Thank you Planet Fitness...
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Lobsterboxtops wrote: »
I honestly cannot think of any exercise as being intimidating. This sounds so bizarre.
That's not the worst of it.
http://www.cc.com/video-clips/yp51yc/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-the-plight-of-muscled-americans1 -
Lobsterboxtops wrote: »
I honestly cannot think of any exercise as being intimidating. This sounds so bizarre.
That's not the worst of it.
http://www.cc.com/video-clips/yp51yc/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-the-plight-of-muscled-americans
Oh dear
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Hmmm. Careful what you wish for. Your gym probably relies on new years resolutioners to stay in business.
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I understand the criticism that Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.4
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Planet Fitness (PF) has opened a second new gym in my town. As such, my full service gym at about 4 times the cost of PF ($11/month), has no holiday/New Year's crowds developing yet. I mean hardly any new faces at all! We'll see what next week brings, but both PF parking lots are already full.
I hope Planet Fitness opens another gym so maybe my gym will start lowering prices.
My gym is not by a PF (neither is my house, but I realized reading this thread that my standard for close is definitely a big city one, since I mean "short walk"), and it's also located in the downtown area, so has been much less crowded than usual this week and last. I am sure that will change as of Monday, however.0 -
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cwolfman13 wrote: »
No it's called SmartFit. I don't believe they have them in the US but they are a big Latin American chain. They only opened in my country less than a year ago but they have been blowing it out of the water because they are great deal.1 -
Lobsterboxtops wrote: »eric2light wrote: »liftingbro wrote: »what you can and can't do
What are you talking about? What would they stop me from doing that I would care about?
Apart from the deadlifting issue, they (officially, at least) prohibit any "intimidating" exercises. The degree of enforcement will vary from one location to another, but this typically includes moves such as overhead presses.
One friend of mine has to hide his burpees from the staff when he works out at PF. And I have encountered people who were scolded for jumping rope or for running too fast on the treadmill. Again, the exact list of offenses will vary from one location to another.
I honestly cannot think of any exercise as being intimidating. This sounds so bizarre.
I actually like watching people do "intimidating" exercises at the gym. I try not to be obvious about it, but it's fascinating to watch people lifting huge stacks of weights or streaking along on the treadmill at a sprint pace that would spit me off the back on the third step. At least at my gym, most people aren't into intimidation, people are there to focus on their own goals, maybe work out with a couple of friends, and grunt/drop weights mostly when appropriate.
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It's reallyTheoldguy1 wrote: »
I certainly don't have an issue with the "no jeans, no sandals" rule. It's the "no bodybuilders" graphic that's kinda mean-spirited. Hence the arrow.
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I understand the criticism that Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.
This.
I've been a member of the local Planet Fitness for several years now. My experiences there have always been positive. The location I go to -> the equipment is new, the facility is clean and secure, and I've not had any issues with the staff or other people working out.
I do see on these MFP Community Boards that Planet Fitness gets a certain amount of criticism (right or wrong). But Planet Fitness seems to be doing okay for themselves, and I think they're probably laughing all the way to the bank.
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cwolfman13 wrote: »
No it's called SmartFit. I don't believe they have them in the US but they are a big Latin American chain. They only opened in my country less than a year ago but they have been blowing it out of the water because they are great deal.
It looks and sounds pretty similar to Cruze. I just started up with Cruze yesterday...I haven't been in a big corporate type gym in ages, so it was a bit of a shocker with the crowds.
I've been going to a privately owned studio gym that specializes in personalized training and nutrition for the last 3-4 years. You can't just walk in off the street and be a member. Most people are there for the training, however there are a handful of us the "executive memberships" and access to the gym. Problem is that it's expensive for a studio with what would be considered to be a first class home gym setup...plus the training sessions on top of that. I'm still working with my trainer once per week but decided to test the waters elsewhere for my day to day gym.
Cruze has quite a few amenities that are of interest to me. They have a great weight room, and unlike PF have power racks, squat racks, and dead lifting platforms. They also have a variety of classes, including spin...I love cycling and spin classes are what I used to do at previous gyms during the winter months when it's cold and dark. They also have lap pool, 2 infared saunas, 1 steam sauna, hottub, and massage chairs. It's pretty well spotless and you get all that for $22. Hopefully the crowds will die down in a couple months.
They have another higher up membership level that also includes all of the yoga studio and barre classes as well as group trainer classes...which I haven't yet figured out how they are different from the bootcamp type classes you get with the $22.0 -
timetolosethatweight wrote: »I understand the criticism that Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.
This.
I've been a member of the local Planet Fitness for several years now. My experiences there have always been positive. The location I go to -> the equipment is new, the facility is clean and secure, and I've not had any issues with the staff or other people working out.
I do see on these MFP Community Boards that Planet Fitness gets a certain amount of criticism (right or wrong). But Planet Fitness seems to be doing okay for themselves, and I think they're probably laughing all the way to the bank.
I think the biggest criticism stems from the fact that if you can't do squats or deadlifts, etc and they don't even have the equipment to do it...yes, you can use a smith machine to mimic the movement, but it's not the same thing. I don't know how very traditional and fundamental movements to weight training could possibly be considered "lunk" behavior.
I'm by no means a "gym rat"...bodybuilder...powerlifter, or anything like that. I lift primarily for maintaining my health as I age and some asemblance of a reasonable physique at 45. I squat, deadlift, bench press, clean, etc because these are traditional movements that have been at the foundation of weight lifting forever. These are things I learned as a teen when I ran track and wrestled...these movements are some kind of weird intimidating "lunk" behavior. I think that's largely where the criticism lies.2 -
I understand the criticism Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.
