La Fitness Personal training contract costs $ 1550 for 1 hour Sugar Land Texas

I'm sorry to hear about the bad experience you had with LA Fitness and the training contract there. My experience at the Hillsboro, Oregon location has been quite different and I wanted to give my own perspective of how accommodating they have been with my wife and me.

I absolutely agree that the sales people use high pressure tactics but I know from experiences with other gyms that they are all going to use high pressure to close the deal.

My wife signed up in December 2008 for a 1 year membership and 1 year of training at $160 per month for a total of 55 sessions at 30 minutes each. It worked out to 1 per week with an extra 16 sessions to use whenever. After 6 weeks, she got an injury that kept her away for a month and she never went back to the gym for the next 9 months. Of course, during that time she accumulated MANY trainer sessions but we had agreed to pay for a full year and the sessions never expire so we kept paying for both the membership and the training.

In the Fall of 2009 we both wanted to get back to the gym but she had over 45 sessions accumulated. After talking to the training manager about the situation, he agreed to let my wife and I both share her accumulated sessions between our memberships and this was strictly prohibited in our contract. He would have preferred that I sign up for my own training contact but I told him there is no way I would do that when she had so many unused sessions. He had the understanding and flexibility to make that decision and my wife and I have both been seeing a trainer there 2-3 times per week the past 2 months now.

As far as my trainer goes, he is extremely knowledgeable and motivating. Every time I meet with him, he looks back though my book, talks about how I'm feeling since our last workout and gives me a fresh, balanced workout including homework to do after we're done. He has never asked either of us to buy anything or pay for more sessions. We still have more sessions to use and I plan to sign up for my own training contract at the end of next month once I've used up all of my wife's sessions.

One problem with the way LA Fitness works is that the initial "orientation" sessions ore done by newbie trainers that are better at sales than training. Once you are done with the orientation (1 hour), they will hook you up with a veteran trainer that is a good match for you. This makes it hard to ask questions of the trainer until after you have signed up and also doesn't put the most knowledgeable face in front of you for a first impression.

~Dan
Hillsboro, OR

I have been a member of LA Fitness for 1 1/2 years.  They  tried many times to pressure me into signing up for personal training, and paying a $150 sign up fee.  This sign up fee is for a two minute evaluation with a hand held instrument, to deternine your body fat composition.  Oh- and a book to record your work out sessions.  (not worth $150 in my opinion)  I've watched the personal trainers working, and about 95% of them are completely incompetent.  I work in the medical field, and so have knowledge about exercising.

Personal trainers should be trained to work with all types of people- ages, abilities, etc.  In my observations, they don't know how to work competently with any age group.  As I said, there are very few trainers who appear competent.  One of the trainers at the Garden Grove gym in California always wears her sweatshirt with the hood up when training.  (Another example of the lack of professionalism at the gym.)

Another thing- they can't keep trainers for any length of time.  There is a great deal of turnover rate at the Garden Grove facility. 

It is appalling that this company has a total lack of regard for the customer, and lacks the ability to hire competent staff.  Shame on you la fitness!!

Step 1: go to a chiropractor

This was finally resolved by:

1. Sending a REGISTERED letter cancelling membership. (They tried to stste they had not received it even though I had a receipt.)

2, Cancelling my credit card so they could no longer charge.

3. Paying $ 1600 for cancellation fees and legal fees.

We are now members of another club and very happy there as are two friends of ours and my son.  LA Fitness could care about losing 5 memberships as there business model is to make money by ripping off there customers.

I put this update in as I was reminded by seeing there post of "free" membership fees.

Nothing is free with this outfit.  STAY AWAY !!

I agree with the original poster here. Yes, his wife did sign a contract, without reading it, which I will never understand why people do this. However, these people do apply high pressure sales tactics and will do whatever they can to screw people out of their money.

I can see paying a nominal fee to get out of the contract, but $1500 bucks is highway robbery. I also would not send these scammers $1500 if they would not send me an invoice showing what the money was for and giving me written acknowledgment that paying this fee would free me from this extortionist contract.

What is to keep them from taking the $1500 and then changing their tune and saying he still is obligated to the rest of the contract? Is he supposed to take their word for it that once payment is received they will absolve him from the remainder of the contract? So, he is supposed to "Trust" the word of the same people that do all they can to bilk people out of their money and expect so much money when they provided no service?

I don't think so.

Anonymous's rebuttal is so typical of LA Fitness. Everyone is anonymous and can't do anything for you to give you any relief once a contract is signed. "Good will" means nothing to them as their marketing model is apparently "scam and make a fast buck".

