Retro Fitness

This is a really nice Retro. Located in the Hudson Mall, the gym has a good amount of cardio machines (only 1 bike though), plenty of weight machines, and is very bright and spacious. They have multiple TVs throughout the facilities displaying the time, playing music videos, and advertising Retro services and fitness facts, which is pretty cool.
Since it’s in a mall, there is plenty of parking.
And I agree with the woman who posted before me. Special shout-​out to the guy with the long hair and a hat who is always going around cleaning the place and making it look good!!!

This gym has no consideration for pregnant women. I understand some pregnant women are still able to work out and have the ease of pregnancy but not all women, like me have it easy. There’s a reason why doctors provide a note saying that the patient will not be attending the gym for the duration of the pregnancy, meaning the membership should be kept on a freeze for 9 months. This gym is requiring me (and every troubled client who are physically not able to come and exercise at the gym) to submit a doctor’s note personally every three months, otherwise the freeze will have a charge of $ 5 every month. Granted it’s in the contract, they should have considerations for it. They have NONE. I went on a weekend because that’s the only time I could find somebody to drive for me, and did not accept the note because the managers only come during the week. Was asked to come back on a weekday, between 11am-​8pm. We went at 5pm and the manager had left. The staff said to call the following day, but nobody ever answers the phone! Customer service is really horrible and frustrating. I regret referring friends to enroll.

Decent gym for $ 20/​month. Staff generally keep to themselves, but the MVP on staff is the young male who keeps the bathrooms and entire place as clean as he can when he’s there. So here’s a big shout-​out to him! But even when he’s not there the place is fairly kept, though I think it’s more due to fellow gym-​goer etiquette than staff initiative.
Equipment-​wise, you’ve got a great array of machines, though there’s at least one machine that isn’t really suitable for short people. There’s also a good number of treadmills and ellipticals, so it’s highly unlikely you’ll ever have to wait for one (based on my visits during mid-​afternoon on the weekends so this may or may not be the case during mornings/​evenings on weekdays). They also have classes, but I’ve never attended any so can’t give any feedback on those.
Overall, great location, great value. They’ve usually got some sign-​up promotion going on, so it’s worth asking if you’re signing up in person.

Great Gym. Friendly staff. All newer equipment.

inattentive staff. Unkept locker rooms. Look elswhere for a $ 20 a month gym.

i was in the area and decided since my gym is apart of a chain, why not vistit this gym rather than drive allll the way to my gym (first mistake). I couldnt find the gym, i saw the sign from the highway i was lost. once i got to the parking lot, i decided to just get out and walk around and find it (second mistake) since gas is expensive. i finally found the gym after a 10 minute walk and it was in the cut of this «mall», very aggravating. I get to the gym and the person at the desk asked for my ID Card, snatched my keys, and scanned it and gave it back. im like damn, ok. i have no problem with the retro fitness company but THIS GYM’S FREE WEIGHT SECTION IS A MESS! THE MEMBERS DONT RERACK SHITTTT AND THE STAFF MAKES NO ATTEMPT TO KEEP IT CLEAN AND DO LIKE IN MY GYM… IT’S A MESS WTFFF. goodluck finding what u want. needless to say i wont likely be back

Why would they close the room where they give the fitness classes after the last class… when one of the reasons that I signed up to retro was because of the ability to go in that room and choose a video to workout to when they weren’t given any classes AND if the reason is because people don’t clean up after themselves Isn’t that why we pay an annual maintenance fee anyways!

I haven’t had too many poor experiences at Retro overall. I normally go to the one in Iselin and the new one in Bayonne. This one is always crowded and if you come between 6 – 8 you’ll have a hard time finding free equipment. The major drawback from going to this retro is its in the hood — and they treat their members like it’s in the hood. I normally buy a protein shake after my workouts using my card at any retro. I tried this here and they told me it was a $ 10 minimum to use a card? FOH. That’s just terrible. If you’re in the area I would suggest going to the new club in Bayonne. It’s 3 levels, safe, clean l, new equipment, never crowded, and they have no minimums for using a card.

Great workout friendly staff! Plus I love their cardio theater!!! The hours are perfect for a night owl !!

Beware of hidden fees that are not clearly brought to your attention when signing up. Better gym options available elsewhere. Poorly managed business. Poor customer service. Buyer beware.

Good gym with unlimited parking. The only bad thing is that they don’t use the sanitizing wips anymore. I don’t go there anymore, I go to the Secaucus branch just for that reason

$ 20 not a bad deal! New equipment. At the time that I go (which I won’t share cuz I’m selfish) it’s relatively empty so it’s perfect for me. the manager is actually a very nice guy! So whatever issue the other person had isn’t what usually happens. He’s very helpful and isn’t rude what so ever. They could do a little better job cleaning up the mess that other members leave, which isn’t entirely the gyms fault. Seriously people learn what a garbage is and how to Re-​rack weights properly, you lifted it now put it back.

I got a back injury, so I cancelled with Retro & it went smoothly, showed a note from my doctor, filled out paperwork, and was out of there in 15 minutes.
——
EFT paperwork stated to send certified letter, and I included retro cancellation, & doctors note. When they continued to take money from my acct, I called and they tell me I need a note stating I could never exercise again, or I was dead. SERIOUSLY. I told her I hope after surgery I would recover, and be able to move again! She said even tho I was no longer a member of Retro, that wouldn’t make a difference. Said I’d have to pay $ 250 cancellation fee.
Because I didn’t raise my voice, ‘Kelly’ got friendly, & said i should try selling my remaining sessions to someone at the retro gym to try to gain some money back. I truly don’t want to unleash this rip-​off company on anyone at retro. My trainer doesn’t even work there any more, and had told me he didn’t trust the company, and the manager had wanted to stop using EFT. EFT has so many loopholes to taking folks money that I know I just have to chalk this up as a lesson learned.
SO i say again, PLEASE don’t sign with EFT. The web is full of reasons why you shouldn’t.

