LA Fitness — Local services in Jefferson Township

Thanks guy complaining about lack of music! Now this cheesy music is so loud, I can't hear my own. Not to mention the sound quality is on the poor side. When I asked staff to turn it down a bit, they told me that only the manager could do it and he won't be back till Monday. So either the manager is a control freak or staff can not be trusted with this task. Judging by the style this place has been run lately, both options are possible. Many reviews points out recent remodeling... Well, yeah. They painted the place and installed new vinyl floor. Replaced equipment that mostly was in decent shape, anyway. It seems that 6 month was not enough to address the most important issues this place was struggling with. Ventilation and ac. AC lately seems to be working fine but I won't be surprised to see it fail or unable to keep up when temperature outside hits 90. Ventilation in men's locker room is a disaster. It's constantly hot and humid in there with not so occasional drain stench from the showers. Showers were pretty much left untouched during "remodeling". Back in the days some shower heads were leaking so they called plumbers Rusty and Skeeter. They had some leftovers from previous side jobs and installed them in men's showers. So there's variety of styles of shower heads with one common characteristic. They have extreme flow restrictors. There are some more enthusiastic reviews out there that make me puzzled a bit. Giving 5 stars to a place that is at best mediocre? And I'm not talking about comparing with some higher tier gyms. Just some well run LA fitness places in the suburbs. It's not a pleasure to write all this but when I asked staff about addressing some of these issues, I've got a standard reply "I'll pass it on to my manager" or "It used to be we could do it but we can't anymore". These are the better ones. On the worse side they suggested I should try another...

This place is disgusting. Here's why:

They keep it hot. Steaming hot. They'll tell you that they're getting their air conditioner fixed. They say that month after month. You sweat just standing there; much less actually working out.

Lots of puke. This area had lots of dumb guys. Education statistics show that only 7% have any college at all. For some reason, these dumb, muscle-bound guys think it's a good idea to have a big, full meal before a heavy workout. Result: they puke all over the place. Somehow, they never make the connection that if you work out on a full stomach, you’re likely to get sick. Watch out for people puking right on you.

The locker room is revolting. And, tiny. They actually made the locker rooms smaller when they remodeled about 10 years ago. Curiously, they’ve got several large rooms that’re completely unused. You're pretty much going to be rubbing your skin against some other filthy, sweaty, hairy slob [who hasn't showered in months]. And, man, does the locker room reek. It reeks! You'll remember that smell for years.

Always crowded. When you get through jostling and tussling your way through the locker room, you'll emerge to find most of the machines taken. Whichever machine you want, that's the one that'll be in use. Always crowded, whether you go morning, noon, or night.

Roid rage. As mentioned above, lots of massive, dumb guys use this place. They're also pissed and/or violent. Be prepared to defend yourself.

Guys just sitting around in the smelly locker room for no reason.

There's some kind of mental asylum nearby, so you may run into fully hallucinating schizophrenics, talking gibberish to non-existent beings, gesturing...

We've neglected to go to this LA Fitness for the past 2 years because of poor reviews. Let me tell you, if you are used to the "Lifestyle" of a Lifetime or a new LA Fitness, with the new locker rooms, the nice sauna's, the brand new machines, new hexagon shaped plates (whoever invented those clearly has never deadlifted before), the raquetball/basketball/volleyball teams...you are going to most likely turn your nose up to this place. It hands down has the oldest equipment I've ever seen in an LA Fitness. That being said, they don't even make half of those machines anymore and it couldn't be better for those who want a totally new/old school variety. The only people who are going to appreciate this kind of environment are people who go to a gym to sweat their asses off (yes, it is quite hot downstairs) and could care less for the bells and whistles. As for your lockers getting broken into, you have to remember that it's a unmonitored public facility and yes, people are going to break into lockers now and again. There are signs posted in all LA's. It should be a no brainer. DO NOT leave valuables in your locker!!! Just don't do it. If someone wants to steal your clean post-workout clothes, then all the power to them. Don't give them the opportunity to steal something of value to you. To finish off, we met a couple of the staff, and the manager seemed like a really cool guy. Was he Mr. Smiley pants? No....But maybe if you get off your high horse judging people by first glance, you'll realize just because someone doesn't have a fake permagrin when your royal ass walks in, doesn't mean that they are a...