La Fitness

I've worked out at the Ansley Mall LA Fitness for about 8 or 9 years, and stay because of the open membership, and the fact that I got locked into a very low rate. It is also convenient to where I live--I can actually walk there. Still, it has really gotten rather ragged around the edges in recent years. I guess they're tightening their belts like everyone else, which is to be expected, but this becomes a problem when it affects the cleanliness of the gym, which it certainly has. There used to be a person on staff who cleaned several hours of the day, but there is never anyone cleaning there anymore--EVER!! The locker room truly is an armpit--it STINKS, and just reeks of FILTH. I never, ever see anyone wiping anything down, and there is most certainly a problem with recurring bouts of STAPH INFECTION with the members here. I have talked with so many people there who have contracted staph, and I also worked for a doctor's office for a couple of years where we would get approx. 180 cases of staph per year where the only common denominator was A MEMBERSHIP AT THIS LOCATION!!! I reported it to them at the local and corporate level, and was completely brushed off. They didn't want to hear about it, and just told me they had no obligation to track the number of cases of staph that their members reported. I would never join this gym knowing what I know, and seeing what I see, but as I've said, it's very convenient and cheap. I DO believe that I am immune to staph, because it seems that everyone I know personally who works out there has had it at least once. I would highly recommend wearing clothing that covers you well, and don't come into contact with equipment with any open sores or cuts in the skin!! more

This is a high volume gym for the financially challenged. This gym is also popular with the gay community and a few inner-city pseudothugs. Some of the best gyms in the country are gay gyms, but this is not one of them. This gym has more swish than a whirlpool washing machine and more hiss than a leak in the Goodyear blimp. Most people don?t workout. They just stand around in small groups like high school girls at recess, or they parade around the gym, or drape themselves over a piece of equipment while on a loud cell phone conversation. People also don?t put up their weights. Your limited time at the gym will be spent tripping over weights, hunting for your weights, or putting up other people?s weights. The place is HOT! This is Atlanta, and heat is cheap. Even in the winter, it can be too hot to breathe. The equipment is old, and the machines stick. The gym is badly laid out. The smith machines are facing the wrong way. The dumb-bells are against the mirror. Someone is always in you mirror-space, or your reaching around someone, or tripping on the feet of the people on the benches that are nailed to the floor. The locker rooms are badly laid out. The benches are against the lockers. People are always falling over each other while they are getting dressed or trying to reach their locker. Then there is the filth, as someone else stated. It?s not because there is no staff, but the members are the kind of people who make a mess. The bathrooms, alone, could be shut down by the health department. They are about as nasty as a bar on Bourbon Street. The gym is cheap and it?s open late, but before you join, look around and ask yourself if you want to look like the people who workout there. Pros: Hours, Cheap Cons: Filth, Etiquette, Old Equipment more

I have been a member of LA Fitness since 1997 which includes the time prior to LA Fitness purchasing Australian Body Works. My ""home gym"" location is Ansley Mall and I am COMPLETELY over the lack of cleanliness at this location. Despite multiple complaints from myself and several friends, nothing has changed. It only seems to be getting worse. The company headquarters (if you can find their information as it's not listed on their website) is completely unresponsive (I did eventually find it). The problems are mainly: Locker rooms: Dirty sinks, showers, counter tops, toilets, poor ventilation, broken lockers, trash overflowing from receptacles, dirty floors, watered-down soap in dispensers, paper towels not always available, etc. Workout Areas: Please clean the mirrors and shampoo the carpet!! Oh, and fix the water fountains - I don't find warm water refreshing. That said, the staff is always friendly and has a smile when you walk in and usually say goodbye as well. This is a very convenient location for me, but I, as well as many friends are contemplating leaving if things don't change. Pros: Equipment, location, friendly staff Cons: Very poor facility maintenance, filthy locker rooms more