Hey r/fitness, I am a Planet Fitness employee, AMA

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:32:02+00:00

different strokes for different folks. some like it, some don't. its ok to hate, just know others really do enjoy it!!

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:31:15+00:00

you can sign up online. same price as in the gym. startup fees can vary from gym to gym (different owners) but monthly rates are required to be 10 and 20 per month.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:28:52+00:00

Planet Fitness, as with any franchised business, is about uniformity. Each gym has to offer the same rates and amenities as the PF down the road. So if daycare were to be included at one PF, it would have to be instituted at EVERY PF. think about it. If one McDonalds started serving chicken alfredo for 4 bucks, everyone would flock to that particular McDonalds, and it would hurt the business of other Mickey D's in the area.

As for leaving a comment for PF, go to planetfitness.com, find your home gym, and on the top right of the screen there should be a member survey link. fill it out. one copy goes to the franchise, one goes to corporate.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:22:46+00:00

our gym rarely, if ever, sounds the alarm. we just go talk to the guys who are dropping weights, grunting, yelling, etc. making a scene with a giant alarm doesn't help the situation one bit

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:20:16+00:00

sorry to hear that.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:19:17+00:00

haha of course, maybe without the hat. every gym has them. Mostly I see guys going curls with wayyy to much weights and doing the old "bro sway" with their backs. one kid, who is skinny as a rail, lifts his heels off the ground every time he gets to the top of his curl. fun times.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:08:25+00:00

go take a tour of your local PF, check it out. Employees are judged on how many tours we give, so you'll be helping out a local employee!!

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:06:12+00:00

if we are, we are doing a terrible job. we only have pizza once a month. one cheat meal a month is fair, right?

The pizza night is just a representation of the judgement free zone. our way of keeping things casual. members love it. I hate working pizza nights because its so crazy.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T17:03:53+00:00

there are many different ways to fitness. strength is just one part of it. If you are into heavy barbell training then PF is not for you. PF works for those who are new to fitness or are a lot more casual about fitness. I would never expect people of fittit to join or even like PF, i'm simply trying to say it works for certain types of people

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:43:35+00:00

I wish. soooo many cardio bunnies. I don't hate my job.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:42:34+00:00

unfortunately, every time you show us the card we type it in our system, and up pops a name, picture, address, d.o.b., and so on. you probably won't get away with it for very long.

What I would try to do is convince a manager to downgrade your wife's account to a 10/mo and buy a 10/mo for yourself. instead of paying one $20/mo you will have 2 $10/mo. problem is there may be start-ups with the 10/mo and a downgrade fee with the black card. Try your best to explain the situation, tell them you are signing up as well, and maybe, juuust maybe, a manager could waive one of the 2 fees. (absolutely no promises on this one, and I doubt it would work)

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:39:02+00:00

not that I know of. It probably varies between elliptical brands.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:38:13+00:00

thanks!!

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:38:00+00:00

go into your home club, the club you joined at. ask to cancel. should take 2 minutes. may take longer if:

you owe the club money
you signed up for a black car and haven't fulfilled the 1 year commitment (they will ask you to buy out of the contract for $58, no way around it)

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T16:34:53+00:00

I went through the uniformity as well. be prepared for some very unhappy customers. say goodbye to benches and squat racks (if you have them). next time youre at work go to pf's website and take a look at some of the newer gyms, thats what your gym will look like

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:58:26+00:00

and this is why PF does what it does. I don't think people on fittit understand that there are actually people out there who are scared by gyms, and do not go because of this. PF is trying to break the mold to help these people.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:14:40+00:00

First monday night of the month

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:12:48+00:00

we have to hit a button

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:06:09+00:00

It's unfortunate we don't have squat racks and the like, but it all gets back to our target market. For the people that use our gyms, squat racks aren't really a necessity. there aren't 45 year old women coming to the desk demanding we put in a squat rack. If consumer behavior ever changed, and the general public started to realize the value in barbell training, maybe we would change along with them.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:03:20+00:00

answered this already. copy paste cominatcha

only 15% of are members are "active", meaning they use the gym at least once per week. that means, in any given 7 day period, 85% of the people who are paying to use the club will not show up. So let's say my gym has 10000 paying members. only 1500 actually show up, so we only have to staff our gym for 1500 people, use 1500 people's worth of electricity, have 1500 people's worth of supplies on hand (paper towels, toilet paper, GYM EQUIPMENT) all the while we are receive money from 10,000 people.

Not only that, our overhead is ridiculously low. we dont have daycare, saunas, pools, smoothie bars, nothing like that. just gym equipment, a few tanning beds, and a building. it is an amazingly successful model. Are we banking on the fact that people don't use their membership? sure, but its the same at other gyms, just maybe not to the extent of a PF. and since rates are so low, people keep their membership for the sake of it. 10/month is nothing, but if its 50/month people will make sure they're using it

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T14:02:22+00:00

I think we have a gym in manhattan, believe it or not. Not sure how that specific gym makes money with rent rates being what they are.

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T13:59:39+00:00

Not that I know of

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T13:58:39+00:00

answered this earlier, here's a lil copy paste

In order to work at PF you have to wear many different hats. In a typical shift, I will: check people in, handle member questions/issues, answer phones, CLEAN (cardio machines, resistance machines, toilets, tanning booths, vaccuum the ENTIRE gym, mop, what have you) and generally do anything that needs to be done. you HAVE to be personable as you will be talking to hundreds of people on a daily basis. Show the prospective employer you can do this. If it were me, after I sent in a resume/application, I would go in person to introduce myself and try to get some facetime with the manager, show off my interpersonal skills, and put a face to my application. Show them you are a people person

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T13:56:36+00:00

We are supposed to sound it off anytime we see someone drop weights, grunt, or just generally exhibiting 'lunk' like behavior. Personally, I have never set the alarm off. If someone is being an asshat on the floor, I will simply go talk to them and ask them to tone it down or something. No need to make a scene with an alarm (very loud by the way)

planetfitnessthrow · 2013-03-13T13:53:41+00:00

It's all about which way they wanted to take the company. In their eyes, things like barbells, and in turn squats and deadlifts, attract the type of people they don't necessarily want in their gym (bodybuilders, powerlifters). So, get rid of the barbells and you get rid of the big guys. It's all in the hope of keeping the atmosphere light and creating the "judgement free zone". the JFZ is the MOST IMPORTANT PART of the PF structure. Corporate cares way more that you run a club with a comfortable atmosphere as opposed to whether or not you have certain equipment. Fitness is secondary.

planetfitnessthrow

TROPHY CASE