Describe your perfect gym.

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2

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  • _DaniD_
    _DaniD_ Posts: 2,186 Member
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    Dizzle's basement
  • ThePinkPenguin
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    A no cell phones on the cardio floor rule. Seriously...if you have talk on the phone while strolling along on the elliptical, then you're not accomplishing anything!

    Would like to see an indoor track for walking/running in addition to cardio machines. My gym doesn't have a track and I miss having one when I don't really feel like being in the overcrowded wellness center/cardio room.

    Also, a range of classes during the day for people who work second or third shift. I am pretty much just limited to Zumba at my gym when I want to take a class since it's one of the few things I can make, and I do enjoy Zumba, but I want to try other things. But all the good classes like Body Pump are offered in the evenings when I have work. It sucks...would love a wider range of things to pick from with my work schedule.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
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    Has anyone mentioned stripper poles yet? Seriously, put them in a room right next to the weight room with a big glass window.
  • mumtoonegirl
    mumtoonegirl Posts: 586 Member
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    Thanks for all the tips! It's super helpful!
    I would never have thought of child-care because I don't have a kid (yet), but that is such a good idea! My old LA Fitness had it.

    our gym is a family gym, it has AMAZING programs for the children of all ages. My DD gets lots of energy out and with my DH working weekends if it didn't have childrens programs we would not be able to go on the weekend. We love our gym because it is such a family friendly place.
  • underwater77
    underwater77 Posts: 331 Member
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    first and foremost, i MUST have the best yoga and spin teachers in town:
    http://www.themadisonphoenix.com/ - 149/mo

    then i swim at a city pool, about 20 lanes, 25 meters, has a weight room.
    3 bucks a visit.

    that is ALL i need.
  • KettleTO
    KettleTO Posts: 144 Member
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    i'm the only client....hahaha

    enough clear floor space for squats, lungs, core, etc. Gyms always want to fill every last square inch of floor space.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
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    An empty one.

    ^This. Or at least not crowded. I HATE it when they oversell memberships to the point that you have to stand around and wait in line to do anything. It's why I left my old gym. I also like 24 hour access, since I'm a night owl. I did like having fitness classes (especially yoga) included in membership, since I'm the type of cheapskate who wouldn't waste money paying for a class I may end up not liking.
  • dandandee
    dandandee Posts: 301 Member
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    Like someone else said.. an empty one! hahah.

    Definitely an area specifically for stretching. my gym doesn't have one so people stretch on the spare mats in the weight room but there aren't many.
    Classes are good, as long as they don't stop people from going to the gym to just work out on their own (like say if the class uses the gym and no one else can come)
    24 access is good. allows people to workout whenever it works for them best
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
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    LOL, Ten feet deep from one end to the other and Olympic length. That's my gym! Wet and cool! :smile:
  • quirkyone1
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    My perfect gym would be in my basement. I'd have:
    Power rack
    Bumper plates
    Bench
    Jump rope
    Pull up bar
    Rings
    Kettlebell and medicine balls

    I think that is a good start
  • WeightHacker
    WeightHacker Posts: 260 Member
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    one of my fave thing was going into with my sister in law. was they had Saunas and steam rooms next to the swimming pool, they had two swimming pools. one mainly for kids and one for the adults. they had weight lifting in one room wide open space and there was a lot of free weight rather than the machines. they did have some machines weight.
    then upstairs there was a place near the entrance they had all the treadmills, etcs mainly for people who just wanting to walk or run or whatever they had to do. one of the great thing they had was if you had kids they had childcare for that. ^^
    and for some people like me. (sometimes forget things) was able to buy, towels, or locket to lock the lockers, and other source of things that you could have forgotten.

    and the most of all, is to keep the place clean. the gym i go to now, dont really clean their machines after they close down, so germs spreads, which is pretty gross. i think its very important check all machines if they are out of order or still in working condition and also deep clean it, cause everyone sweat and use the same machine through out the day. (who knows the person is sick and they use the machines) plus it also helps to have the people, to use those wipes to clean the machines after they are done before they on or after. ive seen this alot. which i think is nice. and to keep the bathroom clean. ^^

    surely it would cost a lot to have your own fitness place. but i think in the long run it will be well worth it.
  • mtbardell2013
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    Because you're all being so great and helpful, I have a follow-up question:

    What do you currently pay for a gym membership?

