Galter LifeCenter

This place is great — it really is an excellent fitness facility and I am a fan. I recommend starting off with their «Fundamentals of Fitness» 6 week class program if you’re new to a gym and looking to ease into life changes. It made a positive difference in my life and literally saved my life. I like this place very much BUT there are some things that are concerning so know them up front:
1. Place is too kid-​focused. There are so many obnoxious kids running around the halls and the locker rooms that it makes me want to scream sometimes. On more than 1 occasion I’ve wondered if they’ve forgotten that it’s the grown-​ups that pay the membership fees.
Also, too much of the pool time is geared towards the kids
2. They changed their referral program to be only $ 25 rather than a free month for everyone you refer to their facility. This is disappointing because I’ve referred many people there
3. Front desk staff is very friendly but not always too great about knowing what’s going on and being able to answer member questions
The facility is modern, clean and well-​kept. There is a robust class schedule and there are classes for all fitness/​ability levels, including classes for those with mobility limitations which is not something many workout place have
Definitely worth it (but the over abundance of kids — especially in the pool — will test your patience)

Good and decent place for working out. My kid loves family swimming session here during winter time.

Most people who go there are older though some young people go too. The actual gym is pretty nice. They have many machines, their indoor track is really nice and they have 2 pool sections. Their hours are nice in that they are open till 8 on the weekends– a major plus in my book. My main issue with the place is the price. Its about 100 dollars a month which is pretty expensive compared to its top competitor (in my eyes) the YMCA. The steam rooms are pretty grimy too and are set to turn off very quickly, probably to avoid a lawsuit what with their older clientele. So I can only rate this gym as ok, seeing how its competitors have better rates and similar quality facilities.

I thought this would be great for me. Two swimming pools! Well, unless you want to go at 5am or 3pm might as well forget it. Pool is always reserved for classes. If I can’t figure out a schedule that works for me I guess I’ll be rethinking my membership.

Great gym.
It’s relatively clean, the staff are friendly, the equipment seems to be well maintained. It’s not pretentious at all.
I’m really not a gym person but I want to be able to swim and working around the Park’s department lap swim schedule became impossible.
The gym members skew older but I feel like it’s a nice mix.
Child care for as low as about $ 3 for 90 mins is pretty much impossible to fine else where.
Easy parking and reasonable dues.

Tried again and joined about a year ago. Used the facility mainly in the gym. The equipment is good and the facility clean. The staff smiles, but doesn’t engage much. I finally tried a class. My biggest complaint is that the classes are too full. Good for the club, not the member. Additionally… and this is not the club’s fault, the members… mostly older are not very welcoming. The men don’t talk and the women prove that mean girls exist at any age. The facilities are nice, but I wil probaly have to start looking for a new gym. Of course, I go when I can which is the middle of the day. Funny that I read another review that complains about the kids. I see some of that during the day. I was hoping going at a different time later in the day might be more welcoming with more working people. I guess not.

I just completed Fundamental Fitness and have to say this is a sterling place! This is not an elitist sports club, nor is it a cheap gym… yet if you’re looking for ether of those you’ll likely be satisfied at Galter.
The Fundamental Fitness program has helped me establish my goals and understand the various aspects of health that would be beneficial to me (cardio, strength training, flexibility, nutrition, and mind-​body connection). During the past eight weeks of this introductory program, I’ve lost about 10lbs and am coping with an incredibly stressful life right now. Mainly because everyone at Galter (staff, trainers, and fellow members) are so friendly. I find it hard to motivate myself to get to the center but when I do get there, there’s always friendly and encouraging interactions that bolster my resolve to live healthily.
Having completed this initial program, there’s a waiver on the membership sign-​up fee, so I joined today. I also utilized one of the many coupons available, to join one of the many «packages» they offer. Excited to be having one-​on-​one nutrition guidance, personal training, a massage, some metabolism testing etc. Galter really does have something for everyone… and their employees are eager to help people to get the most out of their experience. Whatever goals you have; weightloss, weight-​maintenance, rehabilitation, running a marathon, trying to live more healthily, or even just finding some social activities — the classes, the gym and/​or the programs are perfect.
The trainers are great too — none of them act as if they know it all or are better than the other. There’s a strong sense of camaraderie between them. If you’re wanting a specific type of training, they will collaborate to work out who is the best to help you out. Some trainers are more experienced in certain sports or hold certificates in certain fields which mean they can offer you specific training.
In response to those reviews about issues with kids/​parents in the pools and locker-​rooms, I agree that it can be difficult but this doesn’t happen all the time, and it’s easy to find times during each day (week or weekend) when there are no kids, or very few kids. It is a community-​based center too, so kinda goes with the territory. While I do find it kinda annoying to have kids tearing around the locker rooms, it’s usually only for a couple hours each weekday late-​afternoon. I now go in the mornings or the evenings and there’s rarely any kids besides the few in one-​lane of the pool doing swimming lessons.

Thanks, GLC, for a decent and mostly successful attempt at fixing the parking problem. (See? I promised I would write when the parking situation improved!)
Room for improvement:
— Cell phone conversations and texting in the fitness area and in the locker rooms (oops, what? a city violation?! oh no!), mainly by people who think they are above the rest of us (yes, special lady, you know who you are).
— Noise from the group fitness classes in the open studio.

Galter is a great local, private gym! The front desk staff is incredibly affable, and informative. Unlike their competitors at LSAC, Galter staff are all up to date on all there is to know! One caveat, though, is the pathetic staff in membership. Membership office truly lacks professionalism, as does the inept director. If it weren’t for them, this place would be perfect.
The locker rooms are kept neat, with towel service, lotions (scented and fragrance-​free), body wash, conditioner (they no longer provide shampoo, as most members never used it), and free, easy to use tall lockers. The locker room staff are diligent and hospitable.
The facility has a very open, circular layout, providing members with the sense of an even larger gym, while still maintaining a level comfortability.
The equipment offered are amongst a host of different brands: Treadmills (3 diff brands); ellipticals (4 different types with various range of motion); reclined bikes (3 diff types– with/​without monitor/​tv screens); cycling bikes (3 diff types– all great!); rowing machine (2 diff types); stairmaster (2 types).
The circuits are gathered on the opposite side of the free weights. Ample circuits with enough space amongst each to avoid crowding. Every circuit imaginable occupies this space.
The free weights area is neatly organized and open enough to avert the typical crowding feel. They have all types of weights for various forms of training: body building, MMAs, cyclists, runners, etc. They have the TRX system set up just between the free weights and circuits. They have punching bags scattered throughout.
There is a fitness desk in the center of it all, with a number of trainers and fitness specialists eager to assist. There are cleaning stations all throughout the gym, with mini-​towels offered to encourage cleanliness. These stations, thankfully, are easily located.
GLC has an impressive amount of classes all throughout the day, allowing people with demanding schedules to still manage to fit in a class. Most of these classes are free to members. YES!
They have incredible stretching apparatuses, that most gyms lack! There is space dedicated to stretching all throughout the gym, which is neat! As open as the layout is, it still feels very calming and relaxing.
They offer private classes ranging from boot camp, TRX, MMA, and beyond. They offer an infinity pass, akin to a membership card open to unlimited private classes. Neat, but pricey if not taken advantage of.
They have a nice lap pool with several lanes (I want to say 6?), an open pool, 2 jacuzzis, a sauna that’s unisex, and private stream rooms accessible in men/​women locker rooms.
They have a lost/​found cabinet just outside the two locker rooms, near the massage rooms.

Shattered my patella last winter & it’s been several surgeries ongoing.
A medical leave is 6 months max and cancelation must be in person. So finally I was able to tackle the snow piles and ice dams today in order to avoid another $ 82 monthly fee. It took all of 2 minutes and could have easily been taken care of via technology as a signature was all that appeared necessary. No surprise tho, as customer service has really taken a hit in the last few years. I suspect the cost cutting of management finally has affected the attitude and morale of the staff. Will find a more congenial atmosphere somewhere else when I’m healed!

Overall, Galter is a fine place to work out and learn to get healthy. The Kids Center is great since there are many staff members to watch the kids. They don’t just relegate the kids to a tv set, but are actively involved. The best way to meet people is to start taking classes. Everyone is friendly. Galter is definitely a «safety-​first» kind of healthclub, and for that reason, they can be more strict with rules and regulations than other clubs.

Some people get happy when they work out. Some become cheery, perky, energetic and just can’t stop talking about how many reps or circuits… I hate these people. I cannot relate.
I suck at gyms.
I am naturally perky and hyper but the gym sucks all that out of me leaving a surly, sarcastic, angry, achy… It isn’t good. I am miserable.
Aerobics and group classes really render me into a frustrated rage monster– the rest of the class is at 4 and still not coordinated enough to land on 1. I’m not fast, not athletic by any stretch. I admit it. I am Posh Spice who can neither sing nor dance but want to wear all the clothes and thus, must exercise and pout in a surly fashion.
In fact, the only reason I am here is due to relentless nagging. This should not be held against the establishment.
All that said, there is parking, there is ample space, it is clean, the employees are very gracious and helpful, there is a swimming pool, a hot tub and sauna even a well-​stocked locker room with showers, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion, hair dryers and towels galore.
So, if you are looking for something local– this can be convenient.

I have been a member for couple of years. I came here because of convenience. Started to hate this place. Because one day my daughter come and visited me and I decided to take her to Galter as a guest. No problem there. What happen next is we decided to use the pool and my daughter started to show me some swimming technique.
The lifeguard didn’t like what he saw and told my daughter that she can’t give swimming instruction to me. I asked why and didn’t get any answer. I can see if my daughter is doing it every week but just for one time. Come on. I pay over $ 80 for one person and they want to nick pick. I don’t like the staff and the management ran this place.

Love everything about this place. Friendly staff, clean, spacious, pleasant patrons, awesome child care room. I’m a stay at home mom that drives here 2 – 3 times a week and I have no complaints.

Had I reviewed Galter a few years ago, I would have given them 4 stars because I enjoyed their gym and the facilities. However, this summer I had a really awful experience with their advanced aquababies class. During the first session, the instructors forced my 2 year old’s head under and scared him to death. After that visit to the pool, my toddler who had previously loved swimming, was terrified to go in the pool the ENTIRE SUMMER. Lame! We couldn’t go back because he was so frightened to return. So I complained by calling and personally going to the center to try to talk with someone about the situation. I wasn’t called or emailed back. No response. I agree with the reviews here that say their customer service is really bad. I would not recommend taking classes here for your children.
I also had a REALLY painful massage here a few years ago. I wish I remember the therapists name so that I could make sure people knew not to go to her.

I somewhat agree with the most recent reviews, which range from Meh to Awful. I’ve been a member for over seven years and remain a member just because it’s close to home. The management seems intent upon driving members away and turning this into a youth swim training facility — there are often many more kids and their parents clogging up the pools and hallways than there are members working out.
As membership appears to be dwindling — there are rarely more than 10 – 20 people in the equipment+weight areas in mid-​late-​afternoon — access to equipment has improved. So that is a plus to me!!! And there are the old guys wandering around naked and dripping on the carpets in the men’s locker room, the deserved mates to the rude ladies I’ve read about, coloring their hair in the women’s locker room. No staff ever bother to request better behavior from these un-​house-​broken dopes.
To me, it’s refreshing that the Galter Center is NOT swarming with gym rats — with so many old and out-​of-​shape people around, it gives your self esteem an easy boost!!! But you also have to wonder why the most fit people have drifted away. A few months ago I did stop into the dread membership office to inquire about the cost of adding my partner to my membership and I also found indifference. They didn’t offer any gym passes for him to try out the gym or make any effort to close the deal.
You cannot count on having access to a pool lane because they are often full of children. And, really, the pools are the only difference between Galter Center and a $ 20 gym with exercise equipment. Galter Center is an adequate gym where those of us with less-​than-​perfect bodies can work out in peace. However, gym members do NOT seem to be the first priority here.

