I just did a tour of the Fitness World at Davie and Howe.  They were ever so nice to me.  Offered me three different rate plans for membership but I am so confused about it all.  It seems that the staff there are very helpful and willing to listen to their clients' needs.  The fitness trainer/consultant I spoke to was very helpful - maybe a little bit pushy in trying to get me to sign up right there and then.  But I stood my ground and said that I was going to think it over.  I also need to check out other local gyms such as the Y and the community centres before I make a decision.  But anyway, to cut a long story short, does anybody out there have a take on Fitness World?  As I said, the staff I spoke to seemed very concerned about meeting my needs.  The facilities are reasonable too, so I'm just wondering how others view this gym.  What are their strengths and weaknesses?  Are there other gyms out there which might be more worthwhile looking into?

Many thanks for any feedback.

go to Ron Zalko's instead.

I would stay away from Fitness World. They tend to use the high pressure tactics to get you to sign a contract. Community centres are cheaper, and often are very well equipped

Fitness World is not what it may seem.  As far as the Davie/Howe locaton is concerned, almost without exception, the staff don't give a flying fcuk about their members.  When you walk in the door, despite there being 5 or six staff behind the counter, they totally ignore you.  No greetings whatsoever!  They all seem to be in their own little world.  Maybe they're preoccupied with wondering where the next sale is coming from (it's coming from that permanent "Open House Today" sandwich board on the street!) or maybe their just caught up in a fantasy of their own importance.  Who knows?  But I'll tell you something:- one of the prime rules of a successful business is to know your clients.  Totally ignoring them when they arrive and leave is not getting to know your clients!  Whyd do I still go there?  Well the answer is simply that, after the first two years of high rates, I've now settled down to a paltry $17 a month forever.  Regardless of how shitty the staff is, that's an unbeatable price these days.  I'm just wondering how much longer I can put up with the shitty staff before I decide that, even at that low price, I should go elsewhere.

Fitness world is an EVIL PLACE!!!! 

- all they care about is making money and sucking people in. The people that work the front desk don't get paid enough to care about their members and only want to sell sell sell so they can make a comission. Plus there are so many people there it's not relaxing at all to go there after work and burn off some steam.

I went there for a year and then had to move for my job. Even though the contract said I could cancel if moving for circumstances beyond my control, they refused to refund my money. Then they continued to bill me monthly at my old address and sent the collections agency after me. I was forced to pay $865!!

My friend told me she joined a gym on Broadway called the Westside gym last week and that it is a great friendly place to work out. It's had the mentality of a community gym but with nice equipment and private classes. The girl at the desk remembered her name the second time she came in and showed her a bunch of core exercises.  I wish I had known about them when I still lived there.

i know, they did the same thing to me...I always tell people not to go to FW.

It depends on your needs. I have been with FW for 10 years and now pay 15 bucks per month. That's 3 trips to the community fitness centre in one month. And I can go to different branches, which helps since my job involves quite a bit of travel.

As for the staff, what do people need them for, exactly? I go to the gym, change, use the treadmill, do some weights, change and shower, and then leave. I say hello and goodbye to the frontdesk folks.

Yes, it's busy during the peak times. But it's busy at every gym. Don't go between 5-8pm.

But it depends. Don't want the commitment that a contract brings? Go to the Y (which I find to be a complete rip off!) or a community centre (but are there any in Vancouver; there are some terrific ones in the suburbs). If you require consistent monitoring, then FW may not be the best fit.

one word: SUX!

oh please. the facilities are fine, you are there to work out, not to socialize. if you are really interested in working out, then i see no problems with fitnessworld.

Um, HEY...why don't you just buy a treadmill and get a couple free weights?? You could then use it whenever you want, and shower in your OWN shower. If you travel a lot for work, then do what I do and use the hotel's gym.
I think for $15 a month I would want at least a pool too! You are already paying $180 a year for that membership. You may pay double for a community centre membership , but you'd get so much more.

Have you tried Boxing?
Try Griffins Boxing in North Van http://www.griffinsboxing.com
They have no contracts and it is better then lifting wieghts or tread mills, and you can choose non contact classes!

They are not only push you to join membership.
After joining membership, they push you very hard to join another very expensive 200 training program. 

I was told that I could meet physical trainer every 6 weeks, but when I met a trainer, he said I could require to join $200 training program.  What the heck.  When I joined the membership, they told me that I could talk to a trainer about my fitness level without any cost.

I don't know it is up to you to join.  I heard Gold Gym is pretty neat.

Whatever you do stay away from Fit-City. I just finished up with them & now I am warning anyone who will listen about what they are like.

http://www.discovervancouver.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=32504  If you want to read about just how bad they are.

Honestly I would strongly reccomend that until you really want to commit to a gym contract that you start your workouts by paying the drop-in rate at first until you get accustomed to a set schedual. There are also a lot of community centers with really nice gyms in them & their rates are very reasonable (Watermania in Richmond for example). Not the fanciest gym out there but it does have a good range of equipment & the best part is that you wont have some sales person masquerading as a trainer all over you about signing up.

