Gold’s Gym

I was going to give this rating a 2 but felt that there are a lot of good qualities about it overrall to give it a 3.
NEVER try to cancel and reactivate your membership. I’ve done it and got screwed from $ 30ish a month to $ 40. They also charged me for my last month which I shouldn’t have been charged for AND when I canceled my membership the first time they said that when I reactivated it I wouldn’t have to pay more. The place is super crowded and parking can be challenging, but if you just park in the lot under the freeway after 6pm it’s free.
The lady’s locker room is pretty nice. There’s shower and a sauna that few people use. That said, it’s always hella hot in the gym and the locker room which can be gross. I wish that the facility were bigger and that the equipment were more spread out to accommodate different kinds of training styles.
The abs and core class is excellent. The teacher is nuts but he whipped me into shape pretty good. Again, it’s very full, so get to your classes early!

Although I still love Carla’s yoga class, I decided I don’t feel 5-​starry about it anymore. I’m really tired of her being late to class every single day – usually 5 – 10 minutes, which isn’t that bad except that:
a. it’s only an hour long,
b. she gets really annoyed when people have to leave early, and
c. she often goes a couple minutes into the next class – they’re outside the room tapping their feet and looking pissed off – not cool!
So, after months of quietly burning about this as well as actually talking to her about it personally and having been part of a group intervention that didn’t change anything, I’m downgrading my review.
I still love you, Carla and Gold’s, but the being-​late-​to-​class-​every-​day thing is wearing on my (deep) affection.
Peace.

I hate this gym for so many reasons.
It’s like time stopped in 1982. The equipment is old, as are 90% of the members of this gym. No offense to old people, but it’s totally unmotivating to see peoples’ grandparents wearing leather weight belts and chatting next to the lat pull machines. Do these people even work out? Even the trainers look bored.
I am pretty picky about gyms but seriously. For $ 40 a month, it should at least be decent. This place is always 130 degrees, except for the locker room which is probably 230 degrees. There is always a class going on so you can’t use the classroom which is the only slightly cool part of the gym. Except the one time I went to yoga, I almost died of heat (and the stench of sweaty feet). I think they actually have the audacity to charge for TRX classes.
The weight room is beyond cramped. The windows are hardly ever opened and the fans are never on. I know you should sweat at the gym, but it shouldn’t be the second you walk in. Also, my biggest pet peeve aside from the temperature is that the weights are on a separate floor from cardio equipment which makes circuit training (my favorite) difficult. They have all of one regular squat rack and like 3 benches. I think they have one rowing machine. Several of the machines are actually rusty.
I am glad I can walk here because I can’t imagine trying to park in this neighborhood. I am not sure when a good time to come here is because it seems like it’s always busy (or maybe that’s because there’s like 12 square feet of space). I am trying desperately to find a new gym that isn’t hot and cramped.

I have been living in Oakland for only two weeks now and one of the things I was really looking forward to was this awesome gold’s gym location by the lake. Aside from the location and the fact that this gym seems to have a very friendly staff and members, this golds doesn’t have too much else going for it.
I personally don’t do much cardio or take part in the classes offered so I should make this review strictly on their weight lifting section. As you walk up the stairs the first thing I noticed is how close everything is cramped together. With that the variety of machines is pretty small (only one free weight squat rack). The free weights are all over the place and often I found myself traveling a ways to add weight to my next sets. People don’t seem to care much to re-​rack or wipe the sweat off their machines once finished.
To me golds gym should stand for a serious gym. this one seems to have fallen into a rubber coated plates, and dumbbell trend. I mean the handles on both the barbells and the dumbbells are no more than an inch in diameter, you can’t even use a 45lbs Olympic barbell… The last straw was seeing people in the weight room in their skinny jeans.

when I first moved to the neighborhood, I told myself «I’m gonna join Gold’s Gym!» Six months later, I did. It was a good decision. The staff are friendly and the place is clean. There’s a lot of great cardio equipment that are hardly out-​of-​order and there seem to be a lot of exercise classes to choose from (although I haven’t taken one yet!)
I took a few months physical training with Lori Shabazz. She’s so awesome! Sweet, motivating, and worked well with me and my need to «stop being so jiggly». I highly recommend her, especially for first time gym-​ers or for those who are self-​conscious about their body.