Most critics would agree that you CAN get a good workout there. Oh, sure, you'll see some who say that you won't make any gains there. I'd say that's hyperbole though, as most serious gym goers understand that you can make progress using just bodyweight exercises, and that you can even do so outdoors.
The issues they have with PF tend to fall into the following categories:- Spreading misinformation, e.g. "bench pressing is just for bodybuilders." (A PF staff member actually told me this when I took a tour once.)
- Prohibiting "intimidating" exercises that are tremendously beneficial. I'm talking about overhead presses, deadlifts, etc. Heck, I know one guy who has to hide his burpees from the PF staff, though not all PF locations would go that far. And I met one person who was scolded for running too fast on the treadmill.
- Ridiculous rules such as not allowing gallon jugs of water.
- Marketing that falsely depicts other gyms and gym instructors as horrible places. This one, for example, would have you believe that spin instructors are out to humiliate anyone who goes more slowly that the rest of the class.
- Demonizing bodybuilders are horrible people and imbeciles.
- Allowing biological men to use the women's locker room based solely on their say-so that they are women
- Wearing clothing that could be perceived as intimidating, including a pro-life shirt
- Offering temptation in the form of fattening foods -- pizza, bagels, candy, and in some locations, donuts and cupcakes. Sure, an occasional treat isn't bad, but most people already treat themselves too much. And none of the treats they offer are of the more nutritious variety such as fruits or vegetables.
There are probably a few more, but hopefully you all get the idea.7 -
I understand the criticism Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.
Most critics would agree that you CAN get a good workout there. Oh, sure, you'll see some who say that you won't make any gains there. I'd say that's hyperbole though, as most serious gym goers understand that you can make progress using just bodyweight exercises, and that you can even do so outdoors.
The issues they have with PF tend to fall into the following categories:- Spreading misinformation, e.g. "bench pressing is just for bodybuilders." (A PF staff member actually told me this when I took a tour once.)
- Prohibiting "intimidating" exercises that are tremendously beneficial. I'm talking about overhead presses, deadlifts, etc. Heck, I know one guy who has to hide his burpees from the PF staff, though not all PF locations would go that far. And I met one person who was scolded for running too fast on the treadmill.
- Ridiculous rules such as not allowing gallon jugs of water.
- Marketing that falsely depicts other gyms and gym instructors as horrible places. This one, for example, would have you believe that spin instructors are out to humiliate anyone who goes more slowly that the rest of the class.
- Demonizing bodybuilders are horrible people and imbeciles.
- Allowing biological men to use the women's locker room based solely on their say-so that they are women
- Wearing clothing that could be perceived as intimidating, including a pro-life shirt
- Offering temptation in the form of fattening foods -- pizza, bagels, candy, and in some locations, donuts and cupcakes. Sure, an occasional treat isn't bad, but most people already treat themselves too much. And none of the treats they offer are of the more nutritious variety such as fruits or vegetables.
There are probably a few more, but hopefully you all get the idea.
My son was working as a bartender while in school and would go to a PF for a quick workout when he finished at the bar. He said when he got there at 2AM the attendant was generally asleep and he did anything he wanted.0 -
I understand the criticism that Planet Fitness gets, but it's probably an overreaction by many. If you put in the effort, then you can get a good workout anywhere.
I don't think anyone would argue that you can't get a good workout at PF. I just don't understand how if I use an olympic bar to do bench press or squat or deadlift or clean that somehow makes me a lunk when all of those lifts are traditional lifts and have been a fundamental and foundational aspect of weight lifting for ages. And how are these anymore intimidating than using dumbbells or mimicking those same lifts with a smith machine?
They need to do something about that color scheme too. I had a membership for a short time to do winter cardio as there is a PF about 5 minutes from work...all of the purple and black machines and purple and black walls make it kind of dark and depressing in there IMO. I have never felt as depressed and unmotivated to workout as I ever did walking into PF.2 -
Well - it is "next week" and we do have some new faces and a pretty close to full parking lot (but no parking in the grass needed) at my full-service, premium priced gym; However, PF has so much traffic (at 5:00 PM) the parking lot is gridlock and the traffic spills back 3 or 4 cars onto the road.0
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I feel like PF gets a bad name unfairly sometimes. I am not a member and never have been, but I know many people who are. Being a “cardio bunny” is not a bad thing, some people much prefer cardio and it’s what they like so it’s what they do. Being intimidated about going to a gym as a very really anxiety some people have. I’m not saying that people at the gym are intentionally intimidating, I think a lot us know that’s not true, but it does not make the fear and anxiety that some people have any less real. PF is for people who want or need what they offer, and it is a benefit to that market. It’s not for everyone and that’s ok too. I think it’s unfair to paint a negative picture of it though.
IDK, I think they do a pretty good job painting that picture by themselves...Rather, they feed on people's intimidations and foster them. That's why they deliberately exaggerate what it's like to be in a spin class. By and large, such classes are meant to be welcoming to beginners and out of shape people. It would be most unusual for an instructor to have the class hiss at somebody for failing to keep up.
PF's business model requires making potential clients believe that other gyms are filled with horrible customers and instructors who want to humiliate them. Hence all these ridiculous caricatures.
^^^ because this.7
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