ExtremeFitnessForum

[extr]

I think people are just shy to speak up, or just too lazy to "type up". But for every person who writes here, I bet there are a 100 who feel the same way. I talk to people about the gym almost every day. and it is never positive. I suggest to them that this forum might help, and they say yeah, it's true, then go home and chat on msn all night. They want to have a say, but don't. but we dont' have a voice unless we all speak up. So everyone who goes to extreme fitness -- or used to go -- should speak up. How terrible does it have to get? Why should we let them ruin our location, or gym? This is Riverdale, not 905, we speak up, we don't put up. we have some sophistication. So speak up Danforth. What do you want in a gym?

[ExtremelyAngry]

Tonight I found two more members who will sign up. You guys know who you are -- and who I am.

[ExtremelyAngry]

Me again.

Yesterday in my mailbox, yet another flyer. It is never-ending. (I wish I had kept the others. But I will keep them all until it's time to renew.)

''No annual contract! Only $19 per month!''

So how much are former Oxygen members paying for half of what they used to have while others are getting a free ride on their dime?

I feel triply ripped off because I hate going so much I hardly go anymore.

I can't speak for others but this I know. I used to be a very good private training client at Oxygen. Three times a week throughout the year. That added up to a lot $$$. My trainer quit just before the takeover and handed me off to another. But that trainer refused to become a trekkie -- at half the pay -- and was fired.

Extreme tried to get me to continue training with them. I refused. I continue to train with former Oxygen people at home whom I know to be qualified.

About 2 months ago, Extreme called me to say that I had some training sessions still on the books. I said I didn't. They said I did. I said I didn't. They said I did.

Well, hell, the way they kept their books on my contract, who knows? I may well have. I know i did when the handover happened, before my trainer quit.

Long story short, I said okay ... and I have had sessions without paying extra.

The trainers I work with privately told me that other clients, all former and current O members, got similar offers. Others took it in extended memberships. I took the training on weekends. I don't want to stay at Extreme any longer than necessary.

I can hardly wait to see what they offer me at renewal time.

Not that I am staying.

[New Pape Extreme Member]

Hi, I am new extreme member, Danforth location, and I would like to politely disagree with you and share my thoughts, as this is a forum of opinions. First off, I would like to acknowledge that I have never been a member at Oxygen, so it is difficult for me to understand your qualms. However, when comparing to the other three gyms in Toronto that I have been a member at, I can honestly say that I am not dissapointed. I have worked out at the Sheppeard location, and found it to be much more busy during "peak" hours, and thus far, at least in general, I have found the Danforth location to have an acceptable amount of traffic during the "post 9-5" rush. The removal of equipment has frustrated me on one occasion, but the 1500 square feet that is being renovated will alleviate that issue. Again, I cannot compare Oxygen, because I have never had the opportunity to work out there. But 1500 square feet (by December I am told - but I'm sure that will end up being more like the new year given some "unexpected" delays) will be tonnes of extra space for the gym. In general, the staff seem okay in my view, they have not gone out of their way, but also haven't been rude in any manner. My previous gyms in Toronto have been smaller, more packed, worse equipment and on occasion had their air conditioning break down for multiple weeks. These gyms are "the competitors", and also include smaller "mom and pop" gyms for local areas of the city. As somebody who has lived in 4 different neighbourhoods in Toronto and has seen multiple competitors, I would say that I am satisfied thus far with my experience at Extreme, with an expectation to be very satisfied with my membership when the additional space is completed.

Thank you for reading my reply. I hope that all of your concerns are addressed to your satisfaction.
New Danforth Extreme Member

[ExtremelyAngry]

Thanks. I can't compare this club to others in the chain. So I can't comment on your post.

My feeling is that, as a former Oxygen member, I contracted for certain services, without knowing that they would be removed from my use.
I am paying for half of what I was getting.
What's more, I am probably paying much more than you are.

By the time those renovations are done, my membership will likely expire or be on the brink of expiring -- and then they will hit me for twice as much because the place is so much improved.

I liked it the way it was before Extreme came along.

[admin]

We do of course welcome all opinions at this forum, however, I would ask two things of you if you will. Please, post a reply under an appropriate heading. So if you wanted to say good things about the gym or about extreme, there are appropriate forum headings for that. I only opened this part of the forum for technical issues with google advertising.

