Planet Fitness – Rockville

Big gym, very spacious, would be perfect if they had squat racks
Most of the staff was polite, but the manager is terrible… one time she thought we had walked away after checking in and literally started to mock and make fun of us.

This is my first Planet Fitness but probably my 40^th gym I’ve experienced. I travel often and have lived in a couple cities in the past few years.
Planet Fitness franchise grading: A. I’m not experienced with other Planet Fitnesses to give this one any less.
I’ve been enrolled with the gym since May 2015 now and have never had any issues with the staff nor with the equipment. For $ 10 a month you truly get what you pay for: simple and basic equipment, free weights no more than 100 (I think), a mat room for abs, various cardio machines. Also, have I ever experienced this location to be TOO busy. At most, the Smith machines (assisted squat racks) will be taken up but you can improvise while waiting your turn.
As for gym grading: C. The franchise’s niche is to be the un-​gym. Demographics of this gym are seniors and beginners. More power to both of these groups for still maintaining healthy lives, though. But I’m more acquainted and more comfortable with Gold’s Gyms, ACAC, etc. More fully equipped and with more serious contenders. It can be a little frustrating when someone that doesn’t know how to use the equipment or someone that is not using heavy weight and could instead use a free weight uses the machine you need. Also, no sauna?! My old Gold’s Gym in Richmond, VA provided this amenity for $ 10 a month.
So long as you keep to yourself and focus at the task at hand (getting your workout in,) this location is an alright spot.

You get what you pay for I guess. I got my membership a few years ago. It was what I needed at the time. I have gone to the Rockville and Germantown locations over the years and once again you get what you pay for. The gym is often dirty, machines are broken, and it is crowded. But once again get what you pay for. So like I said it did the job at the time. You can’t beat the price though. Which is sadly why I stayed for so long. I moved twice since I got the membership but that was okay b/​c my job was still near one of the locations. But now I am changing jobs and I will no longer be close to any of their locations. So I went to the gym in person to cancel my membership. They told me they could not cancel my membership that I had to go to the gym I signed up at. Completely out of my way. Worse I went to the gym earlier in the week and asked them what I needed to do to cancel my membership. They asked if I would be back in and I said on Friday. They said I could do it than. I also asked for a statement of all my recent payments they said they could do that than.
Now I have gotten the statements before from the gym by my work (Germantown location). Went back Friday and they said I couldn’t cancel it b/​c I had to cancel it at the Rockville location. Seriously that is why I have the black membership card so I can go to any of the gyms. I than ask for the statements. They say can’t do that either. I asked why and they say I can only do that at the location I signed up at. Well that is a flat out lie b/​c I have for the past 2 years gotten the statement from the Germantown location and not the Rockville one. Also why didn’t they tell me that earlier in the week. Wouldn’t you think they would ask if this was my primary location? Wouldn’t they see that as they logged me in? Obviously they didn’t pay attention. it would have been nice to know all this before Friday b/​c I would have made plans before hand but I thought since I had the black membership I could do everything at any location. Guess their system isn’t that great either :(Should have known better.
So Friday was my last day at work so I was not going to be in MD anymore and could not just swing by the Rockville location. So I decided to call to cancel my membership. Surprise Surprise they say sorry can’t do that over the phone must do it in person. Really really I am no longer in MD I now have to drive to Rockville to cancel. Now I get to waste my weekend to go cancel. Lacking on your customer service there! Congrats you get another $ 20 from me Planet Fitness… hope you actually do something with it!

I’ve been with Planet Fitness for quite some time now and overall I would have to say the staff is just rude. The whole ID situation is so messed up the staff dosnt even know how to handle any situations or even let alone know how to explain the proper rules and regulations. I had gone in and had brought my friend with me and last time an employee there told me that they were doing a «New» update on their system and that they no longer need to hold onto the guest ID anymore because they only needed a phone number. So when we went in the second time we were approached by a very rude Employee who seemed to be of higher status than the usual because he rudely just pointed to the sign that read «Please show ID» and rudely told us that we needed an ID. Now keep in mind that last time the employee told us they no longer need ID so I told my friend that they didn’t need to bring their ID this time. What a piece of work. Honestly I just want to know this guys shift so I can just avoid him because he was so inexplicably rude. I come to the gym to work out not to get scolded by the front desk employee. Please train your staff to be friendly and courteous. I hate to have to change to golds gym just because of this rude employee. But if I encounter this again I will leave.

I love the fact that they’re open 24 hours it makes it convenient to work out whenever you want especially when you work 10 to 12 hour days so if for some odd reason I want to come in at 3 AM before I start my 7 AM shift I can do it! The staff is always courteous and friendly even in the wee peaks of the morning, it’s conveniently located behind the Micro Center and off the main road so getting here is never a problem plenty of parking even more barking at 4 AM! Hey large variety of weights machines cardio and classes available!

