I just want to deffend me and my co-workers at Fitness One...the girls at the desks and such. We would all love to be as helpful to our clients as they would like, but sadly for us our hands are tied by HQ, so please I understand your frustration, I am too as I am also a long time member, but this is truly a no frills gym and we would appreciate being treated as people, not some monsters out to take your cash...we are only doing our jobs as best as we can.
I myself love working and working out there, and I like the no pretence feel of the place.

The ABSOLUTE worst gym I have ever been to! I joined the Fitness One facility at Main and Danforth around March '09. First off, the facility is poorly lit, has no water fountains, is dirty and some of the equipment dont work. They initially gave me a hand-written, laminated "temporary" pass, saying that I should receive the actual one "within a few months". But even after 6 months I had not gotten my actual card and kept using the "temp" one.

Due to work commitments I had to move at the end of August '09 so I went to cancel my membership knowing full well that I had to pay a cancellation fee of $150 which was fine by me since I had a contract for a year and I was terminating it early. However, the clerk helping me said that I would still be charged for September because they need a 30 day notice even though NO WHERE on the contract does it explicitly mention that I have to give them a 30 day notice.

When I asked the clerk to show me where exactly on the contract it said that I had to give them a 30 day notice she just thrust the contract in my face without finding the relevant clause, and when I insisted that she FIND it for me, it took her over 5 minutes and a phone call to Head Quarters (HQ) to find a clause in there that mentions that Fitness One will contact the member at least 30 days but no more than 90 days prior to the expiry of the membership and she used this clause as justification for charging me for September!

By their logic apparently that clause "implies" that I have to give them 30 days notice, which really makes NO sense to me. She explained how they would have to mail my cancellation forms to HQ and that would take time so it wouldnt be cancelled before Sept anyway. So by my understanding they are charging the customer for the tardiness in their processing time and when I pointed it out to the clerk, she disagreed with me and gave me the contact # for customer service. I wanted a copy of my membership contract but she wouldnt give me one because I didnt have my actual pass and its their policy not to return the contract in such cases.

I am terminating my membership early so I understand I have to pay a penalty which I was prepared to do but the way they scam one into paying for one extra month is really was the last straw and if even ONE person decides NOT to join that awful gym after reading my review I will be glad! I have prematurely canceled my membership in another gym as well (e.g. Goodlife) and their service is MUCH more professional. I will stay FAR away from Fitness One in the future.

(Saturday, April 18th, 2009)
I showed my card to Mrs. Blake* as I entered Fitness One club at 117 Peter Street, as I have done previously and as outlined on the STOP sign on the front desk -- “show or swipe you card” -- there’s no mention of taking a photo of you, or showing a photo ID. I entered the gym and she shouted “have a good workout”. She never asked to take my photo or a photo ID, nor have I ever been asked for a photo ID since 2003, and 2006 when I joined the Fitness One gym on Peter Street. Note that I have always simply shown my card and entered the gym with no hassle or incident.

(Sunday, April 19th, 2009, before 10:30 AM)
I entered the gym and swiped my gym card, as I did yesterday and before. As my account opened “Mrs. Blake” said “there’s an alert on your account” — you MUST take a photo to be stored on my account profile. I told her that storing a photo is not part of my contract, but I can show you a photo ID. I told her that none of the gym employees have aver asked me for a photo, since 2003 and 2006 when I joined Fitness One on Peter Street. At which point, she said that her employees are “not doing there job, I will fire them…” 3 weeks ago, I inquired about taking and storing my photo on my profile so that I don’t have to carry my gym card and the employee on duty told me that they charge $35 for that — it’s no longer free and even then, you still have a swipe or show your card on each visit. Did Mrs. Blake expect me to pay $35 for the photo, which she insisted I needed to take?

As the conversation went, Mrs. Blake told me that she owned the gym — I have noticed the dirtiness of the facility, including the washroom with 3 toilets and the stench and I have been meaning to talk to management— so I asked her how many times the gym is cleaned, and she said, 3 to 4 times a week. I asked her again, do you mean to tell me with all the number of people using the facility; you don’t clean the gym everyday let a lone several times a day? She arrogantly told me that “you can’t expect the gym to be cleaned everyday if you pay (she opened my account) $20/month for membership.

I had previously reached for an ID from my wallet, which was in my hand, on the front desk counter, in view of Mrs. Blake, pulled out my citizenship card and was waiting to show it her, and as soon as I finished asking her questions about the dirtiness of the gym, she told me that “your account has been cancelled as of today”! She got a pair of scissors and cut my gym card into two, which she had forcefully grabbed from my hand! She went on to say that as the owner of the gym, and she can do as she pleases with my membership. At which point, I told her that I would alert Health Canada about the dirtiness of the facility — a gym with 3 toilets can not be cleaned 3-4 times a week, it should be cleaned at least one’s a day. I also asked her if there’s any active ingredients in the liquid provided for members to clean the equipment with before and after use — I have always suspected it was just water — the liquid has no smell. She said that the liquid is “organic”.

