In-Shape: Monterey

DOLLAR SIGNS IN THE CLUB MANAGERS EYES
I am not a member, but just passing through and after this unpleasantness, not likely that I’ll ever be a member.
After going through the process of going online to get a pass and then having to e-​sign in another process right there at the front desk, some sales person named Lauren took me in the office where I waited a long time. As I sat there feeling like I should not have come in, I saw her talking to the Club Manager about me. (I didn’t get his name, but an Asian guy)
Lauren didn’t say, this is the manager or anything about what was happening.
He comes in alone and comments that I had a pass three months ago and I would have to pay to work out one day. I live in another city and there is not a In Shape there, but I like In Shape and would have joined in the future because their equipment is up to date and more various.
I am not sure now because their customer service is low and confused.
I was a manager in the past and I also got an «A» in marketing (Business class), so I know how businesses should act.
In other words, «A one day workout pass could lead to a lifetime membership with the possibility of 10X more with family and word of mouth.» This IN SHAPE MONTEREY, doesn’t’ see that.

My family and I have been going here for a year. We like it for the most part. We’ve never had a difficult time finding parking and the gym has a ton of cardio equipment. The childcare (2 hours a day and included in monthly dues) is honestly the main reason we have stayed with this gym. The «maze» and activities for kids makes it easy to go and workout knowing our son is having a good time. There are a ton of classes as well.
There are several things about this gym that I dislike:
1. Having to search for a cleansing towel to wipe off the equipment. There is maybe one towel (always gross and soaking wet! Does this really clean the equipment?) and bottle of solution around 7 lifting machines. I’m not being lazy, but I hate having to walk around looking for a towel to «clean» off the machine I just used.
2. If you like the body pump class like I do, get used to doing the SAME class over and over for maybe 3 – 3.5 months. Very rarely does an instructor deviate from the required class. It gets SUPER boring to the point where you remember the entire class and could «teach» the class if the instructor didn’t show-​not really, but almost.
3. The locker room is not very clean. If you drop something on the ground, well let’s just consider it needing to now go in the washing machine.
4. The locker room floors are ALWAYS wet. Swimmers walk from the pool and drip all throughout the locker room, to include the bathroom stalls. Gross.
5. There is only one family restroom/​locker room around the pool area. So unless you feel like waiting 20 – 25 mins for the one individual using the «family» restroom to finish, just plan on taking your kiddos to the main locker room.
Overall, this is a decent gym. The childcare is why we stick with our membership. Otherwise, there are definitely some nicer gyms in the Monterey area that we would go to. And it is also nice to not have to pay/​search for parking. There are plenty of spaces and it’s in a good location.

I arrived here at 4:00am and they’re not opened. It’s now 4:50am and there’s about 20 other people waiting in the parking lot. Wtf I’m pissed!

I’ve attended this gym since late 2015. Went all out with top membership and a personal trainer. I have been beyond please with the facilities and the staff. They know me by name and are kind every time I arrive. Special kudos to my trainer Nicole. She is encouraging, positive and hilarious. She is the only reason I keep coming back… plus they keep charging my checking account haha. Anyway I recommend this location and Nicole!

Joined in November and did classes. I was told I would get a free visit with a trainer as part of the membership for them to show me how to use equipment, talk about my goals, etc. I went to the appointment and based on that appointment, I have cancelled my membership. Once I told the person I met with that I was not going to purchase EXPENSIVE personal training packages, he couldn’t wait to get me out of his office. He showed me two machines to use and that was it. He made me feel as though unless I bought training, I could not ask questions about what machines to use for my goals, when to use them, and how to use them the right way. Having not been in a gym for 35 years and being a senior, I expected that I would be told and shown what to use and how to use it. I don’t think that was asking too much! I left there feeling embarrassed…

Came in today to get a membership around 4. There was a little bit of a wait, about 20 minutes or so to talk to ma membership counselor. I spoke to Eddie to showed me around the place as well as answered some questions that I had. Lucky for me, I got a deal online where I didn’t have to pay for the enrollment charges. When I was ready to sign, I had to wait for my dad to call back because he was paying for my first month so I went to work out and Eddie had his lunch break. He was so nice that when my dad called back, he came in the middle of his lunch break, that he was using to work out lol but he dropped what he was doing to finish helping me. Overall the gym is very well put together and I’m excited to try out the pool !

