Last week’s poll about Earth Hour showed that the majority of you didn’t participate and some of you even chastised me for bothering. Oh well, can’t win ‘em all.
During a discussion under last week’s Open Thread dawnmarie asked I could setup a poll to find out where we all worked out. So here it is!
Back in the fall Kim and I chose to join up with Lifetime Fitness. We liked the availability of a bunch of different locations that we could go to, the Budget Nazi really liked the fact that we each got $20/month off from our health insurance, and I loved the fact that they have multiple pools (both indoor and outdoor) which include water slides.
So, where do you like to workout and why? I know of at least one other reader who is looking into joining a gym so sing their praises and give people some suggestions on where they should sign up when the time is right (no joiner’s fees) ;-)
Favorite Gym
- Lifetime (38.0%, 21 Votes)
- N/A (22.0%, 12 Votes)
- YMCA/YWCA (16.0%, 9 Votes)
- Snap (11.0%, 6 Votes)
- LA (7.0%, 4 Votes)
- Anytime (5.0%, 3 Votes)
- Curves (0.0%, 0 Votes)
- Fitness Together (0.0%, 0 Votes)
Total Voters: 55
Loading ...Vote and then feel free to share your opinions, comments and suggestions on where you like to workout and why and then be sure to check out our expired polls in the archive or read through the previous posts about polls here.
Related posts:
Dakota Complaints Map
Dakota Inmate Dashboard
Lazy Lightning Gear
BPAC Financials Archive
April 5th, 2009 at 10:24 am
I’m especially interested in which work out facilities serve Coca Cola products.
April 5th, 2009 at 10:35 am
I’d choose the “none” option if there was one. :)
IMO, aside from specific uses like swimming or classes (for which they make sense), gyms aren’t worth the money. There’s plenty of free or inexpensive things people can do to stay fit as long as they have the discipline (which I’ll freely admit I lack). My wife and I belonged to one for nine months a few years ago and didn’t get anything out of it we couldn’t have done on our own.
April 5th, 2009 at 10:36 am
Oh, wait, there is an N/A option. Silly me.
April 5th, 2009 at 10:45 am
We go to LA. It’s a million dollars cheaper, the training is cheaper, it’s closer, less crowded and smaller. We get the 20 bucks back from insurance, so after insurance, we pay $15 bucks a month each. We make it our 12 times every month, easily.
April 5th, 2009 at 11:40 am
I know I already commented on the open thread, but if you live in Eagan, I’d suggest the Eagan community center. Very nice facilities for a very reasonable cost. I wanted to go to Lifetime but it was going to cost me almost double and I just couldn’t justify that.
I like the fitness classes, my only gripe is the time of the day they have spin, but I suppose I can’t have everything.
April 5th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
With cost no option of course Lifetime has the most perks/benefits. The way LifeTime makes sense on a budget is if you qualify for their young professional program. Their normal membership dues are $60/mo and if you’re 27 and under you qualify for $40/mo and then with the health insurance discount you’re down to $20.
I’d pay $20/mo just for access to the hot tub and steam room.
April 5th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
Oh, to be 27 again. I had no budget. Hell, I had no need to go to a gym, either. Getting old sucks.
April 5th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
We looked into several options, Lifetime made sense for us because of the locations, and the amenities. The Lakeville location may have a lot of people there, however, with the amount of machines in the cardio area, there still is room enough to have a personal bubble. :)
April 5th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
I prefer Hiawatha Halal Pizza….
Oh, working out — not eating out.
I go to LifeTime Fitness when my schedule allows. You can tell by looking at me that my schedule is pretty full with other things (such as eating at Hiawatha Pizza….)
April 5th, 2009 at 3:52 pm
BenJ, out of curiousity, which membership level are the dues $60 bucks?
Anyone know what a personal training session at Lifetime costs?
April 5th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
dmh, Gold (which is the minimum level to work out at Lakeville’s Lifetime).
