Planet Fitness?

If all you’re going to do is walk, why pay $10 a month?

And I agree with obscure, fat loss comes from managing what you eat, not exercise.

If you just want to do cardio, I really would reconsider a gym membership.

If you want to eventually do some strength training (which you really should!) you'll find planet fitness is... often inadequate for good, effective strength work.

It's better than nothing, but there are better options that will give you more room to grow.

I only joined the gym to do cardio. When talking specifically about walking for cardio, I feel like it's better to do it on a treadmill than do it outside because you can boost up the incline and burn way more calories than you would walking outside. Boosting that incline up to 9% or 10% for 30 minutes will burn way more calories than walking outside.... unless you have a decent hill nearby that will take you about 30 minutes to walk up.


I have lost 75 lbs from mostly doing inclined walking and keeping up with my calorie intake. I just made sure my net calories were where they needed to be by counting calories eaten and burning calories through walking.

PF is not as bad as people make it out to be. I've dropped 30+ lbs at my gym. There is plenty of cardio equipment if that's what you're interested in. And for light weight lifting there is plenty to do. At $10 a month if it gets you motivated then why not!

there are many that do not like PF, I LOVE it. It has everything that I need, for only 10 bucks a month. xoxox

I too have a planet fatness membership. I've lost 36lbs over the past year and I do the arc trainer, the treadmill, and the circuit at PF. Unless you want to get into heavy lifting, PF will suffice. Just stay away on the pizza, bagel, cupcake day.

Plus, I would pay the $10 a month solely for the people watching I do there. You see some *kitten* at PlanetFatness.

I think Planet Fitness is great for what it is. For $10 per month I get 24 hour access during the week and decent hours during the weekend. I was a member at Gold's for a long time and I do like Gold's better but it was hard to get there with my schedule. I miss having spin classes but I definitely get my $10 worth per month.

For $10/mo you can't go wrong. What's the worst that can happen?

You could try walking outside first if you enjoy it, but I personally prefer to do cardio at the gym. I pay $50/mo at my community center gym, so PF sounds like a bargain to me.

Definitely go a few times and see if you like it before you sign a contract. The most important thing about a gym is "getting there". I've quit gyms before for reasons like "no parking" and "loud obnoxious music I hate" and just simply "too far away".

None of those seems like a big deal, but they were enough to keep me from going regularly. The one I'm at now really suits me: it's quiet, clean, not too crowded most of the time, and (most importantly) it's between home and work, like I literally have to pass it to get home. You should look forward to going, not feel like it's a chore.

mccindy72 wrote: »

Which relates to the OP's wish to walk on a treadmill, how?

zarckon wrote: »

For $10/mo you can't go wrong. What's the worst that can happen?

You could try walking outside first if you enjoy it, but I personally prefer to do cardio at the gym. I pay $50/mo at my community center gym, so PF sounds like a bargain to me.

Definitely go a few times and see if you like it before you sign a contract. The most important thing about a gym is "getting there". I've quit gyms before for reasons like "no parking" and "loud obnoxious music I hate" and just simply "too far away".

None of those seems like a big deal, but they were enough to keep me from going regularly. The one I'm at now really suits me: it's quiet, clean, not too crowded most of the time, and (most importantly) it's between home and work, like I literally have to pass it to get home. You should look forward to going, not feel like it's a chore.

Agreed. PF wouldn't work for my goals because I lift a lot of weights. But for cardio, it's a super cheap gym, and my guess is they would have all the equipment you need, so I agree with the above. Ask to take a tour and see if you can have a trial first if they're going to make you sign a contract (month to month would be best, but I know a lot of gyms don't offer that).

Planet Fitness is an okay gym with options. If you don't have kids it is very convenient. I used that gym for a good two years before signing up with a bigger gym for more options and daycare. When the weather is crummy I prefer to lift weights and cardio indoors. Best wishes with your new workout regime.

I just started going back to the gym so I joined a new PF near my house, since then I have often hit a couple other PF in my area and have had a great time at all of them. I do cardio for 30-45 min then switch over to some weight machines for 30 min and finish off with a water massage before heading home. Certain times it can be crowded but other times it is dead empty. Well worth the 20 bucks a month I spend. Dropped 19 lbs so far too. Love MFP, C25K and PF.

I like PF. Was a member a few years back, and got another one this past December.

I guess the "No deadlifts" thing is gym specific, because the two "home" locations I've had memberships at, there was no problem doing deadlifts, and I've seen people doing them.

Dumb bells at my current location go up to 80lbs. Free weights are plentiful, and I believe I've seen some bars racked up to 300lbs.

The cardio machines out-number the weight equipment by 2:1. PF is definitely a gym that leans towards cardio.

Is it worth it if you're just walking? I'd say yes, at $10/month. Having a membership allows you to still walk/run/cycle even if the weather is crappy out (Like here in Western NY in December). And, being big into cycling (I love cycling), and since it's my primary exercise, I tend to put on lots o'weight during the cold months.

A PF membership gets you 24 hour a day access to the gym, so it's easy to fit into your schedule.

However, apparently, people really into strength training feel it's inadequate after getting past the "beginner stage", so a PF membership might be worthwhile until you grow out of it, or just pick a gym better suited to strength training from the get go so you get used to it. If you're really into running/walking/cycling, any gym membership is great, but PF is probably the better choice (Unless you can locate a closer gym, or one costing the same).

llUndecidedll wrote: »

I only joined the gym to do cardio. When talking specifically about walking for cardio, I feel like it's better to do it on a treadmill than do it outside because you can boost up the incline and burn way more calories than you would walking outside. Boosting that incline up to 9% or 10% for 30 minutes will burn way more calories than walking outside.... unless you have a decent hill nearby that will take you about 30 minutes to walk up.


I have lost 75 lbs from mostly doing inclined walking and keeping up with my calorie intake. I just made sure my net calories were where they needed to be by counting calories eaten and burning calories through walking.

I lost 90 pounds before I even began to walk more, no exercise at all, just eating at a calorie deficit. (I have bad knees, getting off some of the excess weight made walking more of an option). I live in the country on 10 acres, most of which is steep, rolling hills. As I got more conditioned to walking, I began walking the trails through our woods. An hour walk gives me 3.5 miles and the equivalent of 33-35 staircases on my fit bit. I take my walks mostly on weekends during the winter, as it is dark when I leave for work and dark when I get home. I live in Minnesota, so there is snow to contend with in the winter, but DH keeps the trails open for me to walk by driving the four wheeler on the trails. I used the gym at work M-F until about a week ago when I joined a gym.

I have to say that losing the weight for me, was definitely eating less calories than I burned, but I have to admit, that since I have been exercising, I feel much better.

I wouldn't work out at planet fitness even if they payed me to. Just my .02