Orangetheory Fitness — Attraction in Bothell

I joined Orange Theory Fitness in January, and it has been great workout wise. Most (not all) coaches and front desk staff are super nice and helpful. Few policies the studio has are very hard to maintain like cancelling classes 8 hours in advance - otherwise $15 penalty, no show penalty of $15 due to sickness etc. I was sick couple days and front desk said they will look into it, but I was still charged. I was pretty much charged extra on top of monthly fee (~$220 for unlimited) every month because of plan changes or sickness etc. I let go all these inconveniences because I liked the studio vibe and workout was effective for me.

What pushed me over the edge is an incidence where the coach was extremely rude and disrespectful because I was 5 mins late. I entered the room; coach Jenifer rolled her eyes at me (is this a high-school drama!!) and then was extremely rude to me saying I need to leave the room. She didn't need to be so disrespectful! She could convey the same message nicely and respectfully. I am paying $220/month and including penalties every month easily it goes beyond $235 - she is not doing a charity! I am old enough not to tolerate this kind of behavior - I am not a kid; she is not my mom or teacher! I would rather spend my money where I get good workout AND am respectfully treated. I don't know if she would have treated the same way if I weren't a people of color.

I was very disappointed in the fact that I didn't get to do my workout as well because I was late by 6 mins. I understand that the studio has rules about warm up and that is very much appreciated. However, I could still have done 5 mins warm-up by myself on the floor (or on treadmill or rowing machine) after I reached and start my workout after that. But I wasn't allowed. I could still have done 49 mins of workout instead of 55 mins. This is nothing against the coaches/front desk, but very stringent studio/corporate policy. Nobody wants to be late and lose money/time for no reason. I drove 20+20 40 mins for nothing and also paid for the class. This is just way too big of a time wastage and penalty. This is my first time ever in 6 months coming in late. I am specially disappointed because making time with 2 little kids, bed-ridden mother-in-law and full-time job is already very hard as is. And on top, because of 5 mins delay you make us go back home. Not everyone is fortunate enough to live a smooth life where planning ahead for the week just works.

So, I felt this gym definitely is not for me with so many strict rules and regulations, specially where I am not treated with respect. I value my dignity.

I do want to add that the studio manager was very thoughtful about listening to my points which is very much appreciated. I would have give 1 star, but because of the studio manager giving...

Scam alert. This places charges you for late cancellation or no show even if you cancel on time. The staff is rude and doesn’t honestly own up even if their app has messed up. The only 2 polite and helpful folks are Ana (who has left since) and Francesca, who is still around.

I’ve been an OTF regular since May 2023, clocking ~120 classes since beginning. I haven’t had a single missed class or late cancellation until Sep 14th, 2023. On Sep 13th at around 9pm, I dropped the 11:15AM class and booked the 10AM class instead. That day, I was surprised to see a late cancellation fee for the said class. I did not ask for a refund of the fee, I only asked what time according to them I canceled, since I clearly remembered canceling at around 9pm. OTF reached back offering to do a 1 time courtesy refund of the late cancellation fee. When I still persisted with wanting to know what time I canceled for it to be considered a ‘late cancellation’, they changed the narrative saying it was not a late cancellation, but a no show. I figured there was some malpractice involved - but let it slide.

Last week, all of a sudden, my wife noticed that she had been hit with 3 late cancellations! She too has been at OTF for the same duration doing ~120 classes without a single no show or late cancellation. Since we have a set practice of reviewing the next day’s class at 9pm the previous day, we know that we have not ‘late canceled’. When we reached out to OTF, they were smug about it. Only Jamal was honest enough to admit that something was wrong with the app. 2 days after bringing it to their attention, only 1 class has been refunded and the other 2 still remain forfeited.

My main concerns are -

(i) It is very unethical that OTF did not by itself reach out accepting that their app has issues. It took us to point this out, whereas they should have proactively made it right. It is like a shoplifter getting caught and arguing that he has returned the item so he can go scot free. (ii) Even after our outreach, OTF has only refunded 1 of the 3 classes they erroneously charged my wife for.

As for your request of reaching out, I don't even know who to reach out to that wouldn't be smug about it, and is willing to engage with humility and...

Free class report: Into the Black Void

This was my experience taking advantage of the trial class at OT.

I chowed down on a protein bar, ate some pre workout and showed up to the class at about 5. Within an hour I began to feel intoxicated from being tired (extremely similar to too much caffeine). The feelings of intoxication persisted for about another hour before I decided to call it a night, as at the time I thought I had worked out enough to have a full on experience.

Now about the class itself:

First thing I know when i enter the class- I am in an eternal black void. No light, no color, no country music (save my own thoughts). It was SO dark and they couldn’t turn on the lights either. I tried hopping on the equipment myself only to realize that I could only use one machine for a certain time, straight ahead and following the rest of the class. This immediately brought panic upon me. I tried fighting against the coach keeping me from getting to any other equipment, but with each failure to diverge from my path I became increasingly scared and agitated. This went on for what felt like hours.

Eventually, I gave in to the void. I accepted my place in the pitch black room on a rowing machine (and what I could only describe as 2 dimensional) realm. I accepted that it was my destiny to work out alone in a home gym until the end of time, with only my thoughts to keep me company because i didn’t like being told what to do. I continued along my path for what seemed to be very long minutes. they played cardi b…

And then I stopped. I had reached the end of the timer. A paternal voice (who I dubbed my workout coach) began to speak to me, telling me that I would, in fact, be alright. The coach began giving me simple instructions via, well, narration. It was through this that he guided me back into my body where I finally got to do some lifting. For that I am giving 4 stars. But will not be returning due to the lighting issues they have going on so that’s where they lost one.

Has anyone had any similar experiences, or heard of anyone that has? Thanks for reading, and please do...