TRIBE Fitness — Local services in Seattle

I went there for a session as a promotion for Google places. It was a bit hard to follow. Apparently they had us running the regular (non-beginner) routine. They did mention that normally they would start people on the beginner routines. You spend a lot of time on your back staring at the ceiling, and there are bright lights on the ceiling, so if you're unlucky you get blinded. There aren't mirrors on the ceiling so you have to crane your neck to look at other people who have figured out what's going on. Towels are available ($2 for purchase), and they're not "soft" as claimed. The sound system seems a bit broken, it's often hard to make out words spoken over the loudspeakers by the instructor (perhaps they need to speak quieter). When you're "jumping" while lying on your back, the board often will hit the bottom making a loud crack. You can't adjust it to avoid that.

All in all it was somewhat fun, but I wouldn't do it again. It's more expensive ( 2x when not in a promotion) than alternatives that I prefer (e.g. Barre3). The workout was ok; not heavy on cardio, and not heavy on strength training. There was a lot of "jumping" on a track (lying on your back), some (but limited) stretching at the end (but not the beginning). All of the springs were color-coded, I suppose you would learn which are stronger than others eventually, but it would be nice to be given numbers so you don't have to ask every time you want to change the resistance. The explanations of the exercises often were vague, causing us to lose some time waiting for a better explanation (see sound problems). We did kneeling rows, bicep curls, overhead press, various forms of lunges.. Everything is done on the pilates reformer machine, perhaps too much. Some of the exercises I'm wouldn't think are safe for beginners on that machine (while standing up).

The staff was very friendly and helpful. The instructor was happy to listen to our constructive criticism.

Turns out my worries about safety were more than just worries; Apparently I injured my neck there, and so did...

Not the best gym in Seattle. What I liked least, when I was a member, was there were only two bathroom stalls, never any toilet covers despite the fact I had told staff, no places to change your clothes, and limited class sizes. Not many HIIT classes as well, and you had to reserve a class and charged a penalty fee if you had to do a late cancellation. Plus, the latest class was at 6.30pm. One time someone brought their supposed “service” dog in to the gym while they worked out. I am a caregiver for my nephew who has special needs. I brought him with me to the gym and had him sit in the observation area so I could see him while I worked out. He became terrified when he saw a dog. The fitness instructor became hostile towards me because I got upset seeing that someone brought their dog to the gym. Long story short, when I complained, the manager sided with the dog instead of my terrified nephew. And mysteriously, a couple of weeks after I complained about the treatment I had from the fitness instructor, I got an email saying that they were coming under new management and that the fees were going to go up. I think it was going to be somewhere around $200 a month. They canceled my membership without giving me the opportunity to decide if I wanted to stay. I thought that the fee per month is not acceptable, given the limited services you get. The gym I wound up joining has showers, ample bathrooms, changing rooms, locker rooms, nutritional classes and fitness seminars. They offer HIIT classes from early morning till 7 o'clock at night. They have coaches. They have the N-Shaped Body Scan. I got so much more than what I was getting at the Tribe and it was less money! I was able to achieve my weight loss goal in a year. I lost over 60 pounds. Plus, all the classes are drop in so you go to classes whenever you want. If you're looking for a good gym, I wouldn't say this is a...

I've been going to Tribe for almost a year now and I was always SUPER resistant to Pilates. I don't know why... endurance athlete snobbery? It wasn't a spiritual enough body awareness activity as yoga? I was physically broken though w/ 2 bum knees and a hurting back so I had a few people recommend I give it a whirl and based on reviews I did a trial membership at Tribe and then... I never left! I love this place and really the community, because that's really what it is. Someone complained about towels? Really?

Tribe is truly one of those places where I feel you can just show up as YOU and all the teachers are encouraged to be their full authentic selves and I've had such an incredible year getting to know the staff and my fellow peeps. I took a all this time off yoga as well since I found I was compensating A LOT for certain body weaknesses and I just went to my first Jivamukti class in a year and I felt stronger than I have in years! I could feel my butt engaging when I never even knew it existed before. I felt my core activating in ways it never was able to and didn't really have to due to back compensation and I attribute so much of this to my time at Tribe. There is such an amazing range of classes too and I feel it's one of those places where if you need to go easy, you can really make yourself select classes to keep ya in check and if you want to push yourself to the max, that's also there and everything in between.

I don't see myself leaving this place for some time. I will be having knee surgery soon but as soon as I'm able to get back into it, Tribe is going to be the first place I come back to. They've really done an amazing job creating such a welcoming, fun, warm, authentic environment. ...