West Coast Strength — Local services in Salem

Compared to all gyms in Salem, this is by far the best gym out there. Equipment is high quality (other than some of their machines pully systems could use work). They have nice bathrooms when maintained. Their "culture" is a little weird with some staff. There are a few staff members I've run into that are either chatting it up with one another, not paying attention to the front, standing around not doing their jobs. Which I believe is welcoming people in or out of the gym, being friendly and keeping the area clean... one of the female staff had looked up and made eye contact with me before looking back down. No greeting whatsoever.. Another thing I think they could improve is the amount of recording in the gym by staff while people are working out (I'm assuming for their website?)…I never signed a waiver to be recorded while lifting (It makes me really uncomfortable when I workout.. when they record the gym, I tend to leave for the day). To be clear I don't care about others recording because I can walk away, but when the gym staff walk around with Vlog cameras, its weird. Their water bottle fill station near the cardio was perfectly clean, but by the lifting area I had mold floating in my water bottle and it was moldy all over the station as well. (the water filter was red, meaning it needs to be changed, and has been like that for over a week) They keep adding more equipment without expanding, so everything is really squished together and you can't really walk around others. They made a whole back area of the gym into an office recently, which I feel like they could've used as a training area? When Personal Trainers work with their clients there is no respect for others on machines. For example, If you walk to the water fill station and go back to a clearly marked bench.. (with your phone or bag) there will be someone who has already taken it...Another example, I was doing flys the other day and I about hit the trainer since she was walking all over the side lifting area. I couldn't find a spot out of her way. It's like she wanted to be in my space bubble? In the Summer, the AC leaks heavily (They put down buckets, which I've tripped over/seen others trip over) These are just small/big things that I feel should be addressed before raising your prices again. You should consider opening a second gym. You have so many staff that stand around bored and not enough space for equipment to actually be used. I don't doubt this gym could have a second location and it would thrive the same. Maybe more because there will be space for the copious amounts of equipment in this small gym and to not bump into other people constantly.

Overall, again. There are way worse gyms, they are also way cheaper with chipped weights, out of order machines, etc. I've gone to this gym for 3 years now and It keeps getting more and more crowded. I stay for the equipment, not the "culture" Side note in the last year: (There have been a lot of steroid users here as well, one month someone is skinny and the next month they're fully ripped with acne all over their backs and gynecomastia.. Kind of hard to miss when its...

I actually found this gym because of google reviews, only fitting I should leave one after a few weeks of using this gym. I’ve been using a different gym (a national chain, who I won’t name) but they randomly changed hours one weekend without announcing it. Thanks to Google I found WCS. I walked in the door and met Mike, Membership Coordinator (?) and immediately felt welcomed. Super great energy, really attentive and able to answer many of my questions. I worked out for a little bit and knew I needed to come back and make this my new gym. I took advantage of a few of the free classes they offer when you sign up and got my butt kicked (in a great way). It felt a little intimidating at first because there are so many super fit folks, but the trainers were awesome to take the time to explain how to do certain moves or modify them for those of us who aren’t there yet. I ended up meeting and signing up with the trainer that Mike had recommended for me based on our initial meeting/convo and seriously guys. He picked up immediately on my personality and couldn’t have placed with a better fit. Oh and I just met Alex, the owner the other night. He took the time to come over and chat/meet while I was with my trainer, also a super nice guy.

Overall, I really just want to relay that I know going to gyms with a bunch of weight lifting, super athletic, super fit folks can be crazy intimidating. But if you find yourself not quite hitting goals at your gym because it’s a national chain and their trainers are a couple of kids without real world experience- take a chance. Come over here. Meet the crew. You’re going to be pleasantly surprised. Give it a shot. There are all types of bodies here, different age groups. You will feel welcomed. They earned Best Gym for a reason. 12/10...

I have recently connected with working out differently than I ever have before, and it’s all thanks to West Coast Strength! Hear me out... I promise to leave out the fluff in this testimony of how genuinely amazing the people who work there are. They have been very intentional with me since I initially signed up, and in a way of being accommodating to my needs//helping me get the experience I’m ultimately looking for... I really wasn’t expecting that at all. I simply signed up and was intending on just using the gym. But they reached out to me to make sure that I was having a good experience and to see where I’m at and what my goals are. I’ve been to a lot of gyms and there’s really no other way to say it: this particular gym is a cut above the rest. In addition to the people and the wonderful service they provide, they have an abundance of top notch equipment (including machines that aren’t super common, in my experience) and they also have an infrared sauna in the locker room, which, for me personally, is the cherry on top. All around I’ve never been able to find a groove with working out before and it’s with the ease and elevated encouragement from West Coast strength that I have been able to find mine. I ended up moving closer to the gym because I love it so much. If you’re considering this gym but you’re new or you don’t really know much about working out, I STRONGLY recommend talking to the people there and asking questions. To say that they are helpful is a gross understatement. Your success is their success and it really shows in the way that they serve...