The other thing to consider are the issues that others are bringing up, which you did not speak about. Please read through the forum and post your appropriate replies there. For instance, we have posts complaining about lack of hot water. If that is not something you think a gym must provide, please post as such under that heading. Thanks.

May I ask you, do you think that all the members who paid full price, and quite a bit in some cases, who have seen a loss of maybe 1/3 of the equipment they use on a daily basis, and the loss of the yoga room, stretching area, snack bar, and not legitimate complaints? Do you think this happens at all the gyms you have been to? Do you not think it fair for us who have paid so much and lost so much, not to have at least some compensation for the losses and inconveniences? Is that also the "norm" for gyms that you are familiar with? And what about the fact that we have to do without all these facilities until sometime probably in the new year, when many of our memberships expire? Is it OK that I paid for all the equipment and space that was there at the time of renewing, but not there for the rest of the year, because one day, after my membership has expired, that equipment might come back? Is that the norm for the gyms you've been to? Do you honestly feel that is an appropriate way to run a business and treat its customers? Thank you for reading.

[admin]

Extreme Fitness has really made a complete mess of the gym since they took over. And the point is, I am not getting what I paid for. And no offers of compensation, or even apology, or for tha matter, warning, have come my way since the takeover.

[ExtremelyAngry]

Another day, another flyer advertising the Danforth location. ''Only $19 per month!'' etc.

This time the flyer came with the blurb
"Dollar for dollar the city's best gym.'' -- National Post.

BUT!!!

The relevant article referred to a branch way up on Yonge Street. Not Danforth.

What's more, it was written before Extreme took over Oxyen, and Extreme was taken over by New York private equity firm Falconhead Capital LLC.


Toronto
Fit to be tried: There are no excuses this year, with our handy roundup of Toronto gyms. So get out there, for pity's sake - you don't even have to open the phone book!
Ben Kaplan
National Post
8 January 2005
National Post
Toronto
TO1 / Front
(c) 2005 National Post . All Rights Reserved.

As a chef might discover a foreign city through its restaurants, or an art lover by touring museums, our correspondent Ben Kaplan, a transplanted New Yorker who ate his way through the holidays as if performing a stunt on Fear Factor, explored his new Canadian postal code by guest-passing its health clubs. Penniless but determined, he made a New Year's resolution to hit the gyms harder than his Xbox control. And since most clubs worthy of their treadmills offer potential members a free day pass, Kaplan was able to field-test these weight rooms and, by extension, Toronto, for the price of a TTC token. Talk about hitting the bars: Dumbell ratings are out of a possible five.

- - -

Level IV Fitness (533 College St., 416-927-8774; $74/month)

Dumbell rating: three

Among the best of the city's sleek boutique gyms. The members of this hip little club seem to have iPods growing out of their track pants. Wooden floors and large windows create a handsome main room, with additional studios for yoga and spinning. Tucked away on the fifth floor of a nondescript building, Level IV has the feel of a nightclub's VIP room. The equipment is modern; however, during boxing class, the smack of the speed bag gets annoying -- maybe that's why members shove iPods down their shorts.

System Fitness (2100 Bloor St. W., 416-762-6262; $39/month)

Dumbell rating: two

This newly renovated red, black and silver club has a caffeinated Olivia Newton-John Let's Get Physical vibe. There's a cool indoor track and a supplement store that sells vats of hardcore nutrient gunk. The free weights are downstairs, where it's mostly men, thus completely grimy, and looks as though a barbell-delivery truck spilled over -- you'd have to be Dominic Da Vinci to find two 20-pound curl bars that match. But it's next to an LCBO, so it scores half a dumbell for proximity to booze.

Bally Total Fitness (185 The West Mall, 416-620-5006; $100 initiation, $44/month)

Dumbell rating: two

Bally is the Starbucks of gyms: expensive, extravagant and inundated with loud cellphone talkers. This branch has a coed sauna and swimming pool and charges $9 less than the Eaton Centre location (see below) for the universal Bally pass, which allows members to use all seven clubs. There's an elevator from the huge weight room to the 25-metre pool, but that money should have gone to the showers: Since there are no private stalls, you may find yourself wading in some hairy dude's reservoir of just-spat-out Crest.

