How long is too long to spend in a 24-hour gym? Can you do too much squatting?
That is the question on the mind of Hawke’s Bay man Arthur Eagle after what he claims was his unfair eviction from FlexFitness in Hastings after spending all night there.
Eagle, whose membership has now been cancelled after the 4 March incident, claims a clause stating that ‘all memberships include unrestricted access’ was not followed and he was deliberately discriminated against.
But the gym manager has a different story. He claims Eagle broke several gym rules and was loitering, leaving no choice but to terminate his membership.
Gym manager Meryn Hemmingsen said staff members had spoken to Eagle several times about what he described as “highly unusual” behaviour within his gym, asking him to stop violating rules.
Hemmingsen claimed Eagle spent “numerous occasions” all night at the gym in the very early hours of the day, “for instance, arriving just after midnight and leaving around 7am”.
"When he did exercise in the gym, it was nowhere near the entire time of his stay, and some early mornings when he spent time in the gym, he did not exercise at all for many hours at a time.
“Our gyms are not a place for loitering; they are a place for exercising.”
Hemmingsen also said Eagle was following people into the gym without using a security tag.
"Our manager discovered on several occasions that he was not using the security key tag to swipe into the gym, but rather following others who swiped ahead of him.
Eagle denied this was the case, saying he asked a few people nicely, and only on two occasions, to use their swipe card to enter the gym.
I gotta side with the gym here. Sure you can push the limits if your membmembership, but if you get caught you can’t really go running to the media claiming you’re being discriminated against. And definitely don’t go asking people you don’t know to swipe you in, the article has him describing how he was describing stuff inside to someone to prove he had a membership so they would swipe him in, and implies that it was because he struggles to find his swipe tag in his bag.
Feels like a safety issue for other patrons too. If I went to the gym and found a guy there who wasn’t actually working out (presumably sleeping) I’d be pretty freaked out.
Even in an article that is written to be very sympathetic to him, he comes across as a weirdo that’s taking the piss. I’m sure the gym had good reason to kick him out.
They need to put it explicitily into the terms and conditions :-D He should always have to enter with his own card but that’s somewhat on those that swiped for him, they shouldn’t have. Yes he’s taking the piss but if they don’t specify time limits or “fair use” in the terms and condidtions that’s on them.
Sounds like a backpacker who thought they found a loophole they could exploit to save money on accommodation…
Many backpackers get a gym membership so they can use the showers and the toilets and park in the parking lot to sleep in their cars.
Yeah, but they don’t usually also sleep inside the gym.
true. They should rewrite their T&Cs
If the gym won’t let you cancel your membership, this is certainly a way of handling it.
My first thought as well.
“Won’t cancel my membership? Guess I live here now”
This just sounds like a homeless guy who won’t admit he is homeless.
Gym should just give him his money back and update the language of their contracts. Doesn’t need to be some huge thing.
Yeah, I’m with the gym on this one. If he’s just in there hanging out and not actually doing any exercises then there’s no reason for him to be there. It’s a gym, not a social club.
Why is he just hanging around in there anyway? That seems suspicious and could end up causing problems that the gym could be held liable for if he’s doing something inappropriate
