37 Secrets Your Gym May Be Hiding

Everyone makes the New Year's goal: hit the gym, eat well, lose weight. Because this goal lasts about a month, gyms sell most memberships in January, making deals nearly impossible. Get a membership in summer instead. Only 6% of new memberships happen then, and you get a major discount.

Breaking up is tough. Canceling a gym membership is almost impossible. Thousands of consumer complaints target health clubs yearly. Billing and collection problems are the biggest gripes. Most gyms keep charging your credit card monthly, even if you try to cancel. Gyms usually only end a contract if you give a solid reason. You must prove the membership cannot move locations. Many contracts include fine print stating you can only cancel in person or by certified mail.

Stay hydrated before, during, and after workouts. Keep distance from public water fountains at the gym. Those fountains carry germs. Bring your own water bottle and water to every workout. A Coverall Cleaning study found more germs on water fountains than on toilets.

The gym gets grosser. Avoid using the gym's mats. This stops you from touching dangerous bacteria.The New York TimesCases of athlete's foot and plantar warts have increased since Pilates and yoga gained popularity.

Public pools often have poop in them. The CDC reported that "62% of pool-related diarrhea outbreaks result from cryptosporidium, a pathogen spread by fecal matter." Ewwwwwwwwww.

Never pay the initiation fee when joining a new gym. The fee lets the gym make more money. Almost every gym will waive it if you ask. Don't be foolish; save hundreds because the fee is nonsense.

Hidden liability waivers protect most gyms. They give them a free pass against injury claims. If you try to sue, contacting the gym's insurance company is nearly impossible. You may not even know the company's name. Gym contracts often give them the right to hide insurance information, leaving you to handle your injuries.

Working out every day does not build the healthy body you seek. Studies show that ninety minutes or more of continuous, moderate to high-intensity exercise weakens the immune system, increasing sickness risk. This effect lasts up to 72 hours. Stressing your body too much without proper recovery can cause more harm than good.

You might like being screamed at by a ripped trainer. Check their credentials before doing extra lunges. Many people can become personal trainers easily; you can even get certified with an at-home, open-book test. Before signing with a trainer, ask the gym manager about their hiring rules.

Gym membership contracts deceive you more than Spanx. Most gyms offer free trials to attract new members. This sounds good, but it is not. Most gyms trick members into paying for full memberships under the guise of a free trial. Gyms even include fine print stating that missing twelve gym visits in a one-month free trial automatically enrolls the member in a multi-year full membership.

Like a crazy ex, the gym will always find you.For most commercial gyms, you must move exactly 25 miles away from the nearest corporate club you signed with. Live within 24.8 miles, and you pay for another year-long membership.For most commercial gyms, you must move exactly 25 miles away from the nearest corporate club you signed with. Live within 24.8 miles, and you pay for another year-long membership.

Breathe in those toxins! A recent study by The New York Times found gyms have high levels of air pollutants like formaldehyde, dust, and carbon dioxide, often exceeding air quality standards.The New York Times found gyms have high levels of air pollutants like formaldehyde, dust, and carbon dioxide, often exceeding air quality standards.Gyms have high levels of air pollutants such as formaldehyde, airborne dust, and carbon dioxide, generally exceeding air quality standards.

Need an excuse not to go to the gym? The place is full of germs, viruses, bacteria, and fungi. One study found three-fourths of weight equipment was contaminated with cold-causing rhinoviruses. Wiping surfaces twice did not stop germs. MRSA and staph infections happen if a skin cut touches bacteria. Locker rooms let bacteria, fungi, and viruses grow.

Gyms need cutting-edge equipment for new members. Free weights are better, but gyms prefer gleaming $4,000 weight machines advertised for weight loss. The real reason gyms have many strength machines is that anyone can use them, making injury almost impossible.

Most people think they can go to the gym every day when getting a monthly membership. Laziness usually wins out. If you only visit twice a week, rethink that monthly plan. You might pay 70% more than buying a 10-visit pass. A UC Berkeley study showed members save over $150 every six months with a pay-as-you-go system.

Walking into the weight room and seeing all those fancy machines can overwhelm you. Don't worry; you won't embarrass yourself on them again. These machines train muscles alone, leaving the rest of you inactive. This works for physical therapy, but these machines do not build real-world strength.

Commercial gyms do not care if you enter their facilities. They prefer you stay away. Gyms need ten times the members their space can hold to stay in business. Are you turned off by overcrowding? This crowding gets people to sign up, work out a few times, and then waste money and time trying to cancel.