I recently joined Gold’s after being a 24hr Fitness member 10+ years… I’d also gained some weight back after not being able to work out for a month and decided to take advantage of one of their Elite Trainers to help get me back into shape.
I am so glad I made the switch. First of all, the quality of the equipment is much better than 24hr. I’m always greeted with friendly faces by the staff. And the place is always VERY clean, especially the ladies locker room. Gold’s can be a bit intimidating, because the members seem more serious about working out than at 24hr (they’re aren’t a lot of socializer’s hanging around), but that’s more motivation for me.
My trainer is Jacques (Elite) and he is the BEST. he is friendly, encouraging and has inspired me to workout harder, I actually look forward to our sessions, which get me ready to start my day. His methods are a little different than what I’m used to, but I’m starting to see the fruits of my labor and I’m loving it.
I workout in the morning, so I haven’t had a problem with crowds and I haven’t come across anything other than normal gym noise, unlike 24hr where the guys, especially, like to drop the weights and grunt loudly while exercising.
My only cons: 1) the ladies locker room is always HOT, but I attribute that to the sauna, which is located in the locker room. 2) space, would be nice if it was bigger.
I’d like to add that one of the BIG reasons I left 24hr was because in order to take cardio classes at the times I needed, I’d have to go to 3 different 24hr’s! Gold’s has a very extensive cardio class list… I’m very happy with my switch and I’m seeing more 24hr members make the switch as well.

This review is about the Zumba class.
The Zumba class taught by Carmen is just horrible sadly to say. She lacked energy and the moves were very repetitious which is hard considering Zumba includes so many different types of ethnic dance. A lot of her moves didn’t even make sense. I was totally bored and the class wasn’t pumped as well. What made me so upset was that the week before I took the class with Josh and it was AMAZING!!! He defined how a Zumba class should be taught. FUN, ENERGIZED & actually doing different styles of dance. His class was packed that week and EVERYONE had a blast!!. With Carmen I ended up leaving half way through the class because her moves were random and non flowing. I was just totally bored and after work who wants to feel like that? I had already cancelled my membership but I solely was going to join back because of Josh. Sadly he was only filling in for Carmen while she was away.
I feel bad I didn’t write the director and the manager after I left Josh class because he really was amazing! BRING JOSH BACK!!!

I’ve been going go Golds Gym for 2.5 years.
I’ve tried out many others, but I’ve stuck with this one because it’s close by and it has a nice energy to it.
It’s definitely not cheap I paid 44/​month plus an activation fee for a year and a half, then I got it lowered to 30/​month plus a 100 activation fee.
Pros: Nice/​Friendly Staff, Well lit and ventilated. Very Clean. Sauna. There are classes that you can take for free: yoga, body pump, hip/​hop etc. Community vibe.
Cons: no Spa/​pool. Small!!! Locker room is really hot all the time.

Its my first time joining a gym and i really like golds! Its packed most times after 6:00 but i work right down the street so if i wanted to i could go earlier. Zumba with josh was AMAZING, I havent been able to go to carmens yet but i hope its just as good. The gym is clean, always lockers available in the locker room and they have a nice sauna.
Sometimes its a wait for the cardio which i dont really like.

I live too close to be a member to any other gym.

I went here today and boy was I surprised to find out how snuddy, pushy and unfriendly the young lady with the short black black hair at the lobby counter was.
My home gym is in Mountain View and this girl gave me quite a hassle about working out there even though I had my Gold’s Gym scan card. Long story short I was charged $ 3 to work out there because I didn’t have a traveling pass.
I liked the facility. The interior chain link fencing theme seems to match the strength & power that Gold’s Gym portray. I really like that look.
The entire first floor consists of cardio machines, stretching room, and spin/​dance/​exercise room. There was only one large flat screen TV in the main cardio room, one larger flat screen TV up top of the stairs on the second floor.
I headed up stairs to the weight room. WOW! Really cool. I like the way they have the weight room very well organized. Organized in such a way that all you have to do is look up and find the various signs that tell you where the various workout areas are: Abs/​Stretching, Chest, Legs, etc.
Entire second floor has padded flooring.
While I was there I saw two staff members wiping down/​cleaning equipment. Nice!
Men’s & women’s locker rooms are upstairs on the second floor.
Women’s locker room also has a dry sauna room.
Women’s locker room also has a Dyson Hand Dryer. Wow, great dryer.
Great views from the second floor overlooking Oakland’s popular Lake Merritt.
This is a really nice Gold’s Gym but I find that it is kind of small even though it is a multi level facility.

