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To Tami in New Jersey, as for Curves, I understand it is owned by a radically pro-life donor. Frankly, I am pro-choice and won't contribute. I took the tour and think the half hour circuit is a good concept, however.

I like to work out in my own home with videotapes. They work well and I don't have to wear clothes. In the summer and spring I walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. I prefer working out by myself and not in classes. I don't need the social experience and getting in and out of a gym uses up too much of my time. I'd rather walk to work and take the stairs in my apartment building.

I wish you could call a gym - ask how much it is to be a member, get an answer and not a pushy sales person telling you to come in so he can hard sell you. Why not be honest and post prices clearly? It's not the used car business.

I completely agree with Leila re: boxing, and Gleason's.

I don't know if he's still training amateurs, but I whole-heartedly recommend Hector Roca, one of the most capable and _nicest_ trainers out there.

He was one of the very first to take on amateur women boxers. He also trained Buddy McGirt and Iran Barkley, taking them to near-championship levels--until, in classic boxing fashion, they were snatched away. (They shouldda stood with Hector.)

Bruce Silverglade, who owns Gleasons now, I believe, is very nice and helpful.

I should also mention the great Teddy Atlas, but I doubt he trains amateurs.

If you can't find Hector, just hang around, watch; keep your eyes open; you'll soon see someone you like.

My niece loves Michael Olajide, who now has his own gym in Manhattan.

I was recently shocked to find out that a women I know became an Equinox trainer after one month of training. She is an actress with no fitness experience but is naturally thin and pretty. I'm sure that isn't true for all trainers, but the fact that even one is allowed to train at a high class gym that is chargs a lot of money for a private session is a bad sign. I workout at Gleason's Boxing Gym, one of the most famous gyms in the world. It's also one of the "skankiest" (to use Ms. Lee's terminology). However for very reasonable fees you can train with people who have boxed and trained world champions, like Lennox Blackmore who fought in the World Welterweight Championship in 1984. There are many people at the gym who have professional jobs and do not spar but do the workout routine which is considered the best all around conditioning of ANY sport (see ESPN's ranking of the most difficult sports. Boxing is No. 1). Gleason's is the friendliest gym you will ever be in and there is no judgement AT ALL concerning how you look. There are people of all shapes and sizes from ages 7 to 70. I can honestly tell you that I consider it a blessing that I found this gym and look forward to going every time.

i'm with Daniel the ACE , is one of those organizations that created a certifying industry. being th ebiggest certfing indistry is big bucks, non profit or not. i checked their website i didnt see any salaries lested amoung all their expenses. i do not belive the ACE has any hands out testing, meaning they have a lot of stidy guides they sell and than you need to take a written test , all for a fee. i dont know if they have changed , but there never used to be any hands on testings meaning the trainers are certified solely on a written test. in other countries such as australia , personal trainers are only certifed after they complete hands on testing. lots of scammy certifying agencies out there whose main goal is to make money for the agency .
i dont know if ACE is a bad as padi, but many of these certifying agency are money making industries, thee hook is they have the insurance coverage ,so everybody has to use them.
brian should do a show on bikram yoga and the scam bikram he runs with his teaching course and boarding .

Galvo has a point about the guest being a shill for the fitness industry. (And a narrow segment of the industry at that -- commercial gyms.) What on earth is the American Council on Exercise on whose board your guests sits? Is it a lobby group ...or front group... for the fitness industry? The American Council on Exercise accredits trainers -- most of whom are poorly trained. Hmmm....sounds like a story to me.

As all these comments show, people can get passionate -- even dogmatic -- about fitness...because they're convinced THEIR way is the ONLY way. But there are many ways.

That's why a diversity of voices is required in guest selection. Please reconsider your plan to bring back the guest every week...if it means excluding other points of view.

