Tips On Buying A Gym Membership
19 December 2006There’s a good article in Smart Money that you might want to take a look at if you’re thinking of making a New Year’s resolution to lose a few pounds or get in better shape. It’s on the things a fitness club won’t tell you – the various downsides to buying a membership. They sell a big chunk of their memberships around this time of year, often for a year or more – and 30-40% of those people end up not coming, but still paying. Here’s a couple of tips in addition to the pitfalls the article mentions:
1) Start a work-out schedule at least a month before you’re going to go to the gym. Why do most people end up paying for a membership they don’t need? Because after a little while they lose the will to keep showing up, or their schedule gets more hectic, and they stop making that time to exercise. So don’t just jump into the gym – go take walks or jog for whatever workout schedule you plan to do at the gym. Do this for a month or two, and if you’ve managed to keep it up, your odds are a lot better that you’ll get your money’s worth out of the gym.
2) Try to find free or cheap access. Most schools and universities have at least the basic equipment, so if you’ve got any association with one see if you can use it. Also try your local YMCA – memberships there can often be cheaper.
3) Stick to a monthly membership at first. Three months at $75 is better than six months at $50 if you are only using three months anyway. This is another good way to make sure you’re not one of the suckers paying for months you don’t use.
4) Remember that it’s a negotiation. That means being willing to walk out if you can’t get a deal you like. Lowball them – and if they won’t take it, come back later with a little higher offer or go try someplace else until you figure out how much you can squeeze out of them.
Discuss this in the Free the Drones Forums.
2 Responses to “Tips On Buying A Gym Membership”
December 19th, 2006 at 4:47 pm
I’m not so sure that a lot of people can work out in November. The practicality of #1 is very high. Also, you might not do it that month because of the weather, where in the gym it’s not a factor.
I tried the negotiation thing, but it just ended up costing me the New Year’s deal and I ended up paying more than if I just joined anyway. Yeah, I could have shopped gyms, but as everyone knows, it’s location, location, location with a gym. If the gym is too far, you are going to end up not going. That certainly limits the choices.
December 19th, 2006 at 7:30 pm
I think you’re right that geography might limit what you can do if you’re in a part of the country with colder winters and snow (or worse, ice slicks). I still think you can find a way to do a cheap exercise routine, though. A couple other options: jump roping can be good because it will let you stand in place. The downside is you need a high ceiling and it can be hard on your legs. You might look around for a cheap or free class of some sort – aerobics or the various martial arts that are more focused on exercise can be good, and I’ve seen the. That takes up about as much or more time as a gym trip, but you rely on someone else to find the space for you to do it in. Pay attention to bulletin boards or the classifieds – I’ve seen these for free or very low prices. I’ve also lived in one town where I’m certain that the high school let the public use their track facilities in the off-season. The main point is to find some kind of activity that would suck up enough time for you to get yourself into a disciplined routine before you pony up the money.
The other point I think is fair. If they’re the only gym in range of you, you won’t have all that much bargaining leverage, and you’re dead-on about the travel time issue.