Flow Fitness — Local services in Seattle

I have been a member of Flow Fitness for years, and it was once a truly great gym: clean, welcoming, and full of energy. It still has some excellent instructors and a few strong class offerings, and the facilities remain spotless and rarely crowded, especially as attendance has noticeably declined. However, it’s clear that things have gone downhill, and the new ownership seems to be accelerating that decline with questionable decisions.

Previously, the gym had a great 4-hour class cancellation policy, which the previous ownership later extended to 12 hours to help manage the long waitlists for popular classes. At the time, this made sense and was totally reasonable: most classes were full, and there was a real need to ensure spots didn’t go unused. The late cancellation fee was $5, a fair amount that encouraged commitment without feeling punitive.

Since the gym was sold, the new owner’s first major change has been to dramatically increase these fees.

Now, cancelling within 12 hours of a class costs $15, and cancelling within 2 hours costs $25. If you wake up sick, have a family emergency, get stuck at work, or run into traffic, you’re now facing charges that are three to five times higher than before. This isn’t about serving members or solving any real problem...most classes are no longer full, and waitlists are rare. Instead, it feels like a predatory cash grab at the expense of loyal members.

What’s most disappointing is how far the gym has drifted from its original, community-focused spirit. In the past, Flow Fitness was known for its fundraisers, community events, and even offering free memberships to those in need. The instructors brought energy and created a sense of belonging that encouraged everyone, regardless of experience or fitness level, to participate. Sadly, that feeling has been eroding as instructors leave and the new ownership prioritizes profit over people.

Flow Fitness still has some bright spots, but the overall direction is troubling. The new policies don’t address any real issues and only serve to alienate the very members who made the gym special in the first place. Recommend looking elsewhere, as I soon will be, for your fitness needs.

Edit following owners response:

Thank you for your response. I appreciate the engagement and efforts toward transparency. In that spirit, I want to address the claim that “many classes are booked to capacity + waitlist”. The reality, based on current class registration, appears quite different.

Here’s a snapshot of actual class registration numbers for today and tomorrow, by timeslot (#registered/total slots):

Thursday: Noon: 2/16 4:30pm: 7/23 5:30pm: 6/30, 14/23, 5/16 (three separate classes) 6:15pm: 4/25 6:30pm: 8/25

Friday: 6:15am: 8/16 7:00am: 9/23, 1/10 (two classes) 8:15am: 4/23 12:00pm: 3/25 4:30pm: cancelled, 8/16 (two scheduled, one cancelled) 4:45pm: 9/30 5:30pm: cancelled

Across 16 classes, the average class is less than 30% full, with zero classes fully booked and zero running a waitlist. Looking ahead over the next four days, there is only one class that is fully booked with a waitlist.

Rather than analyzing what makes that class so successful, the chosen solution has been to raise late cancellation fees by 3-5x.

Again, this policy doesn’t solve a real problem; it penalizes members at a time when there is no shortage of available spots. Even if no-shows are rising, perhaps that points to an issue with the gym experience deserving of attention.

Ultimately, the fee increase appears less about improving access and more about generating additional revenue. When the initial shift to a 12-hour window was made, it added appropriate accountability for members, but the gym (under previous ownership) also added more class slots to increase coverage.

Perhaps it would be useful to solicit feedback directly from members to identify solutions. From my understanding, even instructors have only met new ownership once. Engaging with those who run classes and frequent the facility before raising charges up to 5x might...

Poor front desk customer service experience. *Will update accordingly if/when I recieve a response to my email.

In regards to owners response- I'm saddened as my initial email response from him, seemed my experience had been taken seriously and was apologetic to the inexcusable customer service I had recieved. As I stated I intended to update this after I had recieved a response. (I even admitted fault to having the wrong class time. But the way it was handled quite honestly went beyond being late.) To which, following the initial response I have gotten multiple excuses now to the unexcusable customer service I received, from short staffing to now a form of victim blaming, stating it was my fault that they assumed i knew i was so late. However when i approached the front desk i stated "in here for the 5:45 spin class" and they response i recieved was "oh well, our policy is you have to be 5 minutes early or your too late" i again even mentioned I'm only 1 min late now for that rule and I got a shoulder shrug and a "that's how it is, you can like work out if you want " so where was the assumption i knew class was at 5:30 and not 5:45? I was clear. And HAD I KNOWN like i stated in my response email to the owner, i would have apologized right of the bat and never expected or even asked for entry. Taking responsibility goes a long way, as I did for having the wrong time in my email response to the owner. But he chose to only highlight my mistake (that i owned) in his response on here and conveniently leaving out the way his staff then handled the situation which was the poor customer service and being treated with condicending disrespect instead. Also was followed up in his email, with a pitch that I needed to change my review on here. My experience made me feel like I was not welcomed or belonged at this gym or class. I have worked at a spin studio and this is not how you want to make anyone feel. Not once was it mentioned class was at 5:30 or I was "16 mins late" (to which I was only 10 min based on the posted class time fyi) infact only stating that I should have been 5 mins early and no disagreement or correction when I said I'm here for the 5:45 or when saying i was only being a min late to the 5 min before rule. I was calm during my entire interaction with the staff, just struck with disbelief and confusion for the treatment I recieved.

A simple sorry and acknowledgment of my experience at your establishment, by your employees, without an excuse blaming others would have solved this and resulted in a deletion of my rating. But instead that is not what I recieved and don't appreciate blame being soley put on me for the response and treatment irecieved from your staff over a simple misunderstanding, that appropriate communication would have...

This gym is the second Flow Fitness I've been to (check out their location downtown, it's great!) and I have to say, it is freaking legendary. Ownership and management really stepped it up with this second facility. As someone who hasn't stood in front of a mirror and done boring ol' bicep curls since high school, I've been on that ninja-fit game: throwing sandbags around, climbing ropes, and doing handstands anywhere I can find a square patch of land. Well I say that to say this: Flow Fremont is a ninja's paradise! No boring physical-therapy-like machines laying around this place, just open space, free weights, sandbags, ropes hanging from the ceiling, kettlebells, a sled, the list goes on... This place is a temple to functional training and using the body the way it was built to be used. I love going at night and having the place to myself. Dakota and Sarah behind the front desk are amazing individuals; Brian the manager is sharp and continually makes improvements to the place; Mack and Drew are excellent trainers who really taught me a lot while I was a member. This place will throw you a beer on a random social Friday happy hour night! Howboutthat. I loved this gym with all my heart and wish there was an option like it in my new home....