After all, you wouldn't cover the primary campaign by interviewing the same partisan every week -- and no one else.

all locks can be cut or picked, they use to be successful with a shim made from a coke can to open the master combo locks. i agree the guest was a taking head for the fitness industry It is a very complex issue, what is your ideal and model of a person in good shape? what are you striving to accomplish and look like? Most of the buff model types in these gym ads are juicing, and so are the super buff trainers, it is the deep dark secret of the fitness world. Like the baseball players and senator craig they will deny it to the end. wide stance and B12 ...
get a bike and ride and walk as much as possible, i just cant figure out why the hamster people people are inside these gyms on the last two beautiful days.

Years ago when I decided that I wanted to get fit, I never considered a gym membership. I did consider buying a treadmill, but the idea of going to the gym was not part of my plan.

I started eating better, kept a food diary, and doing exercise videos, i.e. step and floor aerobics, and sculpting exercises with hand weights. Results were swift. I lost 20lbs in two months! I went from a size 16 to a size 4 in a matter of months.

I still exercise 5-7 times/week but, I'm not as fit and lean as I once was (I guess I eat more, and not as healthily). I'd like to lose 10-15lbs, but I won't do it by going to the gym.

Final thoughts.

1) "How do you choose a gym?" may be the wrong question. It might be better to ask "how do you get in shape"? The answer may -- or may not -- involve joining a gym.

2) How about a call in for trainers Only? Topic: "Gym secrets our bosses won't let us tell you."

On the smart consumer issue:
Your guest gave bad advice in suggesting now is a good time to join a gym because of the New Years "specials." Buying a gym membership is like buying a used car....or a rug at a bazaar. Ignore the posted price. EVERYTHING is ALWAYS negotiable. It's "let's make a deal" time...and you should put yourself in the driver's eat.

The best advice is to avoid a commitment of longer than 30 or 60 days.
Ignore the high pressure sales tactics about the "special" that ends tomorrow. A new one will come along should you decide to renew. Ask and ye shall receive.

How about a crowd sourcing project on gym fees?

I feel for Callie and Sue!

And yes, the comments here are more trenchant than the guest(!)

I might add that the NY Parks gyms' yearly cost for seniors is like $10. (I belong to the Tony DiNapoli center in the Village, built in 1905 for the "great unwashed," and updated in 1937 with "pulleys, Indian clubs, medicine balls and all the modern appurtenances." And of course updated since. Lots of classes, indoor and outdoor pools, basketball court. Sure, tatty around the edges, but the weight room seems a much friendlier place than the gym chains.

Galvo's right, too. Master has apparently rectified the problem with its combo locks' codes. Still, get a good strong key padlock, and never leave anything too valuable in any locker room.

Thank you Galvo!!

What a disappointing segment! It fell far below your usual standards. The guest was ill-informed and displayed a pronounced bias in favor of expensive, high-end gyms. But there was almost no discussion of the most important thing: how well gyms do in actually getting results.Your guest was quite wrong to say most gyms are interested in improving the health of their clients. In fact, most gyms are in the business of selling memberships -- not fitness. The holy grail of the gym business is clients who are PIFfed. (PIF means paid in full.) The last thing the gyms want is for these clients to actually show up. ...because the gym would be overwhelmed. Many clients succumb to high pressure gym sales tactics at this time of year. They pay in full for a full year membership -- then stop coming within a couple of months (or even weeks.) I'm afraid your segment may fuel the foolish frenzy. Big gyms also spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on machines of questionable usefulness. They then proceed to scrimp on the quality of trainers. Many trainers are paid little more than minimum wage, know little about fitness, and turn over rapidly. Even at the high end gyms your guest touted, a personal trainer may receive as little as $30 for a $100 personal training session. Please, please.... please....delve into all this more deeply. There is a big story lurking here that is seldom reported.

tell your listeners to never ever leave their wallets in the locker room, the gyms never advertise and they keep keep quiet as possible the huge amount of locker room thefts.
there are specialized gangs that do the locker room thefts, it has become increasing more prevalent with the cellphone being used as confederates warning system.
use a fanny bag to carry your wallet, they can pick open a master combo lock in seconds, enter a locker from a side wall , they wil get in and remove your credit cards, return the wallet, by the time you realize your cc are missing , they have been maxed out

For the caller looking to donate equipment. You might also consider giving the equipment to a shelter or public housing facility. Some of these facilities have workout spaces but a dearth of equipment.