Yes, they have a big facility with lots of equipment. And it’s clean. Generally, it’s a perfectly fine place to work out. But be careful! Twice I’ve cancelled a membership after moving and both times, surprise surprise, they charged me after they were supposed to and claimed that they didn’t have record of the cancellation. Fortunately, this most recent time, I kept my cancellation slip so am able to get the charge reversed. The first time, I had to eat it. So lame.
I’d also caution you about their personal training services. They gave me a «free fitness assessment». I had to show the trainer how to work the body fat calipers. ’nuff said.

Loving it…
Walked in to take a look at the facility and feel it out, got a great warm welcome from the front door staff, who referred us to speak with Amanda. Amanda has been phenomenal. She signed us up with the best deal she could offer (at the end of the month). We were quickly set up with a free session with a personal trainer which gave us a great acclimation to the gym and what goals to set. My trainer was Roneet… also an amazing staff who was warm, understanding and forgiving of my minimal work-​out regimin these past few years.
They offer tons of cool classes, and they push for cleanliness (which I appreciate). I love the location. And I must admit that I love the TV on the machines. it definitely makes for an entertaining workout.

One of the trainers told me at my intro session if I didn’t get a personal trainer, my exercise effort would be a failure.
That’s what she said: FAILURE.
Don’t drop 200 bucks a month (and this is when I was barely making any money at the time and couldn’t afford it and she knew it) or you’ll be a big FAT loser FOREVER. I can appreciate that a trainer is a huge advantage; I didn’t appreciate the attempt to scare me into spending more money than is practical so she can maintain an artificial quota.
Screw off, bitch, I didn’t think it was a failure then and it’s not one now. Even if I’m somewhat of a chunky monkey.

I’ve been coming here for a year and a half. I live in the neighborhood. I can walk here. The proximity is the only thing that keeps me from making a disgruntled sigh and switching over to another gym.
— I pay $ 39.95 a month. The advertising in the window and anecdotes from others make me think that I’m paying more than everyone else. It may be the honest truth, but no one likes feeling that a business is just trying to pinch as much money from them as they can get away with.
— The 3 free personal training sessions when you sign up are really just a sales pitch to get you sign up and pay for personal training. In the first meeting, I was clear that I didn’t want to pay for personal training, and that was that. The remaining 2 sessions never transpired.
— Hairy dust bunnies scurrying around the locker room every. single. time.
— You may show up for the 6 am spinning class at 5:45 and find that it is full. So you could wake up an extra half an hour earlier just to go hang out at the gym waiting for this class to start.
If the class is full every time, why not get more bikes? Why not offer more classes? Why not split the studio space into 2 rooms so that 2 classes can be offered at once?
— I also attend the Body Pump after-​work class regularly, and this one can also be a debacle. People start assembling outside 15 minutes ahead of time and then stampede into the yoga class as soon as those those people make the first sign of finishing up. There’s often not enough equipment to go around and not enough space for people who dare to come in 5 minutes before class start. Neither the teacher nor the staff ever attempts to help distribute equipment, or to organize people into the space so that everyone can fit.
I guess it’s a cheap gym, and it behaves as one.

Oh oh oh… it’s so difficult without towel service, tanning booths, a bar, scented lotions, candles, a valet driver, someone to carry me up and down the stairs…
I don’t come here to work out — I come here to socialize and be waited on hand and foot!
Come on guys, really? This is how some of the negative reviews sound to me. Parking, like the guy before me mentioned, is free for 4 hours and a block away. Too far? Then take up couch surfing.
Everyone is friendly and people of all types frequent this place. They also clean it regularly and often. It says $ 19.99 a month on the outside but sooner or later, you’ll pay $ 30 – 35 per month which still isn’t bad.
My old gym was $ 66 a month but it did have a bar surprisingly — if you’re unhappy with Gold’s not being a full salon and bar, you can always go there.

after realizing how insanely out of shape I am, I made it my new years resolution to join a gym and start getting my fitness on. gold’s is right by my house and when I went to check it out, I was impressed with how clean the facility is. I worried that I was going to waste my money signing up for a gym and then not going, but this gym is so pleasant that I’ve gotten my money’s worth thus far!
this is no small task either, I have never been one of those physically active people. I failed PE at least three times in my life [sad, but very true], and my usual idea of exercise is walking around a mall. but, the staff here is very welcoming and friendly, and they make you feel comfortable even if you’re a lazy butt like me! their cardio machines seem up to date and it’s nice how the treadmills have individual TV’s, so you can keep yourself distracted while you’re running and watch what you want instead of whatever is on the big tv [the other day they were playing south park. SCORE].
as part of my new membership, I had a consultation with a personal trainer who basically gave me a fitness evaluation. the result? I’m really out of shape. lol. he suggested personal training sessions but I told him honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could afford it at the time. there was no pressure to sign up and they’ve left me alone on that whole topic.
locker rooms are always clean, and there is a sauna [which I haven’t used]. there’s also a ton of different classes offered throughout the day. they’re open late [until midnight monday-​thursday, and 11 or 10 on weekends]. best investment I’ve made this year, thanks gold’s!

Gold’s is a sick gym if you live in the Lake Merritt area. Their facilities are SUPERB.
Unlike 24 hour fitness, they have TWO dry saunas, and they are located in the locker rooms, so the ladies don’t encounter any awkward situations. Their facilities are extremely clean, and I rarely went without seeing one of the technicians fixing/​servicing equipment there.
Really nice cardio equipment. All of the treadmills have a touch-​screen TV built into them, as well as all of the elipticals. Their weight room is comprehensive, I would even go as far as calling it WORLD-​CLASS.
SERIOUS people train here. I met a doctor who came here every single day to get 2 hours of cardio in. Also met firefighters, and a bunch of dudes with huge lifts. Their seasoned members are just a different breed. After all, it’s the members that make a gym up, not the facility.
The downsides are CRAPPY parking (you can spend $ 4 on paid parking for a 2 hour session), and they don’t have a pool. They’re also really pricey in comparison to the rest, and YES, it is a BETTER gym, but don’t price it as if it doesn’t have any downsides to it.
If I lived in the Lake Merritt area, this would be my home gym.

You know, I’m going to have to take away a couple of stars, because this place is really starting to suck.
While some of the classes look like fun, at least one spin instructor needs to be taken off of rotation, or at least reevaluated to see if he/​she is current. When I told the front desk this, they basically blew me off. When I emailed the main email address to share my frustration, I never heard back. Minus one star for poor customer service.
Another half star gone for letting that old guy sleep on the arm bike, and for not doing something about the other creeps that saunter around like they own the place.
The final half star gone is because some of the equipment is not fixed in a prompt manner, which could lead to serious injury.

As a member for the past 1+ year, I have attended many classes and used some of the equipment here, but no real strong opinion of the equipment. It seems to work; I’d rather do free weights upstairs or run on the treadmill than anything else, and those items function well enough. I’m a group fitness nut! (belly dancing, spin, cardio; I would love a kickboxing class at this location.) I get way more motivated to be on time and show up if there’s a teacher and fellow students.
I had an opportunity to give one of the assistant managers my feedback recently, and I’ll share what I told him:
I love my teachers! Sharon (Master old school fitness guru!!) Geri, Carla, Q, you guys are all great.
I do miss Jeannine, who did a really fun cardio-​weights class, and I HATE body pump that replaced it. The music makes me want to put my fingers in a paper shredder and the teacher is totally out of character with the rest of Gold’s in Oakland. She’s so cheezy, I can’t stand it.
Not so into the yoga– while I do love Carla, it’s very hard for me to get in the Yoga zone when there are huge weights being dropped on the floor above you at jarring volumes. The floor is also dirty and the mats are used for fitness classes and I know everyone does not clean them after the sweat and abuse they are subjected to. Not to mention there are glass windows into the studio and/​or some fool will wonder into the class to get a piece of equipment while you’re in some comprising posture or chillin’ in shivasana.
I do use the locker room after morning classes, when the showers are still clean, luckily, and things are acceptably clean there. I have never used the sauna. In fact, i think they should shut the thing off in the summer, the locker room is actually reaaaaly warm and the sauna on in June doesn’t lend itself to cooling down after a work-​out.
Speaking of which, and this is probably one of the downfalls of the gym-​for many-​is there is no AC, and the ventilation is pretty bad. Honestly, it doesn’t get hot here in the Bay Area enough to warrant the expense and energy usage; plus, AC really freezes me and isn’t it good to work out and get sweaty? I sort of like it! It makes me feel like I’m really burning calories.
One final bonus of Gold’s membership is the opportunity to use any Gold’s though out the area. (read, the Castro for pilates with Kyle!)
Other than that, I really like this gym, and if you stick with it long enough you will meet people and find some smiling, familiar faces, belonging to happy people you can chat with and share your fitness goals! Yay!