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Gym questions

packrat

packrat

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Dec 12, 2008
Messages
10,614
What kinds of things do you look for at a gym? What would it need for you to want a membership there?

We have 2 gyms in town. One run by a former Mr. America, Mr. Universe, Mr. North America Mr. Whatever else there is to me Mr. of. It's sufficient, more of a "guys" gym. Powerlifters and bodybuilders would be fine there. Inexpensive.

Then we have a "center" with a heated pool, lifeguards, a walking track, a place to play racquetball, and they do Zumba there, and there is also regular gym equipment. Not a lot tho, and the free weights don't go over 40#, so someone who lifts hard/heavy couldn't do it there. Expensive.

Both have their pros/cons.

What *I* would like to see at a gym would be a daycare, workout clothes, supplements, fitness books/magazines, music to get me raring to go, people that can help me figure out what I want to do and how to do it. Open 24hours. Good clean equipment that didn't look run down and out of date.

What if the gym was in a big enough building to house other businesses? What would you like to see there? A chiropractor? Massage therapist?
 
I use the free gym at work - it's a room with some treadmills, bikes, free weights, etc. Personally, I was really exicted that they offered a lot of free magazines :bigsmile: My old expensive gym didn't offer those.

Personally, I would adore a place that offere spinning - that's the only thing I know I will consistently do. Everything else is just fluff to me, because I don't use it. So for now I stick with the treadmill and elliptical in my free gym, because the only places that offer spinning classes are far away or way too expensive. :(sad
 
I used to go to a gym that was less than a mile from my home. Membership consisted of approx. 90% males. It had equipment, machines, racketball courts and a weight room. It was very spare and the people who went there were totally focused on their work-outs. I used to tell my husband it was like a prison gym. I would go, do my cardio, workout with the trainer and that was it. the dues were $20. a month, trainer extra. I was perfectly fine with it...I don't need the extras. The gym has since closed and I go to a "center" that has classes, showers, retail area,babysitting, flat screen tvs--all costing me more money but doesn't enhance my gym experience. For me when it comes to fitness, less is more.
 
These are the things I require of a gym:
- Location location location. It must be close enough to home that I will actually go there regularly
- Free weights between 10 and 25 lbs
- A nice variety of high quality weight machines.
- Spinning classes.

We belong to Bally. It isn't fancy but it has everything we need. I've belonged to a couple fancy shmancy gyms and I really don't need any of the bells and whistles. I like the people who belong to the more pared down gyms better, too--in my experience, it seems to be more about getting in and getting a good workout than being seen and making connections. I like to get in and get out.
 
location, child care, pools, variety of classes, amount of equipment, price is what I look at when decided to join a gym. Child care is a must for me.
 
Number one is location. After that, it has to be a curves. I lost 40lbs going to curves, then when they went out of business (the building that they were in was bought out) I tried joining a regular gym. Nothing there was able to hold my attention, I never went and hence gained back the lbs :nono: I would also make sure to check it out during the times that you would want to go. Make sure it's not too busy, or in some cases, not too empty (if you like to socialize at the gym).
 
Thanks for the replies everyone! It's very helpful.

It's my brother's dream to open a gym, so we're going to do everything we can to help him. We were in a building Monday that just screams GYM to us. Right on the main highway, huge parking lot. Tons of windows and very industrial looking w/open/exposed ceilings..I told JD I could hear in my head the sound of weights hitting together and music pumping in the background.

It definitely wouldn't be a place where you'd go and expect your hair to stay in place and your make up to stay perfect. It would be a place that you would go and expect to get a great work out and that would be more accessible, (like to moms who either have to find a sitter or work out at home, which is part of the reason I quit going to the gym-nobody to watch the kids and it was a hassle trying to find time at home) and have a more fitness related atmosphere than the center where it's more "see and be seen" with young girls running the desk screwing around on Facebook and rolling their eyes at you and probably couldn't last 5 minutes doing a work out, or the "real" gym we have that has not been updated since it opened over 15 years ago, no showers/locker room, and nobody running the desk-it's a key club so you punch in the code during open hours and that's it. Someone wanting a new membership is SOL, and everyone knows the key in number, so lots of people just walk on in and work out. No supervision.

He's spent a lot of time talking to people when he was still in the Navy at the different gyms he went to, asking what they thought of it, what they would do to make it better, what they didn't like etc. And just from his own experiences, what he likes, doesn't like etc. He's also wanting to do something to encourage younger kids-junior high/high school to work out, and women who are intimidated by the weights and machines and don't know how to get started.