This gym is perfect for me and here’s why:
Convenient — Open ²⁴⁄₇! I often go on a weekday evening after 9pm and although it’s not crowded, there are plenty of other people there. The parking is free, abundant, and well lit.
Atmosphere — It’s full of people like me, just trying to get in shape. Nobody is training for Mr. Universe or trying to meet Mr./Ms. Right.
Equipment — Plenty of cardio machines and lots of TVs which aren’t all tuned to news or sports. They have 2 sets of almost all the weight machines so I’ve never had to wait for any equipment. It’s all in good condition.
Price — $ 10/​month! True there are no group classes, but with my schedule that never works anyway, so I’m not missing those.
Clean — The gym doesn’t stink and the locker rooms are always clean. What more do I want? Disclaimer: I haven’t showered there.
I have been coming for about a year and never had any problems with the staff. They greet me on the way in and out. I don’t need more than that.

I was with kikmora i in during her visit to get back the ID after planet fitness had given it to the wrong person. If you read it you’ll get the details. In summary, planet fitness takes guest ids (liscences so forth) and puts them in a stack at the desk. The employee we were talking to gave away her id to the wrong person and the license was gone for ¾ days. His excuse was it gets busy and he can’t bother to check each id to make sure it is given to the correct person. He said this in front of me. Really, is the desk so busy you can’t look at an ID for 2 seconds? This isn’t Starbucks, and if it was, they wouldn’t get away with that either.
I see that the manager has answered her below which is a good sign. I’m glad they will be using this as a training issue. However I concur with her experience. Leo was very condescending and rude considering he was the source of the problem to begin with. I would have been reprimanded or officially warned if I spoke to one of our clients that way. To me this was not a training issue. You don’t need to train people to not be rude. That is a skill they should have before they are employed. I’ve been with other gyms in the area for years and not encountered that sort of smug behavior.
This is a hiring issue. Put the focus on the actual problem and it will get resolved.

Came in as a guest of a member. They lost my driver’s license that they «have to hold while guests are working out», noone apologized. I did get an advise to use Über to get home without driver’s license. As well as use Über for the next few days to get to and from work till i can go to DMV and take time off work and spend a day at DMV to replace it. Seriously?! «Thank you, Leo! You are indispensable». Which muscles did you use to come up with that idea?
I was kinda hoping someone/​manager (?) would make it right and call and apologize that his employees failed, but nothing.
So guests’ IDs are sitting there on the reception counter and apparently nobody checks to make sure people grab their own documents, noone verifies the names and photos on the documents. Leo’s response to that: «Well, if it’s busy here at the front desk we can’t verify everyone before returning them their IDs, so we just hand them to whoever asks». Dude, this is not a rocket science you do there! It’s not that hard: just ask for the spelling of the first and last name and the address on the ID, that’s it.
Someone needs to train that Leo person on how to talk to customers. He might need to train some other muscles. They say brain is like a muscle, try it.
The facility is nice and it’s ²⁴⁄₇. After dealing with Leo, there’s noway i would recommend it to anyone.
I regret i didn’t call police and didn’t file a report on them.
They did find it somewhere 5 days later. Wonder where.
PS. Why can’t they simply make a copy of an ID and return it to people right there? Why do they need to hold it as a hostage?

This gym is okay but yout definitely have to improvise, there are only 3 stair masters and only 3 smith machines. Overall, customer service is pretty good, and the location is great.

I’m a «Gym Rat» with three different gym memberships all serving a specific purpose. Planet is the membership I decided to obtain simply because they were ²⁴⁄₇ and I can do fasted cardio early at 4AM with machines available and w/​o wait or timing myself because others want to get on. However, they lack so many strength training equipment it’s sad but if you know their motto, you know this isn’t a gym for body builders or those who do competitions. This is the condition of their rope attachment (see picture). I was doing triceps that day and just couldn’t believe the rope had been left in that condition for over 3+ weeks. Overall, if you know how to workout and focus, the gym is fine. Ignore the folks holding up machines, talking, taking selfies, or sleeping. Yea. Sleeping. I never go when they have free pizza or coffee & donuts. If you’re looking just to maintain or doing cardio with limited weight training, a gym without a pool, sauna, steam room, basketball court but ²⁴⁄₇ with great staff members… PF would be perfect for you.