(Refund)
I asked Mrs. Blake to give a written notice of cancellation of my membership and she refused & told me to provide my e-mail so she can send it to me. I asked her to send the cancellation notice and that Fitness One will not go into bank account and take any membership fees as of today, April 19, 2009. She became belligerent and asked me — “do you understand English”? Then said, that she will send the cancellation notice to the address on file (she looked at my account) and then asked me — “did you lie about your address as well”. The she said that she has to ensure the security of the club members from “people of your type”.

(“People of your type”, “did you lie about your address as well”, “do you understand English”)
After these chosen words, I now confirmed that I was being racially profiled as of Saturday, when I showed my card and Mrs. Blake asked me to swipe it instead. She had no interest in seeing my photo ID and that she had decided to cancel my membership for the following —
1. She could as the owner.
2. “People of your type” were not welcomed to her gym and were viewed as a threat — I am black from Sub-Saharan Africa with an accent. She quickly let me know that her father is from Africa, and she is married to black man when I asked her what she meant by “people of your type” and “do you understand English”. Mrs. Blake is a white or south Asian woman with black flowing hair — she is eloquent when she decided use the phrase “people of your type” when referring to black woman from Sub-Sahara with a Sub-Saharan accent , and when she asks me condescendingly, “do you understand English” when I am speaking with her in English, not a dialect.
3. I challenged her on the cleanliness of the gym, when I realized she was the owner.
4. I am still waiting for a communication on my refund.

(Don’t Join Joining Fitness One)
Unless you are on welfare, do not join Fitness One. The facility and equipment is filthy and the owner, Mrs. Blake told me, that she can only afford to clean the gym, including washroom, showers and toilets 3 to 4 times a week. You guessed it, they don’t bother to clean the equipment. The gym is filthy FILTHY. Yes, “Mrs Blake” is rude and ***– she referred to me, a black woman from African, “people of your type” she also asked me in a demeaning, condescending manner “do you understand English?” DON”T WASTE YOUR MONEY. WOMEN, WE NEED TO GIVE OUR BUSINESS TO COMPANIES THAT DESERVE IT AND TREATS US WITH RESPECT AND DIGNITY REGARDLESS OF OUR ECONOMIC STATUS, RACE AND COLOR OF SKIN. Fitness One preys on women insecurities – that’s why they are belligerent, rude and ***.

Ex member

**Editor's Note: portions of this review have been removed in accordance with the ChickAdvisor review policy

I moved to Toronto a few years ago, and I was looking for a good place to workout where I could just focus on getting some good tone and progressing with my physique. I train in BJJ, and have always valued a real workout - not one where people are watching DVD's on the cardio equipment and flirting at the juice bar in their designer outfits and full faces of make-up!

The Fitness One branch which is located on the corner of Richmond and Peter in the entertainment district has been amazing. The staff is easy going and knowledgeable, and the equipment is great! I've seen local celebrities, fitness compteitors, students, house wives, business women, and even seniors in the gym...and it struck me, that these were all people who are seriously interested in their health and wellness - not some sort of fitness gong show where one is unsure if the gym is actually a night club, a video store, or a pick-up joint!

This gym has been great. I've checked out almost every gym that I can find in the area - I'm confident I made the right choice...good hours, good prices, good equipment, normal people...

Check it out - I believe they give free passes.

I got a membership at fitness one in november, however I found a better deal at the Y and cancelled the next day. When you sign up you get 10 days to cancel and if you do you are guaranteed your full money back. It is now March and all I have received is rude behavior from staff, no call backs to my 50 or more calls to 50 different numbers I have received from them to call and no money back. I called the managers of the area I signed up and they have had a new manager 3 times already and none of them have returned my calls. Fitness one is the most disgraceful and appalling gym I have ever heard of and I highly recommend people stay FAR away from it and it's staff. They take your money with no remorse and don't care at all about you getting it back. NEVER EVER GO TO THIS GYM, unless you like being treated badly and disrespected.

At first I thought it was great you can go to the gym a well equipped gym for 16$ but then you quickly realize that it is too good to be true. I use work out in the mornings at the one on Young and Bloor. I was there one day and there was a few of us there waiting for it to open when it didn't. There was no sign that they closed that gym location and the staff didn't even inform us the day before. I went to the one on Main and Danforth and it was just as bad. My membership was a year long and I didn’t even stay 6 months that long.
Machines were always broken.
The change room was not clean.
Classes were during the day when everyone is at work??
The customer service SUCKS. If you have a question, or need to contact head office it is only via email. If you ask a staff member they would give you inconsistent information often leaving you hanging. I guess in the end you get what you pay for. you go to the gym to de-stress not get more stressed.

I moved to GOOD LIFE and for the little extra money it is well worth the investment in yourself.