When he got big into it in High School, there was a young kid who went to the gym also and just kinda fiddled around a little bit. He asked my brother a question about how to do something and this scrawny little kid listened-started running to school instead of getting a ride, running to the gym and back every day. The dad even came down to talk to him one day at the gym about what a difference he'd made in his son. My brother started doing some body building competitions, and the dad would take the boy to them, my brother would take the kid to meet some of the other competitors, the judges etc. My brother and JD were talking the other day, and part of the conversation was about this boy-I'll ask to make sure, but from what I gathered, this kid grew up and started doing competitions and is just shy of getting his Pro card. Just b/c he asked my brother a question and he took the time to help out a young kid.

Of course, just so that I'm not singing my brother's praises all the time..he's also the guy who became somewhat of a self proclaimed Lord of the Gym and all the young kids-especially the girls-were ga ga over him. One day I stopped in to talk to him and yelled his nickname across the gym. He turned around and said "uh uh uh! Let's all tell Missi what she needs to do if she wants to ask me a question!" Apparently they'd been trained to RAISE THEIR HAND if they had a question! Criminey sakes this guy...He's the only person I know of who could ever get away with that. We'll not be adopting this policy at the new gym.
 
-Lot's of classes and cariety of classes after work hours (5PM-7PM)--not all of us are stay at home moms
-Good cleaning staff to constantly inspect changing rooms, showers
-Paper towels and disinfectant solution stands near equipment. I like to wipe down eerything before and after use
-Not too much crowding of equipment. I don't want to rub elbows with person next to me on the elliptical
-Good air ventilation. Can't stand stuffy smelly gyms
 
I think it's very cool that your brother wants to open a gym.

My husband works out of a couple gyms. They each have traditional weight and machine rooms, but they also have private rooms that they rent out to various fitness professionals. My husband is a Muscle Activation Techniques specialist, but I know there are napropaths, PTs, massage therapists, and a variety of other related professionals who rent space in the gyms. I think it's a great way for a gym to a) attract and create a community, and b) get extra income. My husband rents some of the spaces per month and pays a flat fee, and in other gyms he pays $20 rent for every hour that he treats clients. DH sees an average of 35 clients a week, so at one hour per client and $20 rent per hour, that's $700 in rent per week. It's not a bad little source of income for the gyms, I think.
 
This is what I find important in a gym:

Cleanliness, equipment that works, friendly staff that isn't always trying to sell you something, variety of machines & classes.

Best of luck to your brother!
 
One thing that I don't think anyone mentioned but I know are a huge hit in every gym I have ever went to:


Tanning beds and juice bars.
 
I just joined a gym this week, and the things that were most important: location, didn't have that "sweaty" smell (it's a big airy club in Texas), and reasonable rates. After that, I cared about class variety/schedule and reasonable rates for training. Nice spacious locker rooms were a nice bonus, but it didn't make my decision.

For my needs, most of the other extras (childcare, tanning, juice bar) were superfluous. Of those, the gym only has childcare.
 
For my tastes, it should be clean and have a nice atmosphere, offer classes 6pm and later (especially with a focus on dance/aerobics/yoga), have elliptical machines, treadmills and a rowing machine, and have nice locker rooms (hate getting that ewww feeling that everything is old and dirty!). It should have TV's to watch while doing cardio. Also, the location should be placed somewhere between work and home so i have no excuse to bypass that stop! The best part about my current gym is that it has a ton of locations, so that there are 2 between my office and the train station, and then another location in the town where I live. In the future I anticipate that child care will be important, particularly weekend mornings. My gym offers towel service, shampoo/soap in the showers, hair dryers in the locker room and some locations have saunas and pools.

For your brother's purposes, I think he'll need to consider the dirty little secret that you have to attract a certain number of non-gym goers (people who pay every month and go very seldom) to subsidize the regulars. If everyone who paid came, you'd have to have a much bigger gym. Also, I think he'll have to get a good mix of people in so that usage is spread out beyond the peak times.
 
I have a membership, sadly I haven't used it in months. Our local gym has everything though I swear. Here's the main gym set up:

Downstairs has a basketball court, where some classes are also held, a few different studios for zumba, yoga, coordinated lifting classes, step classes, and I believe a separate room for cycle classes. There is a main room downstairs with treadmill, two types of stair climbers, and bikes. Rows of TV's line each row, and you can watch the channels there, or listen to music. There are also lines of weight machines that are done in a certain order for those just learning to work with weights, and the coaches work with individuals there. There are locker rooms with lockers, and you can set your own combination each time you go in, or there are cubbies if you just want to set your keys somewhere. There is also a stand selling smoothies and the physical therapy center. Downstairs also houses a large indoor pool, and one of those swimming machine things that's the size of a hot tub. They do water aerobics classes too. Upstairs there are more treadmills, a few bikes, and lots of elliptical machines as well as rowers. There is an entire wing for weight machines and weights for body builders or those who are doing weight work, as well as the personal training center. There is also an out door fitness area. Yeah...
 
I used to belong to a women's only gym. It was super boring.