I enjoy most of the planet fitness chains. Especially now that they have «spruced» up most of their gyms. All the cardio and weights one needs. Perfect for beginners intermediate and advanced level training… Dumbbells go up to 65/​70lbs. No free racks, just smith machines. As far as the weights and machines they are just what you need… Some people don’t wipe off their machines but I think that is every gym. The one thing I really hate is the tanning beds… No one ever cleans them. Employees nor members. It takes almost the whole five minutes for me to clean my bed, stand up or lay down. It’s just nasty. Makes me not want to go, but I want to be able to use all the perks without feeling disgusted. Everything else is fine. Just beware of the tanning beds!

As an update to my review, the rating has not changed. When I called to speak with the manager regarding my refund, it took 3 different holds with an employee (and her continually saying they had no documentation of my cancellation) to finally be able to speak with him. When I did finally speak to him, he confirmed that they did have my cancellation receipt and it wasn’t in their system because they had recently gone through an upgrade to their system. Ok, I can deal with that as long as I get my refund. I was required to go to the location in person in order to get my refund. When I got there, the manager did not know how to issue a refund (again, due to this upgraded system). 1 week later and the refund is still not in my account, so clearly (even though I have a receipt), the refund did not work. Believe me when I say to AVOID AVOID AVOID if you ever think you are going to cancel.
However, it is not just with the cancellation. I’ve had previous issues with the manager when I complained about the lack of mat space. He was quick to respond to my email and said he’d even be willing to walk around the facility with me and take my suggestions. I emailed him back and then never heard from him again. False promises. That is all they offer.

Decent Planet fitness. Tons of cardio equipment as well as plenty of weight lifting machines. Most of the machines are in working order and I frequently see the staff assisting patrons with exercise routines.
The location is kept pretty clean and most of the regulars do their due diligence in wiping down machines after they’re done.
There are TV’s lining the wall across from most of the treadmill/​exercise bikes showing everything from ESPN to Real Housewives of whatever crazy city :)
Compared to other Planet Fitness locations this one is smaller and the popular machines can be «ahem» guarded on evenings.
It’s definitely not a body builder type gym, but if you just need a spot to do some maintenance this place is great for the price.

Very happy. $ 20 a month for a Black card membership. Very affordable. The front desk staff is very nice. You will always have your meat heads at the gym, but mostly everyday people getting in a workout.

Pretty great gym and it’s gotten even better since BP joined. He is a Black Card member so I can work out as his guest for free.
The equipment here for the most part is in good condition. The pads on the strength training equipment are still new and untorn. The staff is also kind an respectful.
All in all, worth the affordable membership fee of $ 20/​mo.

I attended this location for about 6 months. I found that the location itself and the machinery was great. Just what I needed. Lots of cardio machines, weights in the back. It could get unbearably crowded in the weight area during weekday evenings, though, leaving you to use a hallway type area or whatever free space you could find to use free weights. The facilities were always clean, and it was open 24 hours! Great news there… 4 stars for that.
Unfortunately, my experience with the staff was always less than stellar. Aside from perhaps one employee, the rest were never welcoming in any way. No greeting, almost annoyed when you asked them any questions… For a «no judgement» zone, they seemed to be doing plenty of judging (from what I could see and hear!!)
Planet fitness is great for what you pay for…

They are signing up too many people. And it’s easy for them because the gym is affordable.
What I like:
24 hours– That’s new and I was going to cancel, but they did it just in time.
Cheap– You don’t feel like they are raping your wallet
Staff is friendly
Tanning
Massage bed
Friday nights, Saturdays, and Sundays are not busy at all.
What I don’t like:
No amenities like nicer gyms such as sauna
No towels (I guess that’s how they keep the costs down) so you can’t take a shower if you don’t bring one.
There are groups of people that go here I guess to chit-​chat and be social while hogging machines and slowly lifting things here and there making it more crowded and taking up machines that could be used.
A lot of beginners that don’t know what they are doing, why they are there, and then will be replaced by another round of completely different faces in two weeks.