YMCA (20 Grosvenor St., 416-975-9622; $60 initiation, $47/month)

Dumbell rating: five

JCC (750 Spadina Ave., 416-924-6211; $60/month)

Dumbell rating: four

The YMCA's executive club, which costs about twice as much as the regular membership, is among the most opulent gym packages in the city. Housed in a private change room with carpet and marble benches, it has a sauna, steam room, whirlpool and futuristic weight set, plus access to the YMCA's four squash courts, pickup soccer, badminton and full-court basketball games, swimming pool and decent sushi for $3.75. Across town, the recently renovated Miles Nadal JCC also has full-court basketball, whirlpool and sauna, plus two masseuses on staff. The music-less weight room doesn't inspire, though the bubbly staff compensate. Both denominational gyms have hugely diverse memberships, but the winner is the YMCA by a latte.

Venice Fitness (393 King St. W., 416-341-0606; $99 initiation, $65/month)

Dumbell rating: four

Perfect for the tough guy who likes having his nails done, this boutique gym has hardwood floors, Venetian columns, mirrors with gold trim and walls painted blue and gold, though the ads for a massage therapist Scotch-taped to the treadmills kill the chic "rich Average Joe" vibe. The machines look as if they were unwrapped this Christmas, and the slate steam room's scorching-hot but real (well-groomed) men should be able to take the heat.

Rhinos Gym (3415 Dundas St. W., 416-604-8630; $35/month)

Dumbell rating: two

A throwback in an era of overdone clubs, this obsessively maintained weight room is open 24 hours for members who drive taxicabs. A Black Sabbath CD plays on repeat and adds to the feeling that these folks -- thin, fat, Indian, women, black, white, many with beards -- are in the same motorcycle gang. Every barbell is in the right place, but wear flip-flops on the cold bathroom floor: The smell of athlete's foot hangs in the air.

Trainers Fitness Centre (754 Bathurst St., 416-536-7444; $44 initiation, $44/month)

Dumbell rating: two

At this unpretentious two-storey club you won't feel a million eyes on your haircut. Chunky equipment sits on black rubber mats and club members sport interesting facial hair and tattoos. Now magazine says this is the best place to ogle celebrities, but on the day of my visit the only famous people here are Iggy Pop and OutKast on the radio.

The cool, however, is too over-the-top: We don't like our shower turning cold when a toilet is flushed.

Wellington Club (111 Wellington St. W., 416-362-2582; $450 initiation, $120/month)

Dumbell rating: three

If the Battlestar Galactica were a downtown sports club, it would look like this five-storey gym mini-mall. A hangout for the Bay Street crowd, it has natural lighting, floor-to-ceiling windows, squash leagues, leather couches, laundry service and Internet-loaded computers. The silver-and-burgundy carpets make the main gym feel like an Arab Emirates baccarat den, but the decadent change rooms are equipped with whirlpool, sauna and shoeshine machine: It's almost as lush as the YMCA.

Gold's Gym (4141 Dixie Rd., 905-629-2348; $33/month)

Dumbell rating: 0

Ontario's only branch of North America's largest gym chain is buried behind a Burger King in a Mississauga strip mall. The club is one giant fluorescent-lit room where hulking members wear weight belts and spill on to the dirty abdominal mats in line for the two squat machines. This is the gym with the scariest members: Don't dare look at anyone's boyfriend or girlfriend.

King's Mill Club (3300 Bloor St. W., 416-231-300; $99 initiation, $69/month)

Dumbell rating: three

The staff at this large boutique gym, one of 10 glitzy clubs run by Bally's, are nurturing to the mostly older female clientele. Looking for a place to do crunches, I pass the stretching room for nursing moms so often I'm afraid I'll be arrested. Seniors' classes meet three times a week, and all the creature comforts -- sauna, steam room, whirlpool, free parking and towels -- are accounted for.

Extreme Fitness (4950 Yonge St., 416-222-0342; $59/month)

Dumbell rating: five

Dollar for dollar the city's best gym (and not just because the treadmills look on to the aerobics studio). This winding split-level club has a saltwater pool you'd swear was a gimmick if it didn't feel as revitalizing as the Mediterranean. It has an excellent slate steam room, ceramic tiles, 75 weekly aerobics classes, coed whirlpools, pointless but interesting art and $20 parking for the year. It's a haul from downtown, so remember your soap.