Anonymous doesn't see what the big deal is. Big deal is I was ripped off by LA Fitness to the tune of $ 1550. Maybe not a big deal to LA Fitness but it's a big deal to me.

Anonymous says talk to the local manager and resolve it. I did. The local manager says he can do nothing, as does corporate and so I paid them off.

On anonymous's advice to "buck up", I am doing so by telling everyone I can BEFORE they get involved with this company. My advice to LA Fitness is "buck up" and learn to take critisism when deserved. If you can't take it, change your marketing model.

Regarding them being unable to send an invoice, I currently have two from them, They were nice enough to try to invoice me for additional months membership dues after I had cancelled by sending a registered letter. So much for being "unable" to invoice.

Send EVERYTHING registered with this outfit. There are a whole string of complaints as to how hard it is to cancel. This is definitely true with this outfit !!

I now have three friends who have quit the club. Two of three are having issues with getting their membership cancelled.

Anonymous's rebuttal is so typical of LA Fitness. Everyone is anonymous and can't do anything for you to give you any relief once a contract is signed. "Good will" means nothing to them as their marketing model is apparently "scam and make a fast buck".

Anonymous doesn't see what the big deal is. Big deal is I was ripped off by LA Fitness to the tune of $ 1550. Maybe not a big deal to LA Fitness but it's a big deal to me.

Anonymous says talk to the local manager and resolve it. I did. The local manager says he can do nothing, as does corporate and so I paid them off.

On anonymous's advice to "buck up", I am doing so by telling everyone I can BEFORE they get involved with this company. My advice to LA Fitness is "buck up" and learn to take critisism when deserved. If you can't take it, change your marketing model.

Regarding them being unable to send an invoice, I currently have two from them, They were nice enough to try to invoice me for additional months membership dues after I had cancelled by sending a registered letter. So much for being "unable" to invoice.

Send EVERYTHING registered with this outfit. There are a whole string of complaints as to how hard it is to cancel. This is definitely true with this outfit !!

I now have three friends who have quit the club. Two of three are having issues with getting their membership cancelled.

Anonymous's rebuttal is so typical of LA Fitness. Everyone is anonymous and can't do anything for you to give you any relief once a contract is signed. "Good will" means nothing to them as their marketing model is apparently "scam and make a fast buck".

Anonymous doesn't see what the big deal is. Big deal is I was ripped off by LA Fitness to the tune of $ 1550. Maybe not a big deal to LA Fitness but it's a big deal to me.

Anonymous says talk to the local manager and resolve it. I did. The local manager says he can do nothing, as does corporate and so I paid them off.

On anonymous's advice to "buck up", I am doing so by telling everyone I can BEFORE they get involved with this company. My advice to LA Fitness is "buck up" and learn to take critisism when deserved. If you can't take it, change your marketing model.

Regarding them being unable to send an invoice, I currently have two from them, They were nice enough to try to invoice me for additional months membership dues after I had cancelled by sending a registered letter. So much for being "unable" to invoice.

Send EVERYTHING registered with this outfit. There are a whole string of complaints as to how hard it is to cancel. This is definitely true with this outfit !!

I now have three friends who have quit the club. Two of three are having issues with getting their membership cancelled.

Anonymous's rebuttal is so typical of LA Fitness. Everyone is anonymous and can't do anything for you to give you any relief once a contract is signed. "Good will" means nothing to them as their marketing model is apparently "scam and make a fast buck".

Anonymous doesn't see what the big deal is. Big deal is I was ripped off by LA Fitness to the tune of $ 1550. Maybe not a big deal to LA Fitness but it's a big deal to me.

Anonymous says talk to the local manager and resolve it. I did. The local manager says he can do nothing, as does corporate and so I paid them off.

On anonymous's advice to "buck up", I am doing so by telling everyone I can BEFORE they get involved with this company. My advice to LA Fitness is "buck up" and learn to take critisism when deserved. If you can't take it, change your marketing model.

Regarding them being unable to send an invoice, I currently have two from them, They were nice enough to try to invoice me for additional months membership dues after I had cancelled by sending a registered letter. So much for being "unable" to invoice.

Send EVERYTHING registered with this outfit. There are a whole string of complaints as to how hard it is to cancel. This is definitely true with this outfit !!

I now have three friends who have quit the club. Two of three are having issues with getting their membership cancelled.

They cannot invoice as they do not send a bill for anything. You get auto billed monthly based off the contract you signed. If you visit a location they can give you better info that will make more sense.

I'm not sure what the big deal is? You are in a contract and have to buy yourself out of it. Stop being difficult, buck up, walk in to a location and talk to a manager and resolve it. The longer you wait, the deeper you are and the more upset you will be.