I’ve been coming here almost a year, but will be canceling my membership shortly. The following has been the extend of experiences that lead me to such a negative review:
1. While using an arc trainer, they had whatever equipment cleaning guy come through. This was late in the evening, by the way, before they were 24-​hr. The guy came up behind me and sprayed whatever cleaning chemical they use on the machines on both sides of me… WITHOUT EVEN ASKING OR NOTIFYING ME HE WAS THERE. This machine, which looking like a large metal gun, was misting out this cleaning solution. So here I am inhaling who-​knows-​what chemicals while this guy is just spraying away. Come to Planet Fitness-​Rockville if you don’t mind spraying down your lungs with Lysol, I guess.
2. The biggest challenge this gym has is just plain staying open. It seems they cant go a month without having to shut down for one thing or another… pipes bursting here, freezing there, toilets uncontrollably overflowing, the fire alarm being pulled by some kid (a result of poor security, if you don’t think this is an issue)…there is always some excuse. I get that it’s not an expensive place, but I’d rather pay more for a gym I can use than get a deal at a place that’s perpetually closed.
As a Planet Fitness location, it’s pretty much up to par: a gym for people with no real intention of getting in shape. Free pizza and bagels, no rules (or at least enforced rules) about people chatting on their phone while using the equipment, a (relatively) small fee, and the general «no lunk» atmosphere…(as if in-​shape people are the reason you can’t control the amount of calories you consume). If the idea of losing weight and staying in shape is more appealing that actually doing so, this place is for you. Shell out the amount of a burrito and soda, and feel good about the fact you finally joined a gym… that 6-​pack is just one free pizza night away, right?

My new favorite Planet Fitness location.
It is MASSIVE. It doesn’t feel like you’re in a warehouse or a converted Sears like most locations, which is always a plus. They have nearly 100 treadmills, which is similar to what I’ve found at other PF locations. Then there’s the added bonus of having actual weights and machines like most normal gyms. I’ve found that PF tends to lack in weights, making it unfriendly for the customer trying to build muscle. However, this location bucks the trend.
Then there’s the tanning section. In addition to the stand-​up beds, they have actual tanning beds, which I reveled in.
Keep in mind you get what you pay for: service seemed to be lacking here, but I really don’t care. They even had a section closed off for people to rotate to different machines every 60 seconds with the purpose of defining the abs.
I wish this location was closer to me…

Unilocal has killed me in the past few years. Going to over 300+ restaurant/​bars/​clubs in the DMW area in 3 years has added to my waistline. I let it slip and slide until I started feeling uncomfortable wearing my suits and enough was enough.
I began shopping around for gyms and was drawn into Planet Fitness’s no hassle and low-​price/​month gym membership.
Two gym memberships:
$ 10/​month: no contract, cannot use their tanning, infrared, massage chair or water massage services, locked into 1 gym location.
$ 19.99/month: locked into a 1-​year contract, you can use all the services, can bring a friend into the gym for free (but your friend can’t use the tanning, infrared, or water massage services), you can use any planet fitness gym.
I considered this to be a fantastic deal compared to other options such as Gold’s Gym and decided to join based on these conditions.
As I used the gym, I noticed a lot more benefits than price.
1) Good equipment. Most of their cardio equipment is from Life Fitness and Cybex. For those who don’t know, these are the top makers of cardio equipment.
2) Very clean and organized. Weights are always in place and equipment is well maintained and clean (maybe b/​c it’s new).
3) Never overcrowded. I have yet to wait for a cardio equipment b/​c the gym was full. This includes peak hours after work.
4) No douchy gym dudes or female fashionistas. I haven’t seen anyone who comes here to stroke their ego (e.g. flexing and staring at the mirror). People who come here to work out are fairly normal.
5) Friendly staff. Nice and courteous.
6) Time restrictions in using equipment in high demand. Ab exercising equipment and equipment for fast-​paced lifting have time limits of 30 – 60 seconds. There are visible timers that beep which keep everyone moving on to the next equipment.
7) Water massage bed. The bed is one of the best commercial water massage beds. It has a traveling jet stream that moves across from head to toe to massage your back of your body. (
). These things cost $ 20,000-$ 25,000 and is as close as you can get to real (human) massage on the back with a machine (even better than the Medical Inada shiatsu massage chairs which are arguably the best massage chairs in the world).
The negatives:
1) Gym equipment is not the top line equipment. Although they carry the best brands such as Life Fitness and Cybex, they are not the high end lines. There are lots of functions that are missing in the machines (e.g. the ellipticals do not have an incline control).
2) Temptations. They give free bagels and pizzas one day of the month. Also, they have free tootsie rolls and food samples (e.g. energy bars) lying around all over the place. I came here to lose weight! Get rid of the temptations from my sight arggghhh!!!
3) Lack of equipment for a full range muscle workout. For circuit training, I think the equipment is quite limited for working out specific muscle groups.
In sum, I have a positive opinion on planet fitness and I have no regrets paying $ 19.99 for their services. Although the equipment is not top of the line, I think you get what you pay for at $ 19.99 and it’s still very good. The equipment types still cover most of the muscle groups that you want to work out. For those who are in the extreme work out group, the gym may not suit your needs, but it was never meant to as it caters to people who want casual workouts.
On a final note, I have read Marion T’s negative review about planet fitness to see if the consumer complaints are legit. I googled this and there seems to be a large number of complaints from customers getting charged after membership cancellation. Caveat Emptor.