Fitness

Joining a Gym for Free

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I have been a gym rat for 12 years now, but also, I have basically always been poor. At least since I was 18. As of yet, my mint.com has not saved me the thousands of dollars I had hoped, so meanwhile I’ve perfected the art of joining the gym for free or for a reduced price. Most recently, I was in Pennsylvania helping my mom after she had a hip replacement (full blog on that coming soon), and I needed somewhere to work out for 7 days! So how did I do it? There are two key components: research, and lies. And a bit of persuasion.

The ultimate #winning move for a free gym has been teaching fitness classes. Not only do I get to use the gym for free, but I also get PAID to work out. Clearly this is not an option everyone would like to take advantage of, but if you want to talk to me about becoming a fitness instructor, I’d be happy to chat with you. There are basically only advantages. Anyway, if you don’t want to work out in front of 30 people, and talk the whole time, here are my ways to join a gym for free.

My first place I scope out is always Planet Fitness. Technically, they are $10/month and there is no commitment. However, they have been getting smart recently, and now there is a $69 initiation fee and a $39 annual fee, even if you cancel after one month. So no commitment? More like a commitment of $118 + as many months as you want. No thanks. Every once in a while, though, they waive the fees, and it really is $10/month. So do your research and check if they are running any specials. Also, if you have been a member previously (read: if you have ever paid $10 to them ever in the past), try and sell yourself as a RETURNING member, reinstating your membership. Then they sometimes waive the initiation fee. Of course this is complete and utter bullshit and word-jenga, but it sometimes works. I paid $10 to them 3 years ago when I went to my parents for a week-long Christmas vacation, and therefore, they waived the $69 fee the next time. I’ll take it.

Option Number Two: research and haggling skills. If you learn one thing in this blog post, learn this lesson: absolutely NEVER pay the first prices quoted at any corporate megagym. The first gym where I taught after college was LA Fitness, and it always blew my mind to hear what members were paying. Why? Because it was NEVER the same price! Research is key here; don’t be afraid to ask people what they are paying before you join! It cannot hurt to go into a gym consultation (AFTER USING THE FREE PASS, see below), with some info, so you can say “$50/month?? My friend Linda pays $39.” They can’t dispute that, because it is true! Also, lesson number three as stated above: initiation fees are complete bullshit. Gyms use initiation fees for two purposes, 1. To get more money from people who are afraid to counter it, and 2. So they have something to take away during their “membership drives” without losing any profit. Listen to me here: if you pay a gym initiation fee, you are a sucker. Lesson number four: PRETEND YOU’RE POOR. Or maybe you are poor! If that’s the case, don’t be afraid to say it. They will work with you. Let me reiterate here though, this is for megagyms like LA Fitness and YMCAs. SoulCycle doesn’t give a shit if you’re poor and doesn’t want you there. How will you buy their branded and upcharged lululemon?

Next option: new gyms. This is America, the land of the fat and constantly-dieting. Therefore, there are ALWAYS new gyms popping up. Pretty much any gym offers a bargain or free trial pass to get you in the door. Little do they know, you be going OUT the door in a few days, when the trial pass is over. This is where the lies and charm kick in. When I first moved to New York, I didn’t join a gym for 2 months. I was trying to get a gym to hire me to teach, and I didn’t want to waste money on a membership when I knew I would have to cancel once I started teaching. Let me tell you, I did not miss a single day in the gym. Between New York Sports Club’s week free pass, The YMCA’s multiple guest passes, my friends’ free guest passes to Equinox, free first classes at niche studios throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan, I had very toned legs, and a full wallet.

Most recently in Pennsylvania, my mom had heard about a new Anytime Fitness, where her manicurist is a member. I checked them out online and BAM, free 7 day pass. (They also have a Groupon right now! Do your research, guys.) I was only going to be in Pennsylvania for 5 days, so that was perfect. Only catch here, you had to be local. Well guess what, my mom is local, and we still have the last name! (If emoji bf doesn’t step it up, I may be able to use this fact to my advantage forever.) I filled out the form online, used my mom’s address, then I armed myself with a believable and half-true story, and an inquisitive, “I’m trying to decide which gym to join” face. The first day I tried to go to the gym ready to pretend to listen to a pitch, there was no one there. Anytime Fitness is 24/7 for members, but if you’re on a free pass, the manager has to be there to let you in. Although the door said someone would be there until 2 pm, it was 1 pm and the door was locked. As I stood at the door pondering my options, a guy left the gym and held the door open for me. Don’t mind if I do! I walked right in and had a great 2 hour workout. Lesson here: just loiter in front of the door of a gym. Someone will eventually leave.