I go to the Dufferin Mall location. True, it is cheap and the machines are available. Yet if you can barely stand going.... These are the things that drive me crazy about it.

- selling bottled water on site, with no water fountain and no facilities to recycle bottles, which just go in the garbage
- they either conduct or allow others to conduct seminars on site flogging herbalife - known to be a useless product and pyramid scheme
- staff are all about seventeen, rude, have no fitness knowledge and do very little - it appears that they have no supervision
- all of the signs and programs are promoting weight loss - hardly affirming for the women who go there. There is also dated and inaccurate healthy info posted around the place.
- things that break are left broken forever - the a/c was broken in the summer and wasn't fixed for weeks and weeks, while women were coming dangerously close to cardiac arrest - staff tried denying that it was broken, or that it had been fixed until it was so blatantly untrue that they had to admit it. Not that it matters, but just as a question of tone - the huge mirror in the room that they hold classes has been held together with duct tape for quite some time.
- the music is incredibly loud and obnoxious - on one super-infantile radio station all the time. most women wear headphones like me, so it's not for their benefit, and in fact just creates an infuriating conflict with whatever you're trying to listen to. I go toward the end of the day and there will often be this idiotic music blaring with literally two others working out wearing headphones. This has gotten to bug me so much I can barely use the gym
- staff will actually try to pressure you to leave before closing time because they have somewhere to go and want to get out. which is not cool with me, since that is the only time of the day that I can go.

Any feedback you give receives a blank stare. The problem is that even if you have no expectations of classes or staff there are actually features of the gym that will aggressively annoy you and make you not want to go.

I was a member for almost two years. It was cheap, and the location was right where I worked, so I would workout early in the morning and then walk right to work.I didn't really need a trainer since I was pretty independent with my workout regime, so I was happy paying $16 a month for doing my own thing.
Then, out of the blue, that particular location closed down without any notice, and they advised me that my membership would be terminated because I signed up there. I didn't bother to go to another Fitness One location, I just decided to pay the extra money and go to Goodlife. I'm quite content over there.

OK, so as soon as you walk in, it hits you...this is not your average goodlife gym. it's worse.
I don't say this to be rude, but...the staff can be severely unfriendly, the equipment is on the old side, and the gym is not top notch cleanliness...but what do you expect for 16 bucks a month? you get what you pay for...so please people...stop complaining...if you want fancy...theres an extreme or goodlife right around the corner, but if your one of those people like me who don't have the time to go to a gym usually but want to know i belong to one, this one is definitely an option. I don't have the time to invest 5 days a week at the gym, so why would i invest that kind of money? I like fitness one, there's a couple oflocations, nobody bothers you about buying anything...and if you call head office...speak to the owners assistant...she knows what she's talking about and always calls back. The gym is clean enough to work out in and the staff are young and mostly approachable...they are not certified personal trainers, so dont expect that. just remember the golden rule...you get what you pay for here...a no frills gym that has equipment and is warm in the winter cool in the summer...no towels, no hair dryers, no tv....no big monthly due!!!

I had been a member at fitness one, and the only thing I can say that was good was the location, the price (I paid only $10 a month), and the equipment. I always went at off hours and found it good.

I found their staff to be dismally uneducated in health and fitness. I am a self motivated person, who used to train competitively, and occasionally I would have the odd *trainer* with rocks for brains try to talk to me. I found their programs to be an insult, fashioned after weight loss fads that don't work (ie. with frequent weigh ins, and measurements that would just drive the person crazy, and probably cause them to quit.) Their programs always focused on weight loss, and did not focus on real progression once the person got beyond the weight loss (or even real progress during). Their programs were all re-inventions of a one trick pony.

I tried to humour one of the trainers one day who wanted to get me on a program. I had fallen on some ice that week and was a bit sore so I said, "Well I can't do much at your boot camp this week." She said well all we're going to do is weigh you before your workouts. I wasn't sure if it was a nice way of trying to say "I think you're fat" or just a stupid way of trying to pawn off referrals on me. I said no thanks. Motivating someone by just weighing them is not motivation at all. I found it particularly stupid because I could weigh myself if I wanted. No need for a "program" to do that. It would've been particularly useless to me since I was not trying to lose or gain weight at that time. Also weighing someone every time they workout is pointless; if you are trying to lose or gain weight you will only start to see changes gradually, not every second day (more like six weeks, and sometimes more).

I also remember when I had tried to join a few years ago (but didn't because I was insulted, and didn't think the $24 a month was worth the insult) the woman signing me up kept asking me if my goals were weight loss. Now I do not need to lose weight. I'm actually fairly small. And at that point I wanted to gain weight in muscle. This did not click with the membership co-ordinator's brain, and she kept going back to "weight loss."

I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to get serious about their health to pay a real trainer the extra money to get fit, and don't go to a rinky dink gym. These places might just annoy you.