I have been receiving lots of questions lately about which gym to join or trainer to go to.
So what does make a gym right for you? Can your attendance and the enjoyment of your training be affected by which gym you use?
Quick answer, absolutely. If you’re at a gym with all the best equipment but really don’t enjoy being there, you’re quickly going to find reasons not to go.
And if you have only ever walked into the one gym you haven’t got much to compare to. Just like any industry there are good and bad examples. If you walk into a gym and you get a look like ‘what are you doing here, the donut shop is across the road’ then that’s a problem with them, not you.
Turn around and walk out. But not across the road to the donut shop! Don’t think all facilities are like that, so you may as well not go to any. You might put up with a careless shop assistant to buy a pair of shoes you like but going to the gym is different – you have to see this same person maybe three or four times a week.
Look for a place that when you spend some time there, you feel like it might actually be enjoyable to come back to. Same goes if you walk into a gym and the guy jumps the counter and starts pumping your hand giving you a prepared sales pitch, like some slick estate agent on steroids.
If you have to fill out ‘contact’ forms before you’re even allowed to look around I would be looking elsewhere. Clients’ wants should be more important than a sales commission. Check the ‘extra’ fees that might be involved, a big sign saying membership $2 a week could end up being more like $12 a week.
If the actual price for membership is a big secret or more complex to work out than your mobile phone rates, they’re hiding something.
Take the time to look at a few different places. The ‘sign up now and I’ll wave the joining fee’ line the salesman is giving you will still be on tomorrow. Try the little places as well as the big ones. Do a one week trial.
If you know a great trainer or gym let me know. I’m happy to check it out and refer them on.
