What's wrong with Planet Fitness?

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  • ajaxe432
    ajaxe432 Posts: 608 Member
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    Planet Fitness is for the volume of people, not the relationships. I find it very judgemental since it picks on heavy lifters.....plus its purple

    . And PF isn't really a gym.
    Exactly, they're considered health clubs!
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    I'm getting into "heavy lifting" so it doesn't work for me. I'll pay $15 more for access to classes pool and a greater variety of weights. Picking the right gym is a combination of your goals, what you expect from them, and how much you are willing to pay. I have MANY gyms in my area so I tried a few before picking. In the end...I really wanted the pool :)

    this is pretty much what you need to know.

    what do you want out of your gym
    how much are you willing to pay
    does the equipment meet your needs
    is the commute/busy hours mesh with your schedule.
    Planet Fitness is for the volume of people, not the relationships. I find it very judgmental since it picks on heavy lifters.....plus its purple
    this. (although it could be hotdog flavored like Retro- you know yellow and red lol)

    this is why I don't like PF- I don't' like the PREMISE of the gym. I don't like the pretenses under which it's marketed and sold to people- it's incredibly hypocritical and judgmental- and it facilitates an idea that somehow people who like to lift heavy are idiots and are not "real average people"

    " I pick things up and I put them down" is now a well known house hold catch phrase- they have built an entire gym empire BODY SHAMING a group of people. Some how it's okay for them to shame body builders- but it's not okay for people to build a gym that excludes fat people? Really? could you imagine the law suits??

    Someone said it to me- he went "oh that's a nice gym- it's not one of those 'I pick things up and put them down gyms' I was like really? that's a shame- because that's what kind of gym rat I am. seriously- it's shameful their corporate police.

    I just call it planet fatness- they seem to facilitate "mediocrity" and people who aren't really truly committed to doing the danm thing. But I would absolutely be a member there- open 24 hrs- gotta get a quick workout in pulling an all nighter? sure thing. 10 bucks- can't beat it. I'm a firm believer in cross pollinating gyms :D

    But it would never be my home gym- never ever ever.
  • briebuck
    briebuck Posts: 35 Member
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    There's nothing wrong with planet fitness at all provided that:

    1. You are a beginner at fitness (they don't have the type of equipment that caters to people who have moved past the beginner phase, what with no free weights--only machines and light to medium weight dumbbells).

    2. Your goals are strictly weight loss oriented (see above--lack of "heavy lifting" tools mean people looking to build legitimate athletic conditioning are left out in the cold).

    3. You have the willpower to resist the treat temptations (free pizza one night a week to all gym members, and all the candy you can eat 24/7).

    4. You can get through your workout without grunting (along with dropping the weights, it is a violation of their policy and will have you publicly humiliated via an air raid siren-style alarm they sound whenever someone breaks the rules. They call it the lunk alarm, and on top of the public humiliation, they eject you if you do it again).

    I could keep going, but basically here's the gist of it: The gym has only machines that do isolation training, cardio equipment, and dumbbells that go up to no more than 50-60 lbs. The only thing they have that other gyms don't is a designated circuit training center that guides you through a half hour circuit training workout using numbered stations. While this is a good and novel idea, I feel it really only benefits beginners who do not yet know how to put their own program together. The fact that they have no free weights to do more advanced exercises, and rules designed to discourage people who are at a more advanced level of fitness from using their facilities, mean they are really only capable of catering to beginners on a budget who either cannot afford a trainer or do now have a workout buddy to guide them through proper workouts.

    free candy ? you mean the mini tootsie rolls on the counter? what i guess i could manage to grab 4 and really pig out every day
    they have a 12 minute ab section - weights, ab tools, lots of mats,
    and a whole strech/freeweight/kettlebell area with lots of room to move
  • briebuck
    briebuck Posts: 35 Member
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    ok when is the pizza and bagle night ?! i NEVER heard of it and ive been there months
  • fragileelegance
    fragileelegance Posts: 102 Member
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    My planet fitness works for me!!! I just really wish they had group classes.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    It looks like they only have Planet Fitness on the east coast.
  • justal313
    justal313 Posts: 1,375 Member
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    ok when is the pizza and bagle night ?! i NEVER heard of it and ive been there months

    At my PF pizza night is the first monday of the month and bagels happen on the 2nd thurday morning of the month. I don't go on weekday mornings and I avoid the gym like the plague on pizza night. It's not because I fear pizza, it's because the gym gets overrun by people that aren't there the 30 days of the month to get their 10 dollars worth of free pizza.

    I do enjoy pizza and work it into my day from time to time but pizza is my meal and not an additional snack. The people who pop out of the woodwork for the free pizza will then be going home to have dinner...

    If grabbed a couple of slices on my way out the few times I've been there on pizza night and that's my lunch the next day at work. But that doesn't make up for the annoyance of not being able to get at the machines or the treadmills. Strong recommendation to avoid.
  • justal313
    justal313 Posts: 1,375 Member
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    ok when is the pizza and bagle night ?! i NEVER heard of it and ive been there months

    At my PF pizza night is the first Monday of the month and bagels happen on the 2nd Thursday morning of the month. I don't go on weekday mornings and I avoid the gym like the plague on pizza night. It's not because I fear pizza, it's because the gym gets overrun by people that aren't there the 30 days of the month to get their 10 dollars worth of free pizza.

