XCEL Athletic Lifestyle — Local services in Hoboken

I would like to share a horrible experience that I have had with this facility last Friday (April 22nd, 2022). First of all, I have been visiting this location since the time of Sky Club. I stopped attending the swimming pool because of a heavy surgery I had on both of my knees. I was advised by my physician to swim as much as I can and that is why I started using the swimming pool again. I subscribed yearly and made the payment for the first month. Last Friday, I went there and the first lane which was close to the stairs for disabled people was allocated for kids. So, I started using one of the lanes in the middle of the pool. When I was finished, for being able to use the special stairs I swam over the dividing line and pulled myself out of the pool. All of a sudden, a swimming trainer who was sitting on the bench next to the pool, started yelling at me that I cannot use this lane like this. I tried to explain my situation because I can barely swim and each and every other extra move makes me tired. It was horrible that he did not want to understand that and went on yelling at me. I was going to the locker room, but I changed my mind to go to the manager to explain the situation. The so-called manager did not even care. I went to the locker room and changed. I again went to the manager and wanted to cancel my subscription so that I could avoid seeing this guy there. Believe it or not, the trainer started walking towards me by scolding me that I was telling some lies to the manager. Unbelievable! After I insisted a couple of times, the manager cancelled my subscription. I walked out and the trainer followed me to the elevator! He came downstairs with me by looking into my eyes, shaking his head in a threatening way. I took a picture of him. I was frustrated and the management did not give his name. Then I thought afterwards that I should have called the police. Yes, this really happened in XCEL Hoboken last Friday. I will do my best to tell this to everybody through social media channels. I will escalate this to higher level management of XCEL, and I will even think of exercising my legal right against this trainer and...

On Tuesday, before Jill's group class, I noticed that the sauna was down. After the class, I approached Kelvin, the only employee at the front desk, to ask about a timeline for repairs. He told me that I had interrupted him while he was eating. When I asked if he was serious, he repeated himself, "thanks for letting me eat, bro." I understand that people have moments when they might be busy or distracted, but I was taken aback by both his tone and the lack of professionalism in his response.

This stuck with me and the following day, I decided to reach out to Lenny, the manger, to let him know how his guests were being treated at the front desk, hoping for an apology or an acknowledgment of the situation. Rather than addressing my concerns, Lenny rather aggressively suggested canceling my membership.

As much as I’ve enjoyed the convenience and group classes at Xcel, I accepted his suggestion as I don't see how I could continue to support a gym that would treat its members so rudely. I wanted to share this feedback in the hope that future members won’t have similar experiences. I'd look elsewhere for a gym membership.

edit: The unprovoked statement by Kelvin is at the heart of the issue here. If Xcel considers asking the front desk simple questions disrespectful than the problem is clearly deeper than I thought and rooted in their culture. I'm not sure why this behavior is acceptable to management and why instead of apologizing I was treated as an aggressor? Check out the video, I was walking away from the front desk when he barked at me about...

I saw a review that states:

“On Tuesday, before Jill's group class, I noticed the sauna was out of order, so I went up to Kelvin at the front desk to ask when it would be fixed. I wasn't expecting much, just a simple answer about the timeline. Instead, I got an attitude. Kelvin was in the middle of eating, and when I asked about the sauna, he snapped at me, saying, "thanks for letting me eat, bro." I thought he was joking at first, but nope, he repeated himself. This was shocking and unprofessional—like, who talks to customers this way?” etc. YOU ALL can see XCELS reply to Domingo Perez!!

I'm not even sure why they bother running a gym when they use members' money to fund their own parties and splurge on Planet Fitness equipment. It's laughable. They act like they're so much better than the members they serve, but you can see right through the thin veil of "professionalism." Ask Lenny about Jayden's fillers; he'll know exactly what is being talked about.

I highly recommend anyone looking for a gym to find somewhere else, where plus size people are not running a gym. There are far better places to invest your time and money than here. Don't waste your time, especially when the management is so messed up. Maybe even just be like them, sit and do nothing and eat!

LIKE Go hit the gym! 😂 At least the members are trying!

Question: Do you know the definition of disrespect or are you sensitive?

Sensitivity & Insecurities is...