Choosing a Gym After 40 & The12 Things to Check Before You Say Yes
- Kary Florez
- Jan 5, 2025
- 3 min read
Your Gym, Your Rules
Let’s be honest: joining a gym after 40 isn’t about squeezing into your high school jeans. It’s about finding a place where you actually want to show up. Somewhere that doesn’t feel like punishment. Somewhere that gets your body moving, your hormones smiling, and your soul saying “yes, this works for me.”
So before you sign that contract, here’s the checklist that’ll save you from wasted money, sore knees, and bad fluorescent lighting.
The Real Priorities
Facilities: Is it clean, safe, and not smelling like a teenage locker room? Look around the showers, the changing rooms—these details matter.
Equipment: Do they have more than ten broken treadmills? Are weights available without needing to wrestle a bodybuilder for them? Do they have the equipment for your needs?
Access: Parking nearby? Easy to get there at rush hour? If the commute feels like a mini road trip, you won’t go. (remember to first check if you want your gym to be close to home, your office, the kids' school, or else where..)
Hours of operation: Night owl or early bird? If their hours don’t fit your rhythm, it’s not your gym.
Audience: Pay attention to who’s actually there. Do you feel comfortable? Supported? Or like you’ve just walked into a twenty-something selfie convention?
Classes: Do they offer yoga, pilates, dance, or strength classes that match your vibe? Or just bootcamps that make you want to fake an injury?
Accommodations: Any space for women-only training, quiet areas, or machines that aren’t designed for 6-foot-tall men only? Accessibility is self-care.
Promos: Don’t get blinded by free smoothies and “summer body” deals. Check what happens when the promo ends.
Reviews: Google, Facebook, local groups—see what actual humans say. Complaints about dirty bathrooms or sneaky fees? Believe them.
Contract: Read it. Twice. Watch out for “you can only cancel if you move 300 miles away and bring proof of alien abduction.”
Free trial: If they won’t give you one, that’s a red flag. You wouldn’t buy shoes without trying them on, right?
Last BUT not Least.... Fees: Can you pay the monthly cost without rolling your eyes every time the debit hits? If the answer is YES, then you definetively will be making good use of the gym. If after few months, it feels like highway robbery, you are either not using it as much as you wish, it may not satify you completely and you’ll resent it! Perhaps you should reconsider priorities, and check if working out from home would be a better solution.
Bonus Tips Nobody Tells You
Lighting: If the place makes you look like a zombie in the mirrors, motivation dies fast.
Sound: Pay attention to the music. If it’s blasting techno at 7 a.m., will you survive?
Vibe check: Stand in the space for five minutes. How do you feel? Calm, energized, comfortable? Or judged, rushed, invisible? Your gut knows.
Over to You
If choosing the right gym feels like too much, remember: you don’t actually need the perfect building to start moving. That’s why I share 1:1 workouts in the Florezka app. Every week, you’ll get sessions tailored to your cycle, for the gym or your living room. Whichever feels right for you.
See how my 1:1 workouts work in the Florezka app, by booking a free discovery call
So tell me: what matters most to you when choosing a gym? Is it the classes, the people, or maybe just the fact that it’s five minutes from your house?
Bring this topic to your next tea date. Because sharing what works for us makes it easier for all of us ❤️