    I do enjoy pizza and work it into my day from time to time but pizza is my meal and not an additional snack. The people who pop out of the woodwork for the free pizza will then be going home to have dinner...

    If grabbed a couple of slices on my way out the few times I've been there on pizza night and that's my lunch the next day at work. But that doesn't make up for the annoyance of not being able to get at the machines or the treadmills. Strong recommendation to avoid.
  • just_Jennie1
    just_Jennie1 Posts: 1,233
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    Nothing is wrong; I love their commercials "I Pick Stuff up and Put Stuff Down” lol

    Pretty hard to do when all they have are machines. (I think we have already established the majority of locations either have ZERO free weights at all or hardly any at all)

    Do they have customers lifting their machines and moving them to another location within the gym?


    False Advertising

    But as many people on this thread have said, LOTS of PF locations have free weights, cages, benches, etc...

    This is true however it depends on the person who owns it and how much space they have. There's one (I forget where) that has a second floor which houses all the cardio and then the bottom floor is the weight area and they're one of the locations that has a squat rack, benches with the Olympic bars, cages etc.

    I heard a rumor that my PF was expanding into the space next door to it but so far it's just a rumor. If they did that then they can get a lot more equipment in.
  • bprague
    bprague Posts: 564 Member
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    I belong to one because it's cheap. Mine has plenty of free weights but no squat racks. NO SQUAT RACKS! Also the no Olympic lifting rule is stupid.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    I belong to one because it's cheap. Mine has plenty of free weights but no squat racks. NO SQUAT RACKS! Also the no Olympic lifting rule is stupid.

    I have a hard time grasping the purpose of a gym which contains no squat racks.. I mean I get that they exist- but I wonder- is it really a gym at that point LMAO
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    I belong to one because it's cheap. Mine has plenty of free weights but no squat racks. NO SQUAT RACKS! Also the no Olympic lifting rule is stupid.

    I have a hard time grasping the purpose of a gym which contains no squat racks.. I mean I get that they exist- but I wonder- is it really a gym at that point LMAO
    It's a hamster cage. Plenty of hamster wheels, treats, and water.
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
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    The one up the road I'll be checking out is enormous, so fingers crossed that they have good free weights! The price, hours, and convenience would be just too good to pass up.

    A huge question, though: do y'all think glute bridges would be allowed? That's the lift I do that I just can't get enough weight on at home.
  • coloprincess16
    coloprincess16 Posts: 24
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    I worked and belonged there for a while..it is a good gym for starters, It got me motivated to work out and change my life. However, when you become a more serious gym go-er, you realize what it lacks. I switched gyms to avoid the following:
    1. Tootsie rolls, pizza night, etc. < WHO NEEDS THE TEMPTATIONS?
    2. Other gyms have more variety of equipment: cardio and weight training
    3. Classes in other gyms
    4. Sauna, steam room
    5. clientele: When I worked at planet fitness, people use to complain that things were being stolen all the time (with a cheaper membership and more members, you attract all kinds) < At my current gym, I could leave my credit card on the bathroom counter and I could almost guarantee that it would still be there when I came back..
  • teaparty75
    teaparty75 Posts: 170
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    i'm sensing that the "judgement" is all up and thru HERE !! LOL....i think its cool that there is an affordable place for people of ALL levels to commune and get / stay in shape .....obviously no one situation works for EVERYBODY - just the way life works
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    i'm sensing that the "judgement" is all up and thru HERE !! LOL....i think its cool that there is an affordable place for people of ALL levels to commune and get / stay in shape .....obviously no one situation works for EVERYBODY - just the way life works

    how is it for everyone if they do not want you doing deads, squats, etc….that automatically eliminates me..
  • teaparty75
    teaparty75 Posts: 170
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    i squat (this morning in fact) and deadlift up in there - the staff has yet to ask me to leave nor have i seen any posted signs stating to not do them .....
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    i squat (this morning in fact) and deadlift up in there - the staff has yet to ask me to leave nor have i seen any posted signs stating to not do them .....

    you must go to one of the good ones.my friend goes to one and it has no squat rack and no dead lifting...
  • teaparty75
    teaparty75 Posts: 170
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    i WILL admit that before hanging out in these forums , i didn't know that the smith machine was going to kill me - i would like to set up a home power rack & bench at some point ....but in the mean time , i've worked with a PT (not affiliated w/planet fitness) to help me get the most out of the smith - he advised me to not do certain lifts ( standing OHP & barbell lunges) on the smith machine ....its ok for now but the heaviest barbell they have is 60lbs and i plan on being able to OHP beyond that eventually ....when you know better you do better !
  • TX_Mike
    TX_Mike Posts: 27
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    i WILL admit that before hanging out in these forums , i didn't know that the smith machine was going to kill me - i would like to set up a home power rack & bench at some point ....but in the mean time , i've worked with a PT (not affiliated w/planet fitness) to help me get the most out of the smith - he advised me to not do certain lifts ( standing OHP & barbell lunges) on the smith machine ....its ok for now but the heaviest barbell they have is 60lbs and i plan on being able to OHP beyond that eventually ....when you know better you do better !

    Smith machine was going to kill you? Whhaattt? I use it all the time!

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