April 5th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
So mine is still cheaper and I’m happy :) And I didn’t pay a joiner’s fee. (But my favorite trainer is leaving for Lifetime)
April 5th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
We have a Founder’s Membership to Lifetime that we bought years ago from someone who was moving, so it’s insanely cheap for us and we have an Onyx membership which I think gets you in to anywhere. We’d probably still go to LTF if we didn’t have the cheapo membership because we love it. The Lakeville location is great. My husband alternates between Eagan and Lakeville and I go also go to the Apple Valley LTF (the small one) when I am in a rush. We were just at Lakeville today taking the kids swimming. I know it’s pricey, et al but it’s so worth it. That said, my in-laws in Philly go to LA Fitness and they love it.
April 5th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
I was a member of Lifetime for seven years, but I shit canned my membership and now go to Fitness 19. Lifetime had DOUBLED their dues in that time and I think they have gone up even more since then. What’s a family membership go for now?? I’m guessing it’s in the $85 to $90 range??
The facility in Eagan didn’t upgrade anything while I was there. We were just paying for them to open more clubs in other states. My employer also changed insurance companies and our coverage no longer gives the $20 back. That ended it right there since it was now all my own money going to pay for their granite counters, fru fru cafes, and leather chairs.
I used to like Lifetime, but they really pissed me off with their constant price increases. Now I pay $11 a month for the basic stuff. Treadmills, free weights, bikes, elliptical machines and such. Nothing fancy, but over a ten year period I could build my own gym or even buy a car with the savings.
April 5th, 2009 at 11:06 pm
I voted for LifeTime. I purchased a Founder’s Memebership pre-construction at Eagan right after I moved out to Apple Valley in 1994. Best money I ever spent! I do tend to go to the Lakeville club as it’s a tad closer and a heck of a lot nicer. Personal training is very expensive. I did one of the free assessments and they wanted to sell me a package with a bunch of sessions and metabolic testing which came in around $3000. I flat out laughed when he showed me the estimate and told him I could not afford it. The guy couldn’t seem to understand why…
If I were to purchase a club membership today, at today’s rates, I would probably join LA Fitness as it’s just 1/2 mile away.
April 6th, 2009 at 8:00 am
I go to LifeTime and I qualify for the young professional program, however I was told that when you turn 27 it is over… so, maybe I should ask if they will extend it for another year ;) As of now, I pay $22/month ($20 off for the program and $20 from health insurance). I did pay a signing fee… I don’t remember what that was.
I have a personal trainer and they are complimentary once every 6-8 weeks with the minimum membership (gold). I have met with my personal trainer once every six weeks since the beginning of October and I have lost a good chunk of weight (wedding weight loss on a budget). She creates personal workouts in small packets for me and e-mails me additional information to help me train for races, etc. as well as monitors/tracks measurements (body fat, strength, flexibility and helping you figure out exactly where your heart rate needs to be to burn fat/carbs/etc.) and they walk you through workouts all for free!
So far I have been going since October 1st and have no real issues to speak of. I have family that goes there as well and they have been members since LifeTime first opened and have loved it.
I would have to say that it’s worth it to try the personal trainer (anywhere you decide to go) because I do have the discipline to workout on a regular basis, but I hadn’t really been seeing results until someone put something together for me. We’ve been building a pretty intense workout schedule for the past six months and honestly it’s the best thing I have done for myself in a long time.
April 6th, 2009 at 8:37 am
YMCA here. Right around $100/month for a family of five. Our factors are child care and proximity — we live 1 mile from the Burnsville location.
I’ve been a member of the old Northwest back when they were by Burnsville Center, as well as Lifetime. Both the Burnsville and Eagan YMCA compare favorably — equipment and facilities are kept up very well, classes are good and personal training, if you’re interested, is MUCH less expensive than other places.