Thank you Callie! Jesus, is part of the whole fitness culture an incessant need to BRAG about your working out? My spouse comes home from the gym flexing and preening and spouting about his workout and what am I supposed to do, fall on my knees and worship? I'd be more impressed if he helped out around the house. I hate the gym.

I was in Macau Hong Kong in December and the government built the adult equivvalent of a playground. Instead of swing sets, they had treadmills obviously built for endurance with bright colorful plastics. I was really impressed.

I work out (outside of the gym) regularly. I bike, work out at home... but am interested in joining a gym for a few services... is there anything you can say for people who are acustom to working out outside the gym???

The guest isn't very well versed in the subject as the comments above show. And the first caller was absolutely correct. Talk to any long time trainer at a place like NYSports Club and they will tell you that deals can only be gotten at the end of the month so they make their numbers, they go through staff at all levels at a very high, and very expensive, rate. That says allot about how the place is run. I've been going to gyms for over 20 years and her advice is entirely too idealistic and not in tune with the business and economics of gyms.

New York Sports Club seems to charge different rates depending on your "home" gym, and what specials are on offer. I'd be interested in a survey of how much people are paying across the city.

Also, the New York City Rec centers are even cheaper if you go to one that doesn't have a pool- $35 for the year.

Is there a website in which people rate the various gyms?

What about the trying a new-class intimidation factor? Lots of classes but no room in the classes.

Is there a gym in Manhattan that isn't totally over-subscribed and yet affordable? I'm not a very agressive person who doesn't feel comfortable fighting for a weight bench, so i've wound up working out at 10 or 11 o'clock at night. This has the been the case at Crunch, Equinox, and David Barton. Also, very bothered by the agressive sales approach of trainers in Manhattan. Equinox was the worst in this respect.

Please, please, if anyone calls Asher Levy be careful how you dial. I get many, many phone calls at home at all hours from people who think they are calling Asher Levy.

You know....honestly...I think it's all a load of crap. My husband is a workout fanatic, every day at the gym, constantly talking about working out and how he ran a thousand miles or lifted or whatever. And how he's so in shape and feels great, blah blah blah. And you know what? At 5:00 when I have to make dinner and the kids are in the witching hour and homework needs to be done, where is Superman? On the couch asleep. Or icing his sore calf muscle.

His fitness regime is no use to me. I'm not impressed. It's all a crock.

I think there is a difference between a gym and a health club and that difference comes down to service. Working out is hard enough, but you really need every incentive like free classes, training, lots of towels, personal screens, to get people in and keep them there. I think health clubs provide that.

I left the YMCA in Montclair to the NY Sports Club after a year because of a lack of service, a lot more variety of workout options, and more locations which I can use.

What do you think about Curves?

The city parks gyms are the best deal in town. $75 for the year, and they have all the machines you need. No, they're not the swankiest places, but they have everything you need, as well as a diverse cross section of the NYC population.

People in this city are nuts - so often I see people taking the ELEVATOR up to the gym so they can use the stair-master, or, they take a TAXI to the gym so they can use a treadmill. JUST WALK AND TAKE THE STAIRS! I think gym's are ridiculous.

Picking a gym can be very difficult. I graduated from NYU and when I was done with school I joined Crunch. I do not like Crunch and have gone back to NYU's gyms; they are so much better.

If you don't have time to make it to the gym, you can workout with online fitness videos. Visit http://www.beYOU.tv to watch free online fitness videos or purchase and download them.

Enjoy,

Greg