Source: Men's Journal

People get excited about new memberships and want the most popular class. Pushing your body too hard too soon can cause serious injury and stop your workouts. Even classes not usually seen as dangerous are now risky. Yoga injuries have increased tenfold recently, due to packed classes and new instructors.

Check the fine print on a gym promotion. Often, it is not the best deal. Customers can be signed up for a national or regional membership. Ask for a cheaper price if you only plan to visit one location. Skip this check, and you risk overpaying.

Gyms face injury liability. Most health clubs do not have legal duties to maintain their equipment or safety standards. This creates danger when operating much of the fancy weight gear. Stay safe.

Instead of fixing bad equipment, most gyms hide liability waivers in their contracts. If you get hurt at the gym—maybe from an inexperienced trainer or faulty gear—fighting the gym in court will be tough.

Finding the right gym buddy feels like a proposal. If you find the right person, team up for personal training. Most gyms offer a deal when you partner up; you often save about $20 per hour.

People know they should wear flip-flops in public showers. Those who skip it need to listen up. Bacteria live on almost all locker room floor areas. Wear sandals taped to your feet unless you want athlete's foot, foot fungus, or human papillomavirus.

Did you wonder who buys those fitness magazines at the supermarket checkout? Gyms do. While you wait in the lobby, you see ads and articles about dietary supplements and 'Seven Steps to Great Abs.'

Want a cheap gym membership before summer? Corporate gym employees face monthly quotas. They must hit revenue goals by month-end to get bonuses. Sales reps chase sales on the last weekend because holidays slow things down.

Want your cute trainer to stay? Prepare to pay a lot of money. Trainers lose jobs often because they cannot get members to buy training packages. Corporate gyms follow business rules. Trainers must meet steep monthly quotas to keep their jobs. Most trainers fail these quotas and get replaced quickly.

If a gym or trainer tells you you can eat any junk food and burn it off just by exercising, run far away. Burn those calories by running. To lose weight and keep it off, you must pair exercise with a diet plan. Exercise alone reduces total body weight by less than three percent.

Summer is the best time to get a new gym membership. It is also the perfect time to maximize an existing one. Most gyms must meet monthly quotas and lower cancellations. They will do nearly anything to keep you. To get your money's worth, research a cheaper club. Show your current gym their perks and rates; they will likely match them.

Sudden cardiac arrest during exercise happens, though it is rare. The minutes after matter a lot. Use an AED right away; your survival chance exceeds 90 percent. Few states require gyms to have one. Even with a device, staff might lack CPR and AED training. Check if your gym has an AED and if staff hold CPR and AED certifications before you pay for a membership.

Do not fear using your membership fully. Ask for the discounts you earn. Nearly 90 percent of health clubs offer discounts for families and couples. Just ask!

If you get a fancy membership, you might skip the workout for spa time. Those luxury perks add up. Towel service, steam rooms, spa treatments, and parking cost money through your membership. Your wallet benefits if you pick a less flashy club, even if your nail beds suffer.

Do not risk losing your valuables. You do not need to bring them.You do not need to bring your laptop to the gym. Most gyms state they are not responsible if valuables go missing from your locker after a spin class. Leave the laptop at home. If you must bring it, use lockers in busy areas, not secluded spots where thieves can hide.Most gyms make themselves immune from responsibility if your valuables vanish from your locker after a spin class. Leave your laptop at home. If you must bring it, use lockers in busy areas, not secluded corners where thieves can hide.

A gym orientation feels like a college introduction. Many gyms offer free orientation sessions with a trainer when you sign up. The trainer shows you a tough routine, then refuses notes, making you feel you need their training forever.

Getting your heart pumping is fine. Cardio is not the only exercise you think it is. Maintaining heart fitness needs about 20 minutes of hard breathing, three times a week. You do not need an expensive gym membership for this.

Your gym will tell you things, just like any sales pitch.They will say anything you want to hear. "You'll magically get a six-pack in weeks, you'll live forever, eat unlimited donuts with any personal trainer!" Gyms are businesses seeking maximum money. Be careful before signing; you might regret it.They will tell you anything you want to hear. "You'll magically get a six-pack in weeks, you'll live forever, eat unlimited donuts with any personal trainer!" Gyms are businesses seeking maximum money. Be careful before signing; you might regret it.

You reach the gym. You forget your headphones. Gyms use boring elevator music. This music keeps you feeling like a zombie. It avoids pump-up tunes. This means your workout lacks intensity.

Your trainer tells you to stretch before working out. Stop the stretches. Studies show pre-workout stretching raises injury risk. It lowers later performance. Stretching firms up muscle resistance. It slackens muscles, reducing power and strength.