I’m starting USF in Tampa in January, but still, I’d rather be in Cali.
HI there,
some great advice so far - here’s some more
check on cancellations, renewals, transfers
see if you can put it “on hold” if you get injured or have to go away for an emergency
if you travel for work see if there is a sister gym if it’s not a national chain.
How long it’s been in business (we had some gyms go under in our area and kept on taking renewals until they physically bolted their doors)?
Is it kept really clean? In good repair?
take out a trial membership, talk to members to see how they like it
Do you have to pay more to learn the equipment (they should have some sort of orientation that is free)?
Is all staff CPR and first aid qualified?
Does all staff know how to use equipment (I would test this, ask a staff member to show you a complicated piece)?
How big is their membership base?
Hours?
How well do they check your membership when you come in? Is security really lax?
Watch the members, do they wipe down the equipment? Do the trainers after training clients?
Do they have time limits on equipment at peak times? Does that work for you?
That’s all I can think of now
Good advice! Thank you.
I guess what I mean about yoga is that I suck at it and refuse to do it. I never knew that sitting quietly was something you could be bad at, but I fail even the warm up breathing exersizes.
I guess my best bet is to go around and look at things. Any gym I do go to is going to be between my bus stop and my home, so transportation is not an issue. I doubt they have pools or tracks as space around here is kind of limited, but that is no big deal. Contracts may be a dealbreaker, though. I’m not sure how long I plan to hang around here and while my job is steady, I can’t promise that I will still be in it in a year. Is this the sort of thing you can negotiate, or are the plans pretty much set? How much can I expect to pay for a really basic place?
Price should be competitive between them, depending on facilities. Contracts should be offered in increments - generally 3 months, 6 months, 1 year and up. Sometimes they have a 1 months or a casual use (three days per week max).
I don’t know what it is like everywhere else, but the monthly payments are higher for a three month then for a year to push you towards the year. We also can’t offer anythign higher than a year here because of so many gyms going under. We used to have three year, five year and lifetime contracts.
I wouldn’t necessarily jump on the cheapest, or the most expensive. Really do your homework. Also, know if your area offers you an “out” we have a 7 day cooling off period where you can cancel with no penalty, it’s legislated by the consumer protection act.
Read both sides of your contract cafefully and don’t let the sales person pressure you.
I once went to a gym that didn’t have a towel service and swore never again. Remembering to put a fresh towel in my gym bag, and then dragging a damp, used towel home sucked bigtime. So while it seems like just a silly extra, for me, towel service is a dealbreaker.
Offer to pay three or six months up front. You should never have to sign a contract for a gym. You may even be able to get your final two gyms into a bidding war, “Well, So and So Gym is going to offer me a five percent discount if I prepay for a year, what can you offer?”
I’d say the most important thing is to find a place which isn’t too crowded when you want to work out. Sure, Sat. morning is going to be crowded at any gym. But, see if you can find a place where people are interested in getting their workout in and not as much into the whole social thing. I’ve seen groups of chatty Cathys that drive me INSANE. One hint, try to go when child care is not offered.
By the way, legions of dipshits join gyms in early January because of New Year’s Resolutions and stick it out for two to three weeks only to turn back into couch potatos for another eleven months. Don’t judge a gym for being too crowded if you visit in January.
For me the absolute most important thing is cleanliness. Every gym of a decent size has treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, benches and weights and that’s all I really need. Having fancy classes and machines is a bonus, but not really necessary. I spent a month at my local Balley’s and I couldn’t deal with the place. Locker rooms, machines, and floors were all constantly dirty. Plus the place had low ceilings and poor ventilation so the whole place stunk like… well like a gym. My current gym costs more but its a pleasure to go to because it’s kept immaculate.
I was in a similar position and a freind of mine gave me this list:
- Check out the car park, is it a good size and secure.
- Check it out at peak times, law of averages if its busy then it is probably pretty good
- go for one with a 50/50 male female clientele, you get a better atmopsphere and there is less of a prevalence of muscle only training
- Check their insurance and staff training.
This isn’t much but you’d be surprised how quick you’ll whittle em down.
I’ll second that cleanliness angle. My biggest pet peeve is a locker room that isn’t carpeted,has inadequate benches, or only has 1/2 length lockers. I just hate having my feet come in contact with slippery tiles;; I know you can wear slippers but somewhere there’ll come a point where they have to come off so that you can put your socks back on.
My old gym had carpetting that seemed to drink up any moisture from people walking out of the shower area. They replaced it every few months.
Also, if possible, check the place out when the weather is really hot. At one gym they had shitty (cheap) managers who would always claim the a/c wasn’t working whenever it 90 degrees. I wanted someone to pass out and sue their asses.
I also second the towel service. It saved my ass many times.
For me personally, I need a track to run on; treadmills don’t cut it for me. Only one of the gym’s I was a member of had a good track; segregated from the rest of the people working out, so that you didn’t have people walking across your path. It was an old converted supermarket, and the track was effectively a second floor balcony that encircled the perimeter of the building. Two staircases led to it. You had no business up there except running, so it was ideal for long uninterrupted runs.
IMHO, convenience should be the biggest decision maker when picking a gym. Some day, quite soon, you will be looking for any excuse not to go. And it’s really damn easy to stretch that into days, then days into weeks, weeks into months…