I’ve been a member with in-​shape for a little over a year now and the only reason I have stayed is being able to access the Carmel in-​shape club which has cost our family a premium over staying local at the Monterey Location.
PROS:
***The only reason I visit the Monterey club is that it is closer to home and they have a lot of machines. The front desk staff has improved since my previous review and seems to make an effort to be more personal when you come and go. Also I can’t speak for the classes they offer but they look like the fun energetic ones you see at any other fitness club***
CONS:
The major issues at this club are that the restroom/​locker facilities are disgusting. The floors are dirty and it is common place to find hairs, dirt and paper towel pieces on them. The sinks are always nasty, just see my pictures. The icing on the cake which prompted me to update my review was the tobacco which has been sitting in one of the sinks today. Now this review is not to reflect the nice cleaning lady who cleans the main floors as she is always working really hard. However she doesn’t have access to the men’s locker obviously because she is a female attendant. There are plenty of male staff members at this location who are often times chatting with each other («in meetings») I’ve never understood how with so many employees not one of them can do cleanliness checks on the locker facilities.
Another big concern is the lack of hygienic ways to sanitize your workout machines. This gym has heavy traffic and the only method provided to clean your machine is a reusable microfiber cloth and cleaning spray. In theory this works if you are the cleaning staff however for customers to wipe down their machines with often wet and germ soaked cloths is just plain irresponsible to everyone’s health and well being. The reason I bring this up is earlier this month I caught a nasty bug from the gym and it was after using the blue microfiber cloth to clean my machine.
My advice is if you can afford another gym like the sports center, I hear they are more customer focused and have cleaner facilities. If you have to use this gym a word of WARNING. Be sure to bring your own cleansing towelettes (i.e. Clorox/​Lysol wipes) and if you have to use the restroom bring cleaning supplies and wear flip flops or shoes at all times!
P. S. I haven’t used the pool facilities here in months but I stopped after finding large amounts of hair in the steam room and dirty clothes in the sauna.

Probably one of the nicest gyms on the peninsula. The staff are all very friendly and make you feel welcome whenever you step foot in the door! The personal training staff are all very great! Cosimo is one of the best trainers I’ve had! Knows when to push it and when to tone it down to your ability. Great facility and even better staff!

Don’t even try to get a free 7 day pass here, it doesn’t work. They won’t let you try the gym if you don’t become a member first. The sales person was a jerk. This is the only gym that does this.
This is coming from a long time gym member from the bay area.

This is my favorite gym! The staff is very friendly especially the girls in the kids club! My daughter and I have been coming almost every day for the last year and a half and have had nothing but great experiences. I have taken advantage of using cardio machines, the weight room, taking group classes and even using the pool. I have a crazy schedule but the hours are very accommodating for somebody like me and I really appreciate that the kids club is open all day.

Great place, great trainers and programs to help you get started and stay motivated. Includes a lot of amenities to help you relax and recover after a day at the gym

Love this place! I’ve only been to the Zumba class so far, and I LOVE it! Very high energy and lots of fun. I think it’s Sandy who does the class.
Also, Alec, one of the sales reps, aka «New Guy» as it says on his name tag, was totally awesome. Super helpful, and didn’t put pressure on us to join, which probably made us want to join even more.
Looking forward to coming back to Zumba every Wednesday!

This gym’s rating should be much higher. I’ve been a member of many different gyms and InShape is very, very good. They have 7 full rows of cardio machines, and just as many machine weight systems (but wait, there’s more)! They also have an entirely separate room for free weights, another separate «focus» room where it is a much quieter environment that holds both cardio and weight machines. The gym has cool additions like sanitization stations all throughout the gym, they also give you free towels to use during your gym access.
The gym is always clean and in good working order, I’ve never had a problem and I go 5-​times a week and usually stay at least 90-​minutes. Basically, there is no reason to join any other gym. Even if you live 10 – 15 minutes away it is worth it to have a membership at InShape Monterey. Their added value is worth the drive. InShape also offers both Zumba and spin classes and they have many personal trainers on site.
They also have very good, extended hours compared to other gyms I’ve been to, so if starting early or late is something you enjoy, you can do that here. The pricing was even better than the previous gyms I was a member of. All-​in-​all, join InShape! Good value, friendly workers, good atmosphere.

