote: »

AnvilHead wrote: »

spartan_d wrote: »

Unless you're dead broke, don't let price be the overriding factor. Those ultra-cheap gyms may seem like a bargain at first, but they're generally less efficient at producing results. Given how expensive health care can be in the long term, saving an extra $10-20/month probably won't be worth it.

This is especially true if you're knowledgeable about exercise and are willing to work hard.

Anytime Fitness is on the more affordable end. It's not one that I'd strongly recommend, due to their light weights and limited equipment, but it's not a horrible choice.

Apparently there are a lot of differences between locations for Anytime Fitness. The one I go to has five squat racks (not Smith machines, although there's one of those too), tons of olympic plates, and dumbbells from 5 to 120 pounds - in addition to all the machines, TRX setups, kettlebells and tons of cardio equipment. About the only thing missing for a "serious" lifter is a powerlifting platform, and they don't have the Crossfit-type stuff (tires and sledgehammers, prowler sleds, etc.). For anybody but a serious/competitive powerlifter or olympic lifter, there's more than enough weights and equipment available. I wouldn't trust the trainers on staff for any reliable information beyond "where's the bathroom?", but that's pretty normal for most big box gyms.

That is very interesting indeed. None of the Anytime Fitness locations that I've seen have had that kind of equipment. The one near my home only has kettlebells that go up to 20lbs or so, if I recall correctly. It's great that your gym has much more than that.

I wouldn't put much stock on "tons of cardio equipment," as most gyms will tend to have plenty of those. If they also have TRX rigs, Olympic plates, and the like though -- well, that's another matter. Those are most certainly game-changers.

And just when I said Anytime Fitness didn't have a powerlifting platform, guess what they installed this morning?

Sunnybrooke99

I love my anytime fitness. It’s big enough that there’s plenty of equipment, but chill enough that I’m comfortable. I like that I also see a lot of the same ppl when I come in everyday. I don’t talk to them, but familiar faces are nice.

Maxxitt

I joined the "Y" - it has decent equipment, has various price ranges plus some scholarship help for low-income folks, training staff that know their stuff (I think the university has their sports med/rehab/fitness students do internships there), and is not-for-profit. My community is big enough to support 3 facilities within a reasonable distance from me. I go to the one with the most usable free weight set-up but it's helpful to have the other options for the yearly maintenance closures.