Gym Woes

Gym Membership: $300

The fourth quarter of last year, Em-J had this crazy idea that we should start hitting the gym. He first signed up for a membership at a nearby and a popular gym chain. I was given a couple of free passes before I was finally convinced to sign up for it. Similar to our previous gym attempts when we were still in Manila, we were still not successful this time as we simply lost the drive to go come January.

Membership Fee for February: $100


Early February, I texted our gym consultant informing her that I wish to have my membership frozen as I simply can't find the time to go anymore. She told me that it's not allowed since you have to have a valid reason. I asked her to check what reasons were allowed and for her to get back to me. She never did.

Membership Fee for March: $100

The last week of February, as I don't want to pay another $100, I texted her again and she said that she wasn't able to process my request since I never replied to her text. I  told her that I never received her message. Anyway, I then advised her that I'll just cancel my membership. She said that I have to give a month's notice. Begrudingly, I swallowed the fact that I have to pay for another full month before I can have my membership cancelled. I clearly told her that this message should be my one month notice. She then replied that it's better to just freeze my account. I told her that I'll visit the gym in a few days when I find the time to process everything.

What she failed to tell me that my text message is not a good enough advise. I actually need to be talking to someone else or another department so they can accept my notice.


Anyway, Em-J and I paid the gym a visit just a couple of days ago thinking that we will just be paying the termination fee.

When we got there, our gym consultant endorsed us to another person who was supposed to handle terminations but she refused to process our termination saying that we need a full month's notice. I told her that I already informed our consultant about it before March so technically this month should be our last month. She again refused saying that simply telling our consultant is not good enough, they need a written documentation which means that I have to pay for another full month before they can process my request.

To make matters worse, our consultant got mad at us saying that I had gotten her in deep shit since her superior is blaming her for not informing the gym about my request. She contested that during the months that I was texting her, we were still negotiating so it technically doesn't count. (I think it's completely lost on her that during those months that we were texting, her gym is continually charging us!)

Going back, I told the person processing the terminations to let her boss call me so I can explain and negotiate. She promised a call last Monday, it's Thursday now and I still haven't heard from them. 

Membership Fee for April: $100


Termination Fee: $209


I guess we really have no choice but to pay. One thing is for sure, this gym is very effective in ensuring that our  wallets get way thinner.