Anytime Fitness London (Greenwich)

I was subject to some disgusting treatment at the branch in Greenwich. I was invited for a trial shift and the owner showed me around the gym. I primarily use treadmills to supplement my usual running training. I did a session of 5 reps of 1 mile with a 30 second break, ostensibly to test the calibration of the treadmill. Obviously one can build a sweat up during a session, but the owner told me to clean the machine DURING the session on the 4th rep. I did as requested, as he didn't accept I wanted to clean the machine after the session. I then cleaned the machine again for a solid 5 minutes and subsequently joined on a 'Black Friday' Deal' via the owners colleague. I arrived home feeling excited about the new gym only to receive a phone call saying they have sold out of the offer. I said I'd already joined- you could tell the representative was lying after also suggesting he’d “put me on the waiting list.” This all felt incredibly dishonest, so I asked if it was because Id sweated during the session and got some on the machine whilst working out. The owner then joined the conversation and shouted down the phone to me that it was because of me building a sweat during my session, and claiming he spent 20 minutes cleaning the treadmill after I’d left (bizarre) which I'd already genuinely wiped clean!!! I felt hurt and humiliated at this treatment and my membership was cancelled. So they’d lied on the phone to me about the reason behind the cancellation. And falsely said they’d put me on a ‘Black Friday waiting list’ They also had my details written on a bit of paper in order to set up a direct debit. I messaged my contact from the gym requesting my details be shredded, and had no reply. I had to ring to get reassurance on this. Also on the form it asked for an emergency contact and they said 'don't worry about that' The whole experience was deeply humiliating and hurtful and extremely unprofessional. I'm amazed this gym is running if it is this poorly managed. Being discriminated against for sweating in a gym is extraordinary to say the least. And if the owner was unhappy about the level of cleaning I would happily have resolved it through a conversation and endeavoured to do better better next time. I’ve never had this problem before in all my years of gym membership in multiple facilities, and always wipe a machine down after use. There is simply no excuse for this to have been dealt with so insensitively. I even apologised before signing up to the colleague outlining I hoped I'd cleaned the machine sufficiently, and he said,"Don't worry we have cleaners come in,” which only adds to the weirdness of the experience. If I’d known the owner was going to take it upon himself to spend 20 minutes cleaning after my own 5 minutes of cleaning I’d have gotten better cleaning equipment and done it myself. The way I was treated today was disgusting and discriminatory. This is the first time in several years of gym memberships that I've ever had to complain or leave a negative review. I feel both insulted and furious at this type of treatment and hope this review can prevent others having to go through something similar.

Really impressed with the range of machines (have seen some I’ve never seen before!) I also appreciate how tidy and respectful the members are. People clean up after themselves which isn’t always the case in other gyms. However, the toilets could be a bit cleaner, and the gym floor could use better ventilation or air con as there’s often a lingering smell of BO. Only other suggestion: please, for the love of leg day, add another Smith machine, it’s constantly in use!