First I'd like to say that I love reading the reviews where dudes say "there just aren't enough options for free weights for me" or "can't do heavy lifting here". Lol. I challenge them to use the maximum weight of any dumbbells or machines in this gym. If you need more than 75 lb dumbbells, you. are. buffffffffff. and you should probably just start bench pressing cars or something in order to get a good workout.
Ok, so I went with this gym because of the price...$29 to start, $10/mo then up to $15/mo after a year. No contract, just $25 to cxl. I have since seen lots of Groupons and deals for it and that kiiiiiiiiiiind of pisses me off every time I see it. The prices are SIGNIFICANTLY lower on those sites and I wish I would've been able to take advantage of that when I joined. You can also do the higher level membership for something like $20/mo and get guest privileges and half price on products like drinks that you can buy. For me...I'd rather bring my own water anyway and since I don't bring anyone with me I don't need the guest privileges. But...it's an option.
I like the cardio equipment, treadmills and arc trainers (kiiiiiind of like an elliptical but with more of a stair climber motion than elliptical has). They all have TVs built in with basic cable to distract you from your boring cardio. Haha. They also have iPod capability where you plug in using their plug (which charges your iPod while you use it) and you can listen to it through the machine using the buttons on the machine to skip, play, control volume, etc...
Because the equipment is new, I haven't experienced many broken machines like I have at older gyms. I have reported equipment that was malfunctioning in various ways and the employees are always prompt about testing them, putting "out of order" signs on them, and I have never seen something broken for more than a day or two.
They do have some equipment like medicine balls, kettle weights, and the big inflatable exercise balls. I don't personally use these things, but they ARE available and some people dig them.
There are no classes or pool, which I never used at other gyms anyway so I'm glad not to have to pay to not use them.
The employees are...cool for the most part. Most of them are friendly and willing to help you figure out a machine or exercise, spot you, or answer questions about workouts. There are a few rude ones, but I won't be too specific about those for fear that they will read this. Hey, I have to keep going here! :P
The gym is constantly being cleaned by the employees...vacuuming, wiping things down with spray, and checking and lubing up cables are things that seem to constantly be going on here. I like this a lot. There are also cleaning stations where you can grab your own spray and paper towels to wipe things down if you wish. They offer hand sanitizer as well, which is nice at a place like a gym where everyone is touching everything.
As I read as a complaint in another post, they DO ask that you bring a towel. I too think this is a little annoying because I'm not one of those people who sweat all over the damn place, BUT...I get why it's a policy. There are some sweaty ass people at the gym and there's nothing worse than getting on a treadmill with nasty sweat droplets all over it or trying to sit on a weight bench that has someone's ass crack sweat on it. Gross. Just bring the towel people. There's no rule about the towel...it can be a little 2x2 square if you want to be a smart ass, or a beach towel if you like to maybe wear a towel cape while working out.
I've heard of a couple people getting double charged for their memberships, but staff is pretty quick to resolve these issues.
Overall, this is a good gym. It certainly offers enough for anyone to get a decent workout. I guess if you're a professional body builder who needs 1,000 lb machines and 200 lb dumbbells, it's not good enough, but for NORMAL people it's sufficient.