They will make you sign the contracts with blood. If you change your mind there is no turning back. Fitness World SUUUUCKS

forget the gym just go to kits beach and hang yourself on the chin up bar @ the north end of the park

dolfie

I don't get why everyone bashes Fitness World so hard. It's not like they force you to join, you have a choice. Yes, they have contracts, but what gym doesn't? They explain to you how it works before hand. Most people just sign up, then get lazy and don't want to pay anymore. I don't know about others, but I'm glad when the staff leaves you alone. I'm there to workout, not do a set and talk for 10 minutes. Bottom line, if you don't like the facilities or contracts, go somewhere else. There's no shortage of gyms.

    It's not about staff bothering/leaving you alone. I think it's important for a business to care ABOUT THEIR MEMBERS, not just HOW MANY MEMBERS THEY HAVE. Staff doesn't have to talk to you constantly to be friendly - they should always be walking around, looking for people needing help, cleaning, checking equipment is safe.

QUALITY OVER QUANTITY and customer loyalty over continuous turnover.

That must be a thing exclusive to some Fitness Worlds here, because I worked at the one in Victoria on and off for a couple years, and one of my main responsibilities was to talk to members and see how their programs are going, etc. and maintain equipment. My boss there was always telling us to talk to members. They were still sales driven, but at least we didn't forget about people once they signed up.

down with FW

Attention: REGISTER / LOGIN to view the image!Posted - 5/18/2006 9:03:22 AM They will make you sign the contracts with blood. If you change your mind there is no turning back. Fitness World SUUUUCKS

What do you mean no turning back?   Don't the have clauses on what to do if u want to cancel your membership already?

Cleaning equipment? Don't all the FW's have those volunteers who clean the equipment? In exchange, they get discounted membership fees. 

if everyone who was a member of Fitness World ever showed up to work out FW would be in serious trouble for overcrowding. these gyms count on the fact that the majority of people who sign up do not actually go work out on a regular basis. there are people I know who had the direct debit pay plan who paid for years and had even forgot they had a membership! pay as ya go is the way to go.

Yeah, I agree 100% on the staff at FW ignoring you.  No you don't want to talk the hind legs off them.  But geez, it is so damned annoying when you walk past them at the front desk and they don't even bother to make eye contact.  The few who do can't even take it a step further and mutter hello.  Geez, a pig would grunt!!   The previous poster was right - they should at least show that they know and care about their clients.  A simple hello and goodbye is all that's needed.  But to totally ignore you is just plain insulting.  It beats my why the boss at FW downtown at Davie and Howe doesn't get that!

Trouble with FW is that they never listen to what you say.  If you complain that the muxic is too loud, they ignore you.  I asked repeatedly that they set an area aside with no muxic.  WTF!  At times I can't here my own iPod for the loud music they play through their PA system!  If you report that a machine isn't working properly, you can count on them fixing it. In three months time.

Gotta agree with some of the previous posters here. Most Howe Street FW staff are quite unfriendly. They don't seem to care about their clients after they've signed them up.  I'm quite disillusioned by it all.  I think I will try to wriggle myself out of the contract and go back to the community centre where they are much more friendly.

Actually,
fitness world has :

Good equipment
one of the biggest in the vicinity
good for sports

but,  if u are not going to stay long, dont go for long term, they will make u cry, or if u leave dont think they would keep freezing ur account,  when it comes to these two issues they are totally hardcore biaches,  otherwise it is the best gym around,  (in toronto I would go with total baly fitness)

Why don't you guys go to the Y?

If Howe Street is so bad (no opinion on the staff, but I hate that the locker is so small), why not just go to the Kits, North Shore, West Georgia or Cambie locations? 

Um, HEY...why don't you just buy a treadmill and get a couple free weights?? You could then use it whenever you want, and shower in your OWN shower. If you travel a lot for work, then do what I do and use the hotel's gym.
I think for $15 a month I would want at least a pool too! You are already paying $180 a year for that membership. You may pay double for a community centre membership , but you'd get so much more.

A decent treadmill can cost at least $2000. That's 8 years at Fitness World for me. I doubt a decent treadmill, if used regularly, will last that long. Also, not everyone has the space in their property to fit a treadmill. And for a lot of people, they lack the motivation to exercise in their house. They end up using the machine to hang their clothes.

As for your travel suggestion, I meant I travel a lot throughout the Lower Mainland. Fitness is a Provincial chain, not a national one. I use the PoCo (my favourite), Surrey (alright), Burnaby (awful parking), and North Shore (really nice) locations the most.

And even if a gym had all of one bike and a 2 lb free weight, 15 bucks per month would still be a steal. Since I rarely swim, I don't need a pool. But a lot of the FW locations have a pool (the North Shore one definitely has a pool).

I go to Community centres too. I don't have a membership, I just pay as I go. But for folks complaining about FW's lack of equipment, then the community centres are not the place to go. And I also don't know too centres where a one-trip price includes the gym *and* the pool. They're usually two separate admissions.

That's not just a Howe St.. Fitness World problem, that's a Howe St./Robson St. thing in general. Same mentality. You're surpirsed?

"surprised" I mean, Jeezus...

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