    What would you be willing to pay if your gym had the amenities you were looking for?
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    I currently pay $100 per year, but that's only because I've been a Bally's (now LAFitness) member for like 18 years now. I'm supposed to be at the point where I pay the dues but never show up. Jokes on them.

    But I would pay $30-40 per month for the type of gym I go to. I've paid $80 per month for a slightly fancier gym, and at one time signed up for a ritzy gym (Equinox) to the tune of $140 per month. Cancelled that one before ever setting foot in the place, mercifully.
  • TheApocalypse
    TheApocalypse Posts: 319 Member
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    An empty one.

    So-Much-Win.gif
  • Gwyn1969
    Gwyn1969 Posts: 181 Member
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    Because you're all being so great and helpful, I have a follow-up question:

    What do you currently pay for a gym membership?

    What would you be willing to pay if your gym had the amenities you were looking for?

    The perfect gym:

    Multiple power cages and lifting platforms. Decent bars for both Olympic and powerlifting, and a good selections of both iron and bumper plates. Chalk available. Knowledgeable employees. Members put away their own equipment. Members understand what they can do, and not do, with the equipment and thus do not wreck it by doing stupid ****. A population of serious lifters. A prowler, or two, and room to use it. A few bench/incline stations, a full rack of dumbbells. A leg press. Pullup/dip stations separate from the power racks. No group classes unless they were intro to lifting classes offered every so often, or specific technique clinics.

    What I pay now: $70/month

    What I would pay for the above: up to $100/month.
  • bethlaf
    bethlaf Posts: 954 Member
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    family style gym with childcare or kids classes, and teen classes, and a pool..
    and
    free or SMALL fee nutritional consults

    if they had family memberships, i could go 100 month.
  • GetSoda
    GetSoda Posts: 1,267 Member
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    power rack
    bumper plates
    bench
    resistance bands
    good quality barbells


    had to build it myself
  • HannahJDiaz25
    HannahJDiaz25 Posts: 329 Member
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    Clean Bright Child Care

    A large, bright room with mirrors for yoga, Pilates and balls. (Free weights and medicine balls stocked here)

    Enough space in the lifting section that guys are not piled up on top of each other!! (It makes me nervous to feel someones breath on me while I am working out...especially a huge sweating guy! Just sayin ) I have never felt comfortable working out in the weight room because of how close all the equipment is!

    CLEAN white Showers with no grout.


    -And that's it :-) as you can see my biggest desire is clean space.

    Oh and I would pay 70 a month for a gym as described if the child care made it worth it. ( I don't need a health club, just a gym with child care!)
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
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    What my old gym has that my new gym doesn't:
    An area to do things besides lift barbells and weight machines.

    Sometimes I like to do bodyweight based routines, and before I could go into a quiet little studio and be all by my lonesome.

    Now I have to share the basketball court with rowdy teenagers, and almost get wacked because they don't realize that they have no game :)
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
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    Our gym http://www.goodlifehealthclubs.com.au/Clubs/SA/Dernancourt - cost $16 per week on a per year membership

    has most of what you could need and plenty of machines to cater for a good group of people at once
    It has, lots of cardio machines, TRX area (suspension training) and Weight machines/Free Weights, a steam room and a sauna, Child care services and various group classes plus outdoor group activities, safe style lockers and personal trainers
    They are also very friendly staff that any of which can be asked for free advice and assistance and if you are a regular they get on a name to name basis

    But if it was to be perfect i would add a pool and regular maintenance of machines, more space inbetween machines and i notice at ours and this isn't uncommon it seems, but 25% of the cardio machines require maintenance of some type that goes unchecked (ie TV's not working, need oiling, adjusting) and even some of the weight machines and Safes are not useable, they know about it but it doesn't seem to be addressed. Now thats not moaning cause it's only a minor inconvenience and doesn't stop you getting a workout since there are plenty of alternatives

    Note too with the cramped style gyms the machines can register the HR's of people directly around you if they are wearing one. I've had this happen, the person next to me was doing a casual stroll without a HR monitor on a treadmill and i was busting my *kitten* on a cross trainer and we were both doing 160bpm according to the machines even tho she wasn't breathing heavy at all and wasn't sweating one drop. and conversly the opposite has happened, my HR monitor was registering 150ish and the machines would say 0 or a really low number which was the person next to me