I also appreciate that my dues, rather than paying shareholder dividends, are helping subsidize programs and membership for those that can’t afford gym memberships, youth sports leagues, camps and other activities.
April 6th, 2009 at 10:43 am
MSPD, don’t forget that wonderful 6 million dollar trail system that Burnsville is constructing…. Maybe we can all jog to JoJo’s for juice before they go out of business. On second thought, think I’ll just get back on the tread mill.
April 6th, 2009 at 3:54 pm
While I don’t belong to a gym now, as there is no Lifetime in a convenient location to my home, when I was a member, I thought it was a great place. The prices were a bit steep, but they had, in my mind, decent trainers and guides to help you along with the machines or something you had a question on. The machines were typically current and in good working order, and was not overrun by the stereotyped ‘meat-heads’ that sit and pump iron all day long and look like some freak of musclely nature.
Currently, I have a weight system at home, along with the Wii (once the tv is fixed) and of course biking and walking outdoors when it’s nice. A big thing is just sticking to the program you are on, and if you do sluff off, know that tomorrow is a new day, and not the end of your progress.
If you have the time and money, pony up for the trainer and such, if you’re a cheap bastard, or on a limited income (like me) read a book, talk to friends who are successful at a exercise program and learn from them.
April 6th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
I find it interesting how quickly our Lifetime membership has moved from being ranked as a luxury to a necessity in my head. We’ve cut back on a lot of things but our membership remains. When I look over our budget I’ll think to myself “Ok, if things hit the fan what would I get rid of next before the gym membership.”
I will say that our health insurances requirement of 8 visits a month is the best thing that ever happened to us. That really keeps us on track. There’s no way I’m going to let my bill go up forty bucks by not going enough.
April 6th, 2009 at 6:57 pm
You only have togo 8?? We have to go 12, which is good for you, but in the summer it’s a pain, for instance, I’m riding in a 25 mile diabetes ride, and I have to ride outside for that, so going to the gym when it’s nice out is going to be a pain.
April 7th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
You can always ride your bike to the gym, swipe your card and then ride home. The staff is actually totally okay with this and I have in the past run outside (to the gym), swiped and ran home. They told me that insurance just wants to see that you are working out so they don’t mind the run/bike-by swiping!
April 8th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
I’d probably do Lifetime if I got the $20 from my insurance, but of course, no luck. Although, that’s interesting about the young professionals thing, that ALMOST puts Lifetime equal to the ECC for me…hmm…now if only I could get out of the signing fee, I’d be good for 2.5 years at least for the young professionals part… very interesting.
April 9th, 2009 at 6:38 am
I go to Snap during the winter because it’s cheap and I usually only run, but I’ll be canceling soon since I prefer to get my exercise outside during the warmer months.
April 9th, 2009 at 8:19 am
I go to the YMCA in Burnsville only 3 miles from home and do my weight training. They have a nice compliment of Cybex machines and much more. I use free weights and the inventory there is fine. Although at times it is busy but once you go you can determine when it calms down. Medica picks up the tab on the Silver Sneakers program. Nice running track too.
June 1st, 2009 at 11:24 am
Does anyone see anything wrong with Lifetime charging a different rate based on age? Is that legal?
June 1st, 2009 at 11:38 am
Nevermind. I guess that’s what a senior discount is except in reverse. Still seems wrong.
June 1st, 2009 at 11:40 am
Lisa,
I don’t like the fact that I have to pay a little more but I suppose I see their reasoning. Those that meet the age requirements are possibly fresh out of college and have enough expenses and not a lot of experience at budgeting. I guess they are trying to retain these people and keep them as long term customers in the face of beer, eating out, and condiment stockpiling budgets.
June 1st, 2009 at 12:10 pm
What they are trying to do is hook young people as long term customers. It actually makes a lot of sense from a business perspective, even though it is an ageist policy. It certainly shouldn’t be illegal and those who don’t like it can take their business to Lifetime’s competitors.