If I were you (and I'd love to be you since I'm not in a financial position to afford joining a gym right now), I'd go with the gym that has Mr. America/Mr. Whatever. At least you have eye candy...that is a lot of motivation to get your a$$ to the gym right there. :wink2:
 
Thanks everyone! :appl: I love all the suggestions! I think I'll print this out later so my brother can see it. He was over today and we talked again about it, and I mentioned what you guys said about a juice bar and classes, and having classes later in the evening. We talked about having one of the chiropractors in town be in the building, and also one of the massage therapists. It seems like it would be a mutually beneficial relationship. One thing I'd like to put in is an infra red sauna. My bff is a massage therapist and she has one-I love sitting in it, feels so good!

Dragonfly, your gym sounds great!! The building we'd like to use is big enough, and there is extra land there, it would be really nice to be able to have a pool, hot tub etc..and shoot, I'd like one of those little pools that you swim against the current for myself!

Monnie, we do belong to the Mr. Everything's gym! He was my brother's mentor, like a father figure even, for a long time. He's quite a bit older, in his 60's now, but he did do a contest years back, the first one my brother ever did, Mr. Everything did as well, and blew everybody out of the water! Now he's got some health problems and isn't at the gym much. I think what will happen is my brother will buy his equipment and he will retire.

I'm going to look into what I need to do to become Daycare Certified, and I'm starting to work out again. Who wants to go to a gym w/a smushy chunky girl at the desk haha! I've got info from the local community college on becoming a personal trainer at some point, and I'd like to look into becoming certified to teach some of the classes. I want to be able to do more there than just watch the kids, I'd like to be really involved in it, so that when my brother isn't there (he'll be working full time at the pack at his old job and hopefully this turns into something great for him, maybe opening up another in a different location) I can help out more and not be totally clueless when people need help.

We'll need to brainstorm a little bit to come up w/a name. We'd always figured it would be Nickname's Gym, b/c his nickname is how everyone knows him..but he pointed out that his nickname is fine alone but with 's on the end of it could look like a swear word/put down so..yeah.
 
Packrat--It's pretty easy to become a certified PT. (Which isn't a great thing, if you ask me, but at least you can easily get started in the field.)

ACE certifications are super easy, and really popular. I was ACE and NASM certified, both require classes and a test. I used AFAA to get my group ex certificate, too. I liked their little group ex course, it was helpful and fun to take!
 
Good luck to your brother, Packrat!

Can I threadjack for a minute? I'm curious how much people pay (or would be willing to pay) for a gym. We're looking at two: the Y is about half of what the other gym is. The other one we're considering is about $130 per month for both my husband and me (that's with the corporate discount we'd receive). My husband likes the machines and TVs at the more expensive place better, so he's leaning towards that one. I'm leaning towards the Y though since it's so much cheaper.
 
Thanks Haven and Zoe! I googled those certifications last night and will check into them, thanks Haven!

Zoe, the Mr. Everything gym here in town is $25/month for single I think, and I can't remember how much for family..$30-$40 I suppose. He never changed JD's membership dues after I joined, so I'm not sure what it's supposed to be for family. The Center is about $600/year for family (or maybe that was even for single) I think..maybe more. I remember thinking OMG are they kidding? When I looked at the brochure. If it's got the stuff you guys like and it's affordable, good location etc, then I'd do the more expensive one. (And you'll go, that's a biggee..we've had our membership for years and rarely go anymore-it's a waste) We can't afford the Center so we never switched, and truth be told, the Center isn't for heavy lifters, so it wouldn't have worked for JD anyway.
 
Zoe--We pay $19 per month for me, and something like $8 or $6 per month for DH, for our Bally memberships that are good at any Bally in the nation. I really wouldn't pay much more because we're pretty old school when it comes to working out: we want free weights and some well crafted machines, and a spinning class for me. And most importantly, we want something close to home. We don't set foot in the locker rooms, and I'd never use a gym-provided towel. And we definitely don't need anything fancy like televisions or saunas.

I once belonged to a couple of fancy clubs and while the facilities were definitely nicer, my workouts remained the same. And I spent more money because I treated myself to a smoothie once a week if I went in regularly. :cheeky: :cheeky:

The one thing I'd love that we don't have in our gym is a tennis court. We can use the park district tennis courts at the end of our street when it's nice out, but obviously we can't use them during the winter months. HOWEVER, it's not worth paying more for a membership just for tennis courts for us.

Packrat--I don't remember anyone mentioning this, but it would be interesting to see if people prefer a 24 hour gym. They're becoming really popular in our area. I can tell you I wouldn't need one because I'm not one for extreme hours. But that seems to be something that distinguishes gyms.