The next time I went to Anytime Fitness, the manager was there and he showed me around. The whole thing took under 5 minutes. The lesson here: when they ask you if you have questions, it’s ok to say no. The only real question you have after all, is, “when can I start my workout?” As it turns out, I didn’t have to use my well-spun story of lies at all. I told him I had “just come from New York” (true) and when he asked how I heard about the gym, I told him my mom’s manicurist is a member (also true). He didn’t ask for my ID or anything! I had taken my mom’s license, just in case, but it turned out all I needed was my winning smile. 😉 The manager told me that not only would he knock $30 off the initiation fee (again, always tell them you are poor), but also, he said he would extend my free 7 day pass to be 14 days. Dang! I almost slipped and told him it was too bad I’d only be in town for 5. But I just smiled and nodded. Today is my last day in Philly and I’m a little sad to let my 9 remaining free trial pass days go to waste. I used their cable machines, the TRX, the kettle bells, the Open Stride, and even their virtual studio to take a step class. I would actually recommend this place. After some serious haggling, of course, and definitely without an initiation fee.

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Fitness

Peloton

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Peloton is my new spin-obsession (spin-session?) I have officially been teaching fitness classes for 11 years, and I don’t plan to stop any time soon. What that means is, I am VERYYY picky when it comes to the exercise classes I attend. Why should I pay $32-$40/class when I get PAID to do exactly the same thing? Plus, I have a gym in my building. This is especially true when it comes to Spin classes. You will RARELY see me pay to Spin since I teach 2-3 Spin classes a week, and don’t even get me started on SoulCycle and what a waste of money it is. So why, you may ask, did I drop $100 last week at Peloton, and attend 5 classes in one week in addition to my normal gym routine? Because Peloton is AWESOME. That’s why. Also, because I completed their Summer Fit List challenge and got TEN CLASSES FOR FREE. More on that later. But first, let me tell you about the bike, the concept, and the studio.

Peloton has their own bike, and it is a “cutting-edge” piece of equipment that “combines the very best of fitness and tech.” I stole those words from their website. But I can vouch for them, too. Each bike rides incredibly smoothly (made of carbon and steel), works with Delta-clip spin shoes (they are free to rent with each class), and there is a massive iPad-like screen on each bike to track metrics. The home bikes have huge screens, like a TV (photo below). They sell the bike to people all over the world, and it comes with a hefty price tag ($1,995 plus a $39 per month subscription fee). But then, you get access to unlimited live-streamed OR on-demand classes. When you ride in the studio, they constantly shout out to people who are “at-home riders,” and it adds a sense of larger community. Examples: “Hey Sven in Copenhagen!” “Alex in Moscow, congrats on 100 rides!” “Sarah in LA, Happy Birthday!”

When you ride in class, you have the option to ride as a guest or sign in. The iPad (a much smaller version of the big screen they have on the home-rider bikes) then tracks metrics such as cadence (revolutions per minute), output in watts, and resistance. Also, it tracks your total output in KJ on the leaderboard. The leaderboard shows how you are doing throughout the class, as well as how everyone else is doing throughout the world. My goal is always to be in top 15 during class, but I don’t always succeed. Also, keep in mind that hundreds of riders take the class after it is live, on-demand at home, so my ranking usually drops drastically afterward. I have mentioned before that I’m not so big on competition, but I do love seeing how I compare against myself, and sometimes, I can compare myself to others to give myself an extra push. You can always “hide” the leaderboard from your screen if that’s not your thing. The tracking is eerily accurate, unlike some other bikes. Also, after the class is over, you can log into the site and see all of your stats from past classes and compare your progress. Even my one class from 2015 is still up there. You can also follow your friends, like on twitter, and see their workouts, compare performances etc.

