Gym Membership Prices

I think it depends where you live.. I dont think those gyms are even here..I pay 19 at golds, but my bf pays 25 so we can have childcare... and my friends go to las vegas athletic club and pay 19... but my dad goes to 24 hour (since 1982) and pays like 8/mo..

I don't belong to a gym but have been pricing some of them out. Lifetime varies depending on the level of membership you want(meaning what clubs you will be able to go to.) they range between $60 and $120.

Snap Fitness I believe was about $40 for a single.

LA fitness I believe was about $19 a month.

Some cities have comunity centers that are really reasonalble. about $20-40 per month.

It has been years since I looked at Ballys. I believe when I looked into them about 7 years ago they wanted a $500 registation fee.

I suggest going and checking out the clubs that are near you. Figure out what you like best for the cost. A lot of places offer a one week trial membership for free.

I pay $30/month to belong to Fitworks.

Most places realllllllly want you to join and will give you a deal if you act like you are on the fence.

Whatever gym you choose-READ THE FINE PRINT. Bally's has been involved in a number of lawsuits and after I had to deal with them, I saw why. They locked me in a $60 a month membership until the $2500 or so total cost of my membership was paid off. The only way I could get out of it was if I had a medical excuse from a doctor, or moved, 29 MILES AWAY FROM THE NEAREST BALLYS. 28 miles is quite a long ways to drive to get to a gym. Lucky for me, they hadnt built any bally's in Orange County, NY at the time so when I left Albany for my parents home, I was off the hook- but there was A LOT of paperwork, proof required, and calling on my part- not an easy thing to do. Afterwards it seemed everything was fine and then about a month later I started getting bills again. According to Bally's I had signed another person onto my contract. Now, I had never paid for another membership before but all of a sudden the company thought they had found a way to get more money out of me, so they pursued it. I contacted EVERYONE. The gym manager wouldn't do anything for me, even when I went to the gym itself. Finally I found the man who had signed me up for my membership and begged him for the district manager's information. He gave it to me under the pretense that I wouldn't tell her who had provided me with the number. Getting in touch with her required a bit of harassing but I finally got her to remove the charge. BALLYS IS AWFUL. I know this sounds a bit dramatic but I cannot stress how dishonest some of these large chains can be and the fact that no one ever seems to be paying the same price for a membership, is very sketchy. I belong to a Planet Fitness now. They have their enrollment fees and contracts but it is much much more straightforward. Their longest contract is a year, their most expensive monthly charge is $20 a month and since they are not run by body-builders turned business savvy creeps, they seem to have a much kinder reputation.

I live in Canada, so likely have different gyms to you. I have joined various gyms over the years... World Health which was $60 a month (including sessions with a trainer) and the cheapest was Spa Lady (something like $20 a month if you signed up for 3 years). When my last membership ran out I decided I didn't want to do the gym thing anymore and bought Ripped DVDs for doing weights and took up running outside. I am going to join an outdoor boot camp next month and would personally rather put my money into a variety of things than in the gym :laugh:

Yes a gym contract is legally binding. read the WHOLE thing. I had a 3 yr family plan 10 yrs ago. the 'family' went 1x each so i was stuck paying $75 a month for 3 years for me to go 1x a month....if I did that.

there are a lot of places with no contract now-that is the BEST way to go, even if $5-10 more than one with contract

Check out www.globalfit.com . It is a company that offers discounts on gym memberships through a lot of health insurance compnies and employers. When you put in your zipcode to find a gym, it will take you to a page to see if you are eligible. I think the majority of insurance companies work with them. I know Bally's is one of the gyms offered. I was able to sign up with a promotion they had to waive the introductory fee and I pay $7.95 a week. It was SO easy to go through them!

Definitely take the advice of acting like you are on the fence. The monthly fee and what is included is always negotiable and they'll do anything to sign you up before you leave. Also, if you know you are going to go the gym for the year for sure, some places have an annual pay in advance rate which is cheaper in the long run. Never pay an initiation fee, this is easier in cities with multiple gyms who are competitive with each other.
The best gym I went to was a Premier Fitness in Toronto, don't know if they have those all over. Private boxing lessons and free spinning classes included (stuff I had thrown in on top of a reduced rate after looking like I was just going to walk out )

I am in chicago.. The cheep gym here is Ballys 10-20 a month. I go to Xsport Fitness and I pay 31.95. That includes 24/hr, free classes, free child care, and depending on which location a basketball court. over that is too much in my eyes... Well too much for what I make. :blushing: