Gold’s Gym

It is 11 PM. I’ve been excited all day about finally getting to work out at a gym. I had activated the 14 day trial pass yesterday. I just got here and now I am being told that the trial pass is for 8am-​8pm only. The guy Who signed me up whose name I won’t mention specifically said that I can access the gym 24 hours. Drove all the way here after work — and now at 11pm, the staff at the door is saying that only paid members can use the gym after 8 PM.
First of all, why wasn’t I told this policy before, let alone be misinformed? Secondly: if the gym were busy, I would understand — but it’s not — Is this how you turn away trial users?
The guy at the door said that the general manager will be on vacation for a week and that I could talk to the operations manager tomorrow to see if she can approve of the nighttime usage.
Edit: As it turns out, night time usage was not approved. I’m okay with that. I didn’t sign up.
1 additional star only because the gym offers a variety of classes that sound interesting.

I just joined and this gym seems to be exactly what I need. I used to be with lifetime fitness and just never got motivated to work out. I signed up with Samuel and he is amazing. My sister and I both go to him, super laid back and very motivating. The only bad thing I can say is that no one puts the weights back in their place and some of the equipment is a little older compared to lifetime fitness.

You get what you pay for… kinda dirty and there is no gym etiquette-​no one re-​racks their weights and people leave garbage everywhere and sit on the machines playing on their phones. But, it is OK to get a quick cardio workout in, provided you can find a machine that works. Also, its close to my home and the hours work with my schedule. Front desk staff are usually nice.

Could be worse…
Great staff people at the front desk. Always a smile and short convo!
They have a great selection of equipment. Lots to choose from! However much of the equipment is old and worn out. There are a handful of machines that have «out of order» signs on them and have been there for a little while…
Kids area is great. Our kid always has a good time and staff seems to do well.
When we signed up we weren’t really explained much or given much information about the different packages available. Got locked into a contract with something and wanted to change something later and apparently I was given some sort of special deal… never knew that… and cannot change any of the «add ons» for my account. In other words, apparently childcare is an additional $ 5/​m and then there are extra classes for an additional price, etc.
If I would have been explained that in the beginning I would have opted out of some services or «add ons» not only for my account but for my wife’s.
I have childcare and never use it (paying for something I’m not using) AND my package apparently includes some classes (again, I never use them) BUT my wife would… but because I wasn’t explained this upfront I cannot remove that from my account. AND she can’t use it unless we add it to hers for an additional $xx…but I have it and won’t ever use it… was never explained these things up front. Was just told it was $xx for the membership and was told what it included. Was not told that I could pay less if I removed some things or that I could never remove those things down the road once the contract is locked in.
Will i continue to come here… probably because of proximity… am I happy about that… not necessarily…

Horrible management. Was a member for 6 years… joined LA fitness after the current fitness manager was beyond rude to me and my guest.

I only give this place 2 stars because I didn’t have to pay for it since I was TDY. This place is horrible. No one seems to care about the gym etiquette around here. Weights are just thrown everywhere. The equipment doesn’t seem to be kept up and lots of machines were out of order or should have been. I would not pay for a membership here and would find a better kept gym in the area.

The outlay of the gym is decent. The equipment is old and needs updating. No treadmills have tvs and u can’t hear the tv when doing cardio. Now for my biggest pet peeve… there are weights strewn about all over the gym. No one re-​racks the weights and the lazy day workers don’t clean up the gym or puts the weights back.