Epic Fitness (9 St. Joseph St., 416-960-1705; $42/month)

Dumbell rating: four

This 85% gay club offers an unusual experience for a straight man: You sense people are starring at you then realize you're just standing in front of the weights. Epic is a spacious three-storey club with wooden beams and floors and a DJ who sells his mix tapes for $30. Definitely not for everybody, but it's more stylish than most other clubs.

Eaton Centre:

Good Life (2 Queen St. W., 416-599-0430; $56/month)

Bally Total Fitness (250 Yonge St., 416-408-4856; $62/month)

Dumbell rating: three

Finally, heaven on Earth for my mother -- a place where you can shop and do step aerobics under one roof. Both Good Life and Bally Total Fitness are fast-paced, with members who are hip mall staffers on break. Bally is the more luxuriant of the two, with Pilates classes, free towels, Estella Warren doppelgangers and nine cable TVs. Good Life has more people in blue jeans than StairMasters and, on the day of my visit, a can of Dr. Pepper spilled on the floor. But it does have the funkiest stereo I have encountered, where you can bring your own CDs or listen to what other members have playing. Both score three dumbells, but the winner is Bally's by a bench press.

Mack's Gym (2160 Dundas St. W., 416-533-0333; $33/month)

Dumbell rating: three

Mack Miya, 81, is a Japanese former logger from Vancouver and one-time weightlifting champion of the world. At his eponymous gym, raw meat wouldn't be out of place in the cellar, and the mirrors are flecked with the spittle of hardcore weightlifters from the past 60 years. The equipment is old, the place is warm and who knows what's lurking in the showers, but Mack's Gym will survive any trend: Miya is too strong to stop training.

King West Club (266 King St. W., 416-260-9911; $59/month)

Dumbell rating: five

Opened in November, this warm little basement boutique one-ups the clubs with plasma TVs: Its windows have views of tourists shivering in line for Mamma Mia!. With its brick walls and exposed beams, it has a comfortable ski-lodge vibe and, if inspiration strikes, you can run on the $10,000 WoodWay treadmills without shoes because they're made from the same rubber as prosthetic limbs.

Strictly Fitness (4646 Dufferin St., 416-663-0000; $39.95/month)

Dumbell rating: four

This 24-hour, seven-day-a-week 50,000-square-foot multiplex has 450 free parking spots, 20 StairMasters, 20 treadmills, whirlpool, sauna, steam room, a women's area, baby-sitting department, a pro shop that sells Nike and Adidas sneakers, a boxing ring, swimming pool, newsletter -- even a restaurant that serves liver and onions for $10. For the person who wants to live at their gym, welcome home.

Premier Fitness Club (1040 Islington Ave., 416-236-3451; $40/month)

Don't be a dumbell!

It has perfect equipment, a boxing ring and trainers who look as if they walked off the set of The O.C., so why did this suburban superclub score so low? Because its beautiful members have wandering eyes, and the young locals, dance music and eager staff make this big booming club seem more like a pick-up joint than a gym. Better to be soft-stomached and doughy than for you or your loved one to be led into temptation.

Plaza Club (100 Yonge St., 416-869-3900; $49 initiation, $79 month)

Dumbell rating: four

The sign in the bathroom says "Please limit yourself to five towels," and the StarTrac treadmills have built-in fans. This impressive two-storey club, all wooden floors and wide windows, offers the works, including The New York Times, tanning beds and posture-assessment classes. Nikki Antonio's ebullient "Boot Camp" class was the perfect way to shake off the New Year's holidaze.

[ExtremelyAngry]

Doesn't this count as misleading advertising at the very least???

This is from a news release issued last spring:

Extreme Fitness to Acquire Six Bally Total Fitness and Sports Club of Canada Fitness Clubs in Greater Toronto; Will Invest $20 Million in Club Upgrades
25 April 2007
TORONTO, April 25 /CNW/ -- TORONTO, April 25 /CNW/ - Extreme Fitness, Inc., a leading fitness club operator in the Greater Toronto Area, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire six Bally and Sports Club of Canada fitness clubs in Toronto from Bally Total Fitness Holdings Corp. The facilities to be acquired are the Sports Club of Canada locations known as The Dunfield, The Delisle and The Wellington; and the Bally Total Fitness locations known as Bloor Street, Interchange and Cedarbrae. Financial terms of the transaction, completion of which is subject to customary closing conditions including lease negotiations, were not disclosed.
"Extreme Fitness plans to invest more than 20 million dollars in the six newly acquired fitness clubs to upgrade their facilities, add state-of-the-art equipment, and ensure that they meet the Company's high quality and member-experience standard," said Jim Solomon, Chief Executive Officer of Extreme Fitness. The Company's premium facilities, award-winning club designs and cutting-edge equipment led The National Post, in 2005, to call Extreme Fitness "Dollar for dollar, the city's best gym."
Extreme Fitness's renovation concept for the six new clubs is based on blending elements of nature, such as exotic woods and subtle earth-tones, with sleek high-tech modern design. The clubs will boast bright open spaces and areas for members to congregate and socialize, creating more of a community atmosphere. State-of-the-art fitness equipment including cardio machines with personal LCD televisions and the latest weight-training machines, will be consistent in all six clubs. The change rooms will emulate a spa-like atmosphere where members can indulge in luxurious oversized showers, cozy lounge areas and unique Roman-style hot steam rooms with adjoining cold rooms designed to increase circulation and stimulate detoxification.
"With the Extreme renovation, the newly acquired clubs will be among the most lavish and design-conscious health clubs in the GTA," said Steve daCosta, President and Founder of Extreme Fitness.
Other amenities planned for the renovations include fully equipped Pilates suites, both hot and cold yoga studios, professional health centers, nutrition-conscious cafés, private personal training rooms, group fitness and cycling studios with ultramodern surround-sound systems, DJ booths for live performances, interactive executive business centers and theater-sized screens in the common areas that can be used at member events to watch major sporting broadcasts, live concerts and movies. The end result will be six extremely motivating and luxurious fitness-ecosystems designed to inspire members to make positive changes in their lives.
"With our award-winning club design, results-oriented personal training programs, and motivating club atmosphere, Extreme Fitness is set to seriously pump up Toronto's fitness culture," said Solomon.
Since the beginning, Extreme Fitness has been known for its high-quality, results-oriented personal training program. With 40% of Extreme's members using personal trainers to maximize their workouts, Extreme estimates that its personal training program has contributed to helping more than 18,000 members shed a collective 90,000 lbs of weight, this year alone. Hence the name "Extreme" -Extreme Fitness takes its programs to the limit. "Everything we do is to obtain results - our group fitness classes are tough, and our personal trainers are demanding," said Solomon.
Founded in 1995, Extreme Fitness currently has six fitness clubs in the Greater Toronto Area and approximately 45,000 members. The six fitness clubs Extreme Fitness is acquiring will double the number of Extreme Fitness facilities in Greater Toronto and increase total Extreme Fitness memberships by more than 30 percent, to approximately 60,000.
Extreme Fitness is a portfolio company of Falconhead Capital, LLC ( www.falconheadcapital.com <javascript:void(0)>), a private equity firm established in 1998 to provide investors with significant long-term capital appreciation by investing globally in consumer-focused businesses in the leisure, lifestyle, recreation and related categories. In addition to Extreme Fitness, Falconhead Capital's current and prior portfolio investments include, among others, Growing Family, Inc., Escort, Inc., National Powersport Auctions, Premier Salons International, Maritime Telecommunications Network, and ESPN Classic Europe.
Alison Stephens, Public Relations, Extreme Fitness, Ph: (416) 303-0947, alisons@extremefitness.info, www.extremefitness.info

[admin]

Wow! They make it sound like Extreme is shangri la. It is certainly not true of our Danforth location. I find this rather hard to imagine though, from the perspective of the construction site we now work out in, which often doesn't have basics like hot water, or basic cleanliness in the showers, or privacy in the woman's changeroom, etc, etc. If it happens we can all be happy, perhaps.

It makes me wonder how much money they will want to squeeze out of me, for services I don't want, while I struggle through perhaps 6 months of working out in a construction site with inadequate services!

[ExtremelyAngry]

Six months???

It's been way more than that.

[admin]

I meant another 6 months. Does anyone know exactly when the construction will be finished? Please post, thanks.

[Voted with my feet]

I was told "4 more weeks" by the Sales Manager ... at the start of July.

I asked him "do you honestly believe that?". To which he answered "yes".

Thank gawd, I stopped holding my breath