That would be www.24hourfitness.com

Anyways, reason Im asking, I currently belong to Bally, and well, the original Bally I signed up at was a lot nicer than the one near where I live now..and well, the one I go to now doesnt have a pool and I realllllly miss the pool..!

So Im looking in the paper and theres an advertisement for 24 Hour Fitness (actually open 24 hours..except on weekends..really cool..) and theyre a bit closer, and they have a pool..!!! Soo.. I printed out a 10 Day Guest Pass, and got the whole tour and all that, and liked it a lot..

Now, on the other hand, the guy who gave me the tour was really cocky and asked about my current programs, I said I belonged to Bally, and was on Atkins.. he laughed and laughed at both..said "well Bally sucks and this is the best gym in the world..!! and Atkins is probably the worst thing you could do for yourself..." and I was pretty pissed at this point.. and he insisted I use a personal trainer..(I dont like, dont want a personal trainer..) He was just overall rude, up until I said, "Look, if youre going to continue criticizing me and the way Ive done things for myself, then I can leave and go to my own gym, where I already belong..because this is no way to gain me as a customer.. I dont need to be criticized for something that has been working really well for me, and I wont be criticized for my way of life.."

and he was like.. uhh... okay, um, go ahead and fill this form out.. and left for a minute.. and came back and was like, "well, um, ya know, I dont mean to criticize you or the things youve done, I just want to make sure that you get results by being here.." hehehehehehe he didnt say anything after that really, just gave me the full tour and was very nice...

Whew!! Didnt mean for this to turn into a long post!!! BUT my question IS, does anyone belong to this gym, if so, how do you like it? and what does it run?? He didnt go over pricing plans, BUT he did extend my free guest pass from 10 days to 15 days.. which I thought was very nice of him... Thanks!!!!!

I have been a 24 Hr member since 1999 and I also belong to Bally's.

24 Hour is more convenient with the longer hours but only if you need them. I work swing shift so sometimes I go at midnight and sometimes at 10 a.m.

As far as equipment, cleanliness, etc. all I can say is that it varies greatly from club to club. My local club is kept very clean and the equipment is kept in good order.

The thing I like best about 24 hour is the month to month committment. No long term contract. You can also pre-pay for 1 or 2 years but I prefer the monthly plan. I have 24 hour access to every club in the world for 24Hour and pay 35.00/month.

The initial fees were about $300.00. They do run a lot of specials so dont be afraid to ask.

Good luck

Hey Ron, I really appreciate your reply.. Thanks.. I will look into pricing.. that is going to be the major deciding factor at this point...

Hi Sterlina,

I workout at the 24hourFitness in SF.

So far, it's been a very good experience for me. As the person mentioned above, the best part of it is the 24 hours, which makes it awfully convenient for those inevitable stretches when we're forced to work odd hours. For instance, it's great to get in a 30 min run on the treadmill at 6:30 am before work, which no other gym around here offers.

The equipment is also in top condition; but, I suspect that would depend from club to club.

As to fees, they have some great deals available, but you have to ask for them. 24hourFitness was one of the most affordable and highest quality fitness centers I was able to find in my area.

Finally, my personal take on personal trainers. I don't think they're necessary, at all. I mean, every weight machine has highly detailed instructions; and, how hard is it to figure out good form working with a weight you're comfortable with, then adding when it becomes easier? And, who on earth needs cardio lessons, right?

So, in my view, I think 24hourFitness is great given you find a good deal, ignore the peronsal training stuff, and use it to fit your schedule, rather than the other way around.

I've been very happy with my membership.

Best of luck,

Frederick

Thanks Frederick!! I really appreciate your reply.. Im still on my trial period, so we'll see.

Hey Sterlina,
I just joined back with 24 Hour Fitness and like Ron said, the cleanliness and machine condition varies greatly from club to club (The last one I was a member of was a dump, but convenient, this one is very well kept up.)
Got to agree with Frederick on the personal trainers. The club had a "manditory" (I question that.....) 1st meeting with a trainer and other than try to convince me that I "needed" a trainer so I could "lower my body fat" (which they "measure", but only in the areas that have the highest percentages, no averaging.....) and the constant commenets that I was going to keel over from my LC WOE any second, that was all the pushiness I got. (A few sharp words contradicting her pushing of LF, ended that pretty quick.) My mom got lucky enough to deal with people that weren't so annoying, so it's the luck of the draw.

If you can get past the sales, it's been a pretty good place to work out. It's nice to be able to go in at 4:30am, workout and get on with my day.

HTH!