Having a new manager, Alec, during weekends made a great difference in terms of customer service. to Alec!
Thank you in shape for taking care of us! Kids loved the racquet ball
Shout out to staff — Matt: the one who organizes the equipments near the pool is super great! He is quick and organized. He’s friendly too!

Hey yall I love this gym! So much that I come all the way from Salinas (even though Salinas has two other In-​Shapes).
The staff here are amazing and I feel so welcome whenever I come. And I absolutely love that. In my experience (of well over a year at this location), I feel that the bad reviews about this gym’s cleaniness is pretty much bull honkey. It may have it’s moments. but TRUST me, it is clean 9 out of 10 times. If you come to the gym to work out with a lot of equipment and machines, and to have a trouble free experience, this gym is the one. If you don’t want a dirty gym, stop treating it like crap (like I’ve seen some people do…). I have made so many friends here, many of who share great gym etiquette. All in all, this gym provides a positive atmosphere with helpful and friendly staff. Jesse, the manager of this location, has always been very accommodating to my needs too! So go check it out!

I’m not a member of this gym simply because of how turned off I was by the customer service. In the past, I had an In-​Shape membership in the Bay Area and was excited to find a couple of them in the area when I moved here. I stopped in one Saturday afternoon to speak with a membership rep about the prices and policies. The man giving me the tour of the facilities was very unprofessional and made me feel uncomfortable. He would stop mid-​sentence to check out girls walking past, made offensive jokes about one of his fellow coworkers, and just genuinely seemed disinterested in talking to me. The facilities are pretty standard and the prices are good, but I won’t be back.
In-​Shape Monterey, you need to get your act together.

This place is OK I mean just a gym and service isn’t great but what ever. The shows and steam room seems dirty but am only going to be using the cardio stuff anyway. The Zuma classes are awesome and high energy!

I felt compelled to write this review after joining the gym 2 weeks ago and feeling that their rating was too low.
Cleanliness: I felt the gym was very clean. They hand out fresh towels so people aren’t reusing their nasty ones. There is also spray and towels conveniently located throughout the gym. Bathrooms were not the cleanest I’ve seen (only reason this is a 4 star vs 5 star review) but adequate.
Cardio: I have yet to get there when their wasn’t equipment available. There are 9 TVs and free wifi so you can stream your own shows of you so desire.
Weights: I’m still trying to get in my groove because I circuit train. And it’s a little crowded around the 6:00 hour. My hubby has no problems transplanting his workout routine.
Kids Club: I wish it wasn’t located by the front door but my kids love it (2, 4, and 5) and actually beg to go to the gym
Staff: Everyone I have encountered goes above and beyond to make time there enjoyable.

I can’t begin to start to tell you how i have had it with this gym location, most of its management staff. and it’s corporate offices. They have gave me the run around for months now.
I work out in the group x room mostly. i go there 4 – 5 times a week. 3 of those classes are in the morning. For MONTHS now, Only a handful of times has the floor been cleaned. And i’m talking about DIRTY don’t you dare put your hands on the floor filthy!!! One would think that they would open a gym in a clean condition, but that’s not the case and hasn’t been in some time. So, i called the manager, called the district manager, and then corporate. Multiple times! Over the course of 3 months now and still the same. I have to come early and clean my area. I also look around and wish i could do it for the rest my classmates. Max even lied to me and said that he personally seen someone mop the floor one evening. Dishonesty too?!
Having a clean floor should be a standard not a luxury. To put so much effort in having the simplest of tasks done is unacceptable. And don’t think that they care! These automated responses to these reviews are just fluff. Shame on you!

The sales people are rude and the gym takes full advantage of being the only large workout place in Monterey by making their costs astronomical. It’s ridiculous. I had a member ship for a year there and then about 6 months after I wanted to see if getting another membership would benefit me. I used my roommate’s guest pass and headed to InShape. The sales guy was so rude to me after I told him that I had canceled my member ship. He didn’t let me work out, was snappy and had snarky remarks, and he lost a customer.
I would not recommend anyone using this gym, find another one.