Why does Planet Fitness get a bad rap?

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  • fuzilojak
    fuzilojak Posts: 269 Member
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    I've been going to a Planet Fitness since November and while it has more machines than free weights than the World Gym I was previously going to they do actually have two benches and about three squat racks with plate racks and dumbbells.

    I started going since my wife choice the gym and I'd not heard anything negative about it. I was taken back by the pizza, candy and bagels but as with any gym, it's up to the individual what you do in the gym. If you want to pay the membership fee and sit on your *kitten* eating pizza and checking facebook then great, if you want to go in and get yourself fit, then awesome. I've seen very unfit people that jump on a treadmill for 5mins, go get a slice of pizza and walk around while their friend works out and I've seem some ripped men and women kill it on the free weights. The thing is, I don't really care what they're doing. I'm there to get back in shape and at the moment, they give me the same resources I'd be using at any other gym but slightly cheaper.

    I played football, wrestled and was on the weight lifting team in high school. Before my accident years ago I uses to cycle 35-40 miles a day, 6-7 days a week and hit the gym hard so coming from that background I can see that Planet Fitness is a little light in some areas but they are targeting people that are starting out or are maintaining. I haven't been in the gym for years so that's fine for me until I get closer to my target and want to switch gears and start gaining muscle. Even then, my location does appear to be rare as far as having free weights.
  • Lady_Layla
    Lady_Layla Posts: 33 Member
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    I don't go there, but personally, I kind of like the idea of a place where people do not throw their weights around, sling chalk, and grunt like they're constipated. (All things I've observed at other gyms.)

    Just my thoughts...
  • Spaghetti_Bender
    Spaghetti_Bender Posts: 509 Member
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    I belong there as well, and i really have no complaints because it's real cheap, and close to my house. Yeah, they have their "rules" and whatnot, but i really don't give a s**it because i'm getting a decent workout there, as well as feeling great. My membership there is only temporary until my financial situation gets better, in which im getting back to martial arts training. I used to belong to traditional style gyms with lots of free weights and more equipment, but for now i'm content with what PF has to offer.
  • youdontknowme9
    youdontknowme9 Posts: 73 Member
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    Nevermind..no reason to join this argument.....
  • WakkoW
    WakkoW Posts: 567 Member
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    Not every business caters to everyone. PF is a business and exists to make money, not to make people "fit". I don't think there is one in my town, but I have seen the ads and find them insulting. Obviously, they don't want my business, but there are gyms that do fit my needs. Seriously though, the want their bad rap. It makes them money and they are free to model their business in a way that is best for their bottom line.

    I don't expect every gym I go to to have an olympic lifting platform and bumper plates (although it would be nice).

    To those who think that all fit people are judging you, it's mostly you judging you. No one cares what you're doing unless you're using equipment they need.
  • tjl2329
    tjl2329 Posts: 169 Member
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    Ok so for those of us who have no experience with gym or are going under doctors advice. Im fat out of shape my diet sucks and ihate the gym. I go nobody gives me advice. Thank god. Its cheap easy and clean. Eventually i will join a better gym but for now im just riding the bike. Love exercising outside but weather and weird guys prevent it. And i never eat anything they serve. Not becauseciyscjunk but because i try to eat at scheduled times. So i usually eat before gym or in car. Its nice they offer snacks. And if i was hungry id eat it. Its my choice. Every person has to make the right decision for them selves.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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    It makes them money and they are free to model their business in a way that is best for their bottom line.
    It's also true that everyone is free to make fun of their business model.
  • WakkoW
    WakkoW Posts: 567 Member
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    It makes them money and they are free to model their business in a way that is best for their bottom line.
    It's also true that everyone is free to make fun of their business model.

    Of course you are. I was really thinking about the OP and the posters that think a gym should cater to everyone.

    I doubt if PF executives cares that you are making fun of their business model. For me, it's the only good thing that PF provides.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    They didn't "get" a bad rep. They earned one

    Intentionally. And they embrace it. Every time a fit person posts something negative about PF, it supports their approach. They want the legions of unfit people who are afraid of being around fit people.

    ^this

    Planet Fitness doesn't have a reputation they haven't deserved...and it isn't at all accidental. It's pure marketing genius.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    I just came home from PF about an hour ago.
    I did squats and dead lifts.
    I make less than $1,000 a month. I pay $10 a month for PF. I literally can't afford to pay anymore than that. Works for me.

    I get a little tired of reading these forums about PF because they make it seem like 100% of the people who go there are not committed to becoming healthy. There are a lot of incredibly fit people at my PF, and I consider myself to be extremely serious about fitness. I'm just also living pay check to pay check right now. When I was at Gold's or NYSC, I saw the same amount of people who were doing jack **** as I do at PF.
    I think the real problem with Planet Fitness is their judgey "judgement free" zone. I have never experienced it at either of the two locations I've been to. There are quite a few "lunks" at my PF, which I appreciate because they were super helpful when I started lifting. If you're going to criticize PF, do it. Their marketing campaign is a mess. I'm not denying that. Some locations are way too judgmental for being a judgement free zone and their commercials can be offensive... but don't criticize the people who work out there. That's not fair.

    Make a note in your calendar for April 2015 to give us an update on squatting and deadlifting in your PF facility then. If PF corporate has their way, your story will be very different by then. (I'd say by October 2014, but I want to give them enough time to implement their vision fully.)

    Pro-tip: your barbell's days are numbered.

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