Studio @ 808 Health Club — Attraction in Highland Park

This place is absolute garbage, please save your money and time and go somewhere else. The gym is extremely small and cluttered, it feels as if you are working out in a low quality garage gym. The lack of equipment is apparent with only a single squat rack and a couple of machines. If you are a serious lifter you will have an awful time here due to people hogging the squat rack and other equipment. Only two bench presses and they are situated in very bad locations. About everything here is bolted down so there is no feasibility as far as moving things around. The equipment is also in bad shape and breaks down all the time. On the rare occasion when there are more than 2 people in the gym, everyone is on top of each other and having to wait for their turn with certain equipment. This gym is always almost empty but it doesn't matter since even with a few people it gets extremely cramped. The personal trainer usually takes huge amounts of space with his cookie cutter workouts based on bro science. The worst thing about this place is the staff, they are the most hypocritical people you will meet. They will be relatively nice to your face but make snarky remarks and completely talk trash behind your back no matter who you are. The owner has also displayed racist tendencies since he forbade one of his staff workers from speaking in a foreign language to me since he found it offensive. He claimed that people should not speak any language other than English since this is America and he should be able to understand what we say. This is one of the most ignorant things i had to go through and it shows the type of racist ignorant individuals who work here since another employee told me the same thing. So if you speak more than one language or English isn't your primary tongue, you are not welcomed here. There are also some absurd rules in this "gym," such as not being able to take your bag to the fitness area or sit on a bench for too long since they claim it causes obstructions for the other members. What other members? There is no one in this gym and for good reason. This place is almost as bad as planet fitness if you are an experienced lifter since you cannot make even the slightest noise or hit the weights relatively hard or people will complain. This place is also not suited to be a gym by all means, the floors are hardwood and creak all the time. It just seems as if they converted an old house to a gym and it is simple not state of the art. The owner also always makes shoddy repairs instead of hiring licensed professionals to do the work. For the outrageous $50 a month membership you have to pay you should be receiving much more. Zapp fitness nearby is much better and much cheaper and is considered a state of the art gym with multiple amenities and courses available. The courses here are a complete joke and no one takes them seriously. This place is an embarrassment and should not be considered a gym by all means. There are much better gyms available at this area, which are cheaper and actually look and feel as a gym. Do not cut yourself short by going to this absolute dumpster. Even at $10 a month it would be expensive. If you are serious about your training and want the best please go somewhere else. If you are a casual gym goer then planet fitness is much better and significantly cheaper than here. There is no reason to go here unless you get to workout for free. Many people i knew and know are leaving this place because of how bad it is with all its absurd rules, as well as the nosy hypocritical people who work and go here. I beg you not to go to this place, it is the worst gym i have ever had the displeasure...

Stellar local gym. The owner, Gary, is very sweet and really cares about people & his facility. It has all the equipment you'd need and it's never crowded so I've never had to wait in a line for something I've wanted to use. The equipment and decor all share a unified retro aesthetic. Everything is kept extremely clean - I see the owner cleaning basically every night. This all leads to the atmosphere of this gym being very calming, perfect if you favor a quiet relaxing workout experience. Lots of mirrors and high windows letting in natural light. I just can't imagine using a crowded noisy commercial gym after frequenting this place.

All the patrons are very friendly. Besides weights, there are cardio machines, a martial arts dojo with classes offered, personal trainers, spin bikes, and more. I've been coming here over a year now and it's become my new...

This is the best gym I've ever joined. Owner Gary Panichella has made this facility a labor of love, and it shows in every detail: huge floor plan with dedicated areas for free weights, weight machines, cycling, jogging/elliptical, aerobics/yoga, even giant tire training out back. Everything is very clean, and the gym has wonderful natural light that makes working out very relaxing. Members have key card access during the gym's posted hours, and owner Gary and manager Eric are welcoming, helpful presences in the afternoons and evenings.

This was a wonderful surprise after my high-pressure experiences in recent years with packed gyms in Center City, Philadelphia. I encourage you to ask for a tour to see everything this facility has to offer because pictures can hardly...