ETA: Zoe, if I were in your situation (and I'd obviously be pushing for the Y membership big time!) I would make this deal with DH: Let's join the Y for a trial period to make sure we really use it regularly. (I'd make an agreement about what "regularly" means--3 X per week, 4?) Then, if we use the Y regularly for the entire trial period (1 year, 6 mos, etc) THEN we can join the expensive gym.
I'd do this because a) I wouldn't want to drop that money into an unsure thing, and b) I'd figure that DH would likely find the Y to be adequate after the trial period and he wouldn't want to switch once he's already established a routine. Money saved! :devil:
 
Haven, glad you mentioned that! Yep, this one will be 24/7, holidays and all. Our community has a lot of shift workers and the hard part is-when do you work out when you get off work at 2am? Some people drive 45 miles to work, so they have to either leave early enough to work out before work, or they just don't get to. With kids and everything else going on, it's hard to rearrange the day sometimes to fit it in. Mr. Everything's is a key club, but only during certain hours, tho it is 7 days a week. JD was allowed to go in anytime, regardless, but then Mr. E moved back into the apartment above the gym, so he can't go in after work anymore. The Center is only open Mon-Fri 5am to 9pm and Sat they have really short hours, not open Sunday or holidays. It's not convenient for some. A lot of people won't need the wee hours of the night/early morning, but I'm thinking it should be a good selling point, and being available 7 days a week too. When we were working out regularly, and I know my brother has experienced it too, sometimes you need to switch days, and even tho a lot of people use Sunday as their rest day, sometimes you need to use that day and take a different day off.
 
I would like a swimming pool, since that's pretty much all I'd ever use. It needs to be minutes from my house and ideally it would have spa facilities. A bar would be nice, and on the rare occasion I want to use the gym equipment, I want it to be quiet and clean.

It exists, but my membership lapsed. I really miss the manicures.

Jen

(not a gym fan...)
 
What was important for me when I joined my current gym is that:
it has long opening hours
it has lots of different classes and good teaching instructors
it has a cafe
it has a creche (not needed yet)
it has a huge pool, a hydrotherapy pool, saunas, small aerobic pool
it has an indoor running track
it also sells gym clothes which has come in handy if I've forgotten to bring a top
it has large changing rooms and lots of showers. The lighting is good, they have hairdryers provided and they're clean.
it has ample parking.
They have lots of different machines on two levels, have a couple of studios, a spin studio and also squash courts.
 
Thanks for the info Haven and Packrat! Wow, the gyms you belong to are really a great deal! I thought our local Y was great too, considering how much some of the other gyms around here are.

The most imortant thing for my husband is that the gym has a pool with lanes that are actually accessible. His biggest gripe is joining a club that has a pool and then never getting a lane (he hates sharing a lane with strangers). Unfortunately, the best times for him to go during the week also happen to be the same time that swim team practices are. It doesn't matter which club it is -- it's like that everywhere. I agree that it is a pain when you get all revved up to get a good swim in and you get there and find out that you can't get a lane. It's frustrating. Other than a pool, my husband likes to use the treadmill, and if there's an individual TV on the machine, even better!

Haven, thanks for the advice! We're going to join the Y either today or tomorrow and then we'll see how it goes. I talked him out of the expensive place (for the reasons you mentioned.). The best part is that I'll be able to work with a trainer because it's much less expensive there.
 
That's exciting, Zoe! I hope you like the gym!

DH's Bally membership is so cheap because he's had it FOREVER. I had to get a new membership a while ago for various reasons, so I lost my super cheap membership. $19 isn't bad though, so I'm not complaining. Are you near a community college? I know my school has GREAT fitness facilities, including a pool, and it's really inexpensive to join, so that might be a good pool option for him.

Packrat--This gym sounds like it's going to be awesome!
 
I sure hope it will be! We talked the other day about discounts and things to entice people who live outside of town, or even in other towns that might get them to make the switch, and having space available for those that like to spar and train for fighting.
 
Haven -- You know, we ARE near a college. I never would have thought to check there but I'll look into it. Thanks!!

Sounds cool, Packrat! Sorry to threadjack, by the way.
 
Threadjack away Zoe!
 
Might be a building on the horizon! Not the one I really was hoping for, but this one comes w/a tanning salon inside it, and also a hair salon. (If my brother keeps them, which I hope he does) Plus room for other businesses I think. (would love to have a chiro and massage therapist!) I've not seen the whole inside of the building. He asked JD to go look at it w/him soon and I'm like hell's bells I wanna go TOO! JD and I would both take classes so we can help attend the tanning salon, plus do what we need to be able to work the gym.

There's parking on both sides of the street, plus there is a huge lot to the side of the building. I don't know how big exactly the building is but it also has a Curves and a Church inside too..those would not be staying. Plus I think there is more unused space as well. Looking forward to seeing the inside!!
 
Just chiming back in - I pay $50 a month for my membership. And the main location is open 24 hours.
 
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