UNDER THE SEA
My little one would love to be Ariel but she has legs and she will never be the little mermaid. Knowing this info I figured she should learn how to swim.
My wife researched and this is the place that came up as being the best place for children to get private swimming classes. We also found an amazing instructor. She was fantastic with our little one but after our 6 week course she was moving away for college. We spoke with the manager and she promised to pair us with another instructor like the original teacher. So we purchased another 6 weeks.
On the first week, I realized our new instructor was not even close to our first instructor. In fact, our little one had gone backwards in her swimming ability. After class the teacher wanted to talk to me. I told him he needed to be the instructor and not be lead by a toddler.
While this conversation was happening my little one was walking by the pool. I had one eye on her, when she decided to jump in on the other side. No one saw her jump in the pool. Not even the life guard on duty nor the new instructor. I had to fly across the pool, throw my cell phone against a wall and reach into the pool head first with my clothes on to save her. Luckily I was there to do everyone else’s job. To this day I have no idea how I got there that fast. I will say the Galter DeathCenter traumatized me forever. And immediately after this incident, nobody said,“Sorry!“
I had to call the manager and inform her about what happen. She had no clue. I was surprised that no one told her this…“a parent got soaking wet when he had to save his own kid during a personal swimming lesson”. Really? No one mentioned that? Wow I’m surprised and also the King of Sarcasm!
I requested a full refund. The manger did apologize but suggested for me to try another teacher. I told her I really could not step foot back in there again and put my little one in danger. The manager only refunded me for 5 of the 6 classes. Which I thought was shitty considering the new instructor was terrible and our child almost drown. That’s just bad customer service.
It has taken me a while to actually write this review because I just wanted to forget this horrible moment ever happen. But I also realized it was important for other parents to realize that even though there are suppose to be trained professionals here. You must keep an eye on your child because you are the only one responsible for there safety.
This place screwed up. I’m just lucky it wasn’t worse then me getting soaked. In the end, I’m glad my little wasn’t seriously hurt. She will never remember this horrible moment and that’s good for her. Just remember to be safe, if you bring your kids here.

I belonged to this gym for several years up until a little while ago. A long time ago, the management actually possessed traits that a top-​notch facility should have: helpful, friendly, customer-​service oriented administrators who oversaw equally-​friendly employees who excelled at what they do, from Pilates instructors, to personal trainers, to licensed massage therapists, to swimming instructors, and to the teachers of many fitness classes.
As new policies filtered in and the recession hit, that’s when the club quality and satisfaction of a large percentage of the members started to take a steady nosedive. I remember when the personal trainer and massage therapist I used to see made their jobs seem like a hobby, like they didn’t sweat the small stuff because they took so much pride in what they do and excelled at it. I really enjoyed the all the help and advice they gave me. In addition, it looked like they really enjoyed their jobs and I always looked forward to my sessions.
Then the management began efforts to cut costs and cut the budget. They even froze the salaries of every employee in the building, I was told, for an entire year. I’m sure this had quite a bit to do with the concurrent and gradual decrease in customer service, quality in services, and overall atmosphere of the building. You could definitely tell the demeanor of the employees had changed, as toward the end, I had had enough of such a gloomy facility, and ultimately decided to jump ship down the street to Lincoln Square’s new health club, a 100% improvement.
It’s just that the combination of several little things that started to totally suck (for example, the awful parking situation, increase in prices, cluelessness of courtesy desk workers) eventually added up. Oh yeah, and by the way, the other review of the massage services was right on. I did find a couple of therapists who were really good, but the way that department was (and probably still is) run is the biggest joke.

I worked out at the Galter LifeCenter for 3 years. As a medical resident of the adjacent hospital, I had low expectations and used the facility about 2 – 3 times/​week solely for the convenience.
The equipment is fairly nice. Lots of treadmills, a few elliptical machines. I didn’t use the weight equipment a lot, but seemed fairly clean and a good variety.
The area is spacious, which is really the best part of this fitness center. There’s lots of room to move and you never feel cramped.
Group fitness classes are decent as well. Nothing like Equinox, but pretty good. The best classes in the city of Chicago are at Equinox. FFC is a close 2^nd, then the LifeCenter/​XSport.
I’m giving the LifeCenter 1 star for its poor management, dreadful customer service, and inadequate cleanliness of the women’s locker room. These factors unfortunately overshadow the above positives I have mentioned. I have never been treated in such egotistical self-​centered ignorance of the staff on numerous occasions – from the cleaning staff to the manager under hair-​ridden, disgusting conditions in the women’s locker room. I would not recommend this fitness center to any of my friends or family members.

This is the best gym I have ever belonged to, and I am something of a gym rat. The variety and timing of the classes are the best! Any time of day any day, there are several classes worth checking out. I also really like the atmosphere here — the exact opposite of the meat market feel you get with many chain gyms. The fitness instructors are for the most part really great. My favorite class is Group Power and I consider myself a regular. The teachers — Nikki, Francie, Suzanne, etc. — are all awesome and keep everyone motivated. I also really enjoyed the Prenatal Fitness and Stroller Fitness classes I took. We are moving to the suburbs so I cancelled my membership and am totally bummed and will miss Galter.
As awesome as Galter is, I wish it was not so expensive. I also wish some of the more interesting classes, like pre– and postnatal classes, were not additional costs. Oh and the songs in the classes being sung by fake singers for royalty reasons is pretty silly.