I just stopped by today to try out a 30 day membership offered by the Houston Gold’s gym president since my husband has been a member in good standing for a while. I walked in and asked the front desk what I needed to do to be able to use it. She said I had to talk to a sales rep. I waited to talk to the General Manager. He immediately focused on trying to sell me a membership instead of using the 30 day membership pass & started throwing a whole bunch of information left and right. I told him I was a previous member & that what ever he needed to tell me or explain to me in order for me to use the 30 day membership was welcomed-​I had time to listen or walk around the gym if needed. I told him I was looking for a gym again in my area, specifically on my way back from work so it can work with my work schedule & allow me time to be at home. He immediately said if I was a former member then I could not use the pass. The pass stated that former members had to have been in good standing at the time membership was terminated. This was my case. So I told him that the restrictions did not state former members could not use it. He insisted that was the case & that I had terminated my membership very recently (this was back in April) and made it a point it was his gym and he could do what ever he wanted. I told him I perceived that he was basically dismissing me because he assumed all I was there for was to use the free 30 day membership and not seek a membership since I was former member and I was not interested in joining again. He then felt that I was arguing with him about me not being able to use the membership. I told him I was not but that he could have taken the time to let me know what was NEW at the gym since the date I terminated my membership & perhaps this would be a reason for me to decide to join this gym again. He immediately said that I already knew what the gym had. I told him the other gym I used had a specific machine I liked so if there was new equipment there this would be a reason for me to consider joining the gym. He then said there was new equipment including new thread mills and elliptical machines and it must be the same I used at the other gym. I told him that if he didn’t mind, perhaps he could show me around as obviously there were new machines I may like which could be selling point for me.
He did show me around and by the end of our tour he finally invited me in to his office. He pulls up my information and realizes I had been a member with Gold Gym for over three years before I terminated my membership in April. He again mentioned that the membership fees were going up next year and that the prices he was going to offer to me now where not going to be available next year. I told him that I was shopping around for gyms that met my needs based on my work schedule. I have other options in the area on my way to work and I wanted to compare them which is why I wanted to try the 30 day membership.
He then tried to work with me on a temporary access to the gym by offering the membership for same price I paid when I was member and that if after 30 days I was not satisfied I could cancel. I again let him know I wanted to be in control of my decision making based on what I thought met my priorities (he was again focusing on the price going up next year etc). I told him that price was not an issue for me-​what I need is a gym that has the equipment that works for me and the location to work with my route from work to maximize my available time. This is what I mentioned to him from the get go. Finally, he offered me a week pass to the gym. He made sure to start it tomorrow, Monday. I accepted his final offer.
What is the moral of the story? Do not be pushy with your prospective clients in order to sell your memberships & do not overlook the opportunity to WIN back former members. Although I was a previous member and you didn’t see me as a prospective client/​member, good customer service skills instead of selling tactics as your priorities would’ve prompted this manager to ask me in the first place why I had terminated my membership and that many things had changed since then, like the new equipment. He could have said: Unfortunately, because you terminated your membership over six months ago, you are not allowed to use the pass. I am required to show you around the gym with every free pass but I would recommend you to join me in the tour as this will give me the opportunity to show you our new equipment we purchased since you last came in as a member. Perhaps this will help you make the decision to consider becoming a member with us again since you mentioned you are shopping around for a gym in this area. After we get done with the tour, if you would like, I can check your old account to see what else I can do for you in the mean time to help you choose us as your gym once again. SMH…

I’ve been to this location a few times. It’s true that some of the equipment is aging, but I was impressed with the size of the gym and the open atmosphere. What I really liked was the dedication shown by a few of the trainers I saw working there. It seems like a good place to go if you’re looking to start working out for the first time, with a trainer, or to simply keep yourself in shape.

So I go this location and Donald Lewis the General Manager helps me. He shows me around the place. It is OK not brand new but usable, a little to dark for my taste a few extra light could go along way. But when it came time to talk price I got the old school hard sell. Told they don’t do contracts but here sign this contract, I stated I just started my search and this was the first gym I had been to, so I would like to review a few others before committing. Then I got the HARD CLOSE telling me the price I was quoted was good for that visit only and if I came back I would have to pay more. He even typed my name in his computer and said I had to take thee offer now or never, and no other person could repeat the offer because I was listed in the system. This outdated Gym sales tactics of high pressure turned me off.

much of the cardio equipment needs to be fixed, like all other gyms high turnover with trainers and no communication in management. You get what you pay for with the $ 10 a month

I went a couple times, the equipment is not all that great. They are big on personal training, I think it’s cheap for a membership. I wouldn’t get a membership here

You can definitely achieve your goals here if you can look past the age and condition of the equipment. Lots of weight stack selector pins missing or broken. They do offer services like crossfit /​Personal Training etc and they can be fairly aggressive to get you signed up. They have tanning beds and a sauna. No pool. For $ 10 a month, its really what I would expect. I personally think it’s still better then buying equipment for home which will ultimately end up on craigslist anyways.
If you plan to sign any contract, I highly suggest that you take the contract home and read it first. In Texas, you have 3 business days to cancel a contract after it is signed. Notice that they have a $ 25 «club enhancement» fee buried in their gym contract. Personal training is a different service and will require its own contract. You can watch the personal trainers with other people in the gym first, and determine if that’s what you really want. $ 75 a session which is 30 minutes. You get locked into a contract if you sign up.
This was difficult to rate because although I have experienced better, I also paid 300−400% more. So the cost is aligned with what to expect thus making it ok for what it is.

Wow what a bad gym. The place is filthy and no one cleans up after themselves. The trainers are very unprofessional. I have worked out here 7 times and every time see them showing clients improper technics. Also as I was getting into my truck one of the trainers was outside the front door dropping the F bomb about 15 times on the phone in the 45 sec it took me to walk to my truck. All around a bad gym and terrible trainers.