Some people argue that they don’t like Peloton because the instructor teaches to at-home riders more than riders in the studio, and I would say that is true, it’s usually about 70-30 or 60-40 depending on the instructor. It’s a personal preference, but I don’t mind it at all. In fact, I like that the instructor gives you guidance on where your cadence and resistance should be and then lets you get in your own zone with the music. Maybe it’s because I am self-motivated in my workouts, but I don’t need the instructor in my face the whole time. I like the idea of 40% guidance and a slammin’ playlist, and I can challenge myself for the other 60% just by looking at my own stats (or some light competition with my peers on the leaderboard).

Peloton is an international phenomenon, but they only have one studio, and lucky for me, it’s in NYC. And it’s beautiful. They have a clothing showroom in the front, plus a few bikes to try out, then you can check in, receive your free shoe rental (COUGH COUGH SOULCYCLE COULD LEARN HERE), and then you go into this beautiful lounge area. They have couches, a juice/smoothie bar (for purchase), water that is infused with different fruits every day (for free), and a relaxing spot to wait for your class that is not a gross locker room. Oh, also, they livestream the current class (if one if going on) on the TV, so you can see what the at-home riders are seeing. You can even hop on the bike and ride along if you’d like. Pretty cool. The locker rooms are awesome too. They have showers with all of the fancy products, and they have pretty much anything stocked that you may have forgotten, from tampons to deodorant to flip flops.

The classes are amazing, too. They have metrics rides, theme rides, intervals and arms rides, low impact rides, etc. Like any gym, people will have their favorite instructors. So far, my favorite has been Alex, but that may be because it was a Y2K Hip Hip playlist, and any class that begins with Pass the Courvoisier has got my vote. But sometimes you can also be surprised. I went to a class subbed by Christine that was actually a canceled DJ ride, so I didn’t know what I was in for. It turned out it was a pop interval class, with songs by Little Mix and *NSync. I could not have been more pleased. It was also my second-highest overall output ever. So much fun! I highly recommend theme rides if you know the kind of music you’re into. I’ve taken classes by 7 different instructors, but the playlist is still my biggest motivator.

Now on to this challenge I just completed. Every once in a while, Peloton comes up with incentives for people to work out in the studio, and it definitely worked for me. This year, the #SummerFitList consisted of a postcard you needed to get stamped 10 times, for ten different things. If you’re thinking, “wow, 10 classes at $32 a pop is a LOT!” You are right. But they weren’t all classes, and with some strategic planning, I was able to complete the challenge in only 4 days, purchasing 4 rides. The ten things were:

  1. Take a 6 am class
  2. Take a Live DJ Ride
  3. Take 2 classes in 1 day
  4. Post a picture on social media with an instructor, tag @peloton and #SummerFitList
  5. Take an 8:30 pm class
  6. Take a theme ride
  7. Sit in the front row
  8. Take a 60-minute class
  9. Take a 20 minute class
  10. Bring a reusable water bottle to class

Now guys, I am a penny pincher, so I tried to get my money’s worth. First, I went to a 20-minute class and brought a reusable water bottle. The 2:30 pm classes are walk-in only and they are FREE so I got 2 stamps, no cost. Then on one day, I did a 6:30 am class (check) and an 8:30 pm class (check), which happened to be a theme ride (check), and also was 2 classes in one day (check), and I sat in the front row for both (check check) AND then I posted a photo with Alex on my Instagram afterward, with all necessary hashtags (check!). That was 6 stamps in one day, and only paying for 2 classes! I was able to pull off all stamps by only paying for 4 classes. And what did I get??? 10 FREE CLASSES. That’s right, $320 of free classes. Written another way, I paid for 4, and got 14. Not too shabby. Were my legs (and something else) completely sore after? YES. Did I miss out on a lot of sleep? YES. Did I get incredibly sick after? YES. Was it worth it? YES!!!

Good news is, the first class is FREE. BETTER news is, if you want to sign up through THIS LINK and take 3 classes, I can get a free class too. DO IT DO IT! We can take them together!! More Peloton!! I’m serious, check out those exclamation marks. Let’s get fit together 😀 If you take one spin class in NYC, this is the studio I would recommend (after my own classes)! USE MY LINK!

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