You know you be in the hood when the gym security gate has been pushed up, there ain’t no employees to be found at the front desk or anywhere (yo they haven’t gotten outta bed for work), and yet there are like 20 — 25 people working out at 5am… with zero supervision.
Does anyone manage this gym? Seems like the animals be runnin this asylum.
What the fuck is going on?

What happened to customer service? Front desk staff having shouting matches over money… anything wrong with this picture. Worst gym ever! Go to golds or forum!
Staff are rude. Manager is a racist jerk. Gym is crowded. Gym is dirty. Technically it’s a hang out and go go bar. Can’t order a drink without hearing derogatory slurs, explicit and vulgar statements. Who ever is running this place needs to understand that running this business on «sex appeal» needs to get into the prostitution business.

I liked this place. But what I feared has turned into reality. With all these holiday specials that this location ran, this place has gotten extremely packed.
I liked coming here cause it was a low key location. Always had room to just do my thing and leave. Now unfortunately, my workout requires me to wait, and wait, oh and wait some more.
Here is my solution for you retro of jersey city, get rid of that cardio theater room which no one every uses and use that space as another abs and stretching location. Because that little hole in the wall isn’t work with the volume you’re running.
Other then the lack of space, this place is good. Staff is very friendly (May not be that knowledge about machines and proper form and such) but they’re pleasant and there is always someone on the floor cleaning.
The crowd is pretty good. People are always helping people and have no problem with people jumping in sets or so. However, make sure you wipe your machine before and after. Some people forget their gym manners at home.
Fix the space issue of the «stretching and abs» and I’d be in gym heaven.

Things I care about in a gym: free weights, cardio equipment, cleanliness, well-​maintained equipment, fellow gym members — in roughly that order.
There are plenty of weights, cardio machines and since they’re new, they’re in great shape. I wouldn’t mind seeing the employees wiping down the equipment more often — I see it every now and then, but not every day I’m there. The other patrons have been surprisingly very good — aside from one dude doing snatches in front of the entrance to the theater (and tossing the bar down) — everyone’s been pretty good about working in, racking weights and not being a dbag for the most part.
Things I don’t care about: towel service, classes, occasional loud noises. Good for you if you want to work out with a class. I don’t. The fact that their class service is still not shaping up smoothly means nothing to me. Towels would be nice, but they’re pretty much unnecessary. Nice luxury, but just grab some paper towels and bring a clean shirt for afterwards. Problem solved.
For the people who hate it when other gym-​goers make noise… physical exertion is happening. Sometimes a grunt or a yell happens. Welcome to life. If you can’t deal with it, go to some useless place like planet fitness that let’s you pretend to work out and then gives you a free pizza to kill your gains — but they won’t «shame» you. yeesh.

I’ve gone to this gym a couple of times and have very little complaints. The equipment is clean and well maintained (still new). There are plenty of free weights, machines, cardio equipment and space for abs and stretching. To add to that, there are two punching bags for us that just like to hit stuff. Although I havent taken advantage of it, there are also classes and a movie theatre/​spinning room. If I weren’t moving from the area soon, I would definitely sign up for a membership without a question.
My only qualms are that there aren’t enough wipe down stations to clean the equipment after use. As with almost every other gym, re-​racking weights in the right spot is a problem; however, I did see staff members replacing weights that were out of place. I’m neutral on customer service; the few interactions I’ve had neither made me jump for joy nor out of a window.

Question to the Jersey City Retro Fitness leadership… Do you want to be a great gym that only costs $ 20/​month, or a $ 20/​month gym where you get what you pay for?
After three visits, I can tell you that it seems like you want to be a $ 20/​month gym where you get what you pay for.
Overall impressions:
1. Equipment — Good, but unsanitary. There’s no towel service, and none of the members wipe down the equipment after their sets. Despite an abundance of staff, I haven’t seen them cleaning the equipment.
2. Gym Layout — Poor — I haven’t been to other Retro Fitness locations, but I can say that this one has a very poor layout. The free weight/​bench area is very cramped and occupied by packs of muscle heads tossing weights around and who won’t let you work in. The warm up/​stretching area is also cramped. If you get a couple people in there, especially when someone is jumping rope, it’s tough to move around.

3. Staff — Poor — The place is well staffed, but they’re checked out — already!
They hang out together and project an attitude of being unapproachable. Getting one of the staff members to answer a basic question about the weight of an Olympic bar was like pulling teeth. He seemed knowledgeable, but clearly didn’t want to interact. Very disappointing. I thought they were there to help. I did see one person trying to act like a manager. I say this because she was openly barking orders to another staff member who completely disregarded what she said.
4. Classes — What classes? The staff can’t answer the question about when they’ll start, and they can’t provide a schedule. I think the class promotion is a bait and switch tactic. They get around it by offering a selection of videos if they don’t have a teacher. How does that work if you have a gym full of people who want to do different classes? It doesn’t
5. Parking — Good
I hope the staff and ownership reads this and makes some immediate staffing and layout changes. But then again, it’s only $ 20/​month, and a perfect example of getting what you pay for. Looking forward to more gym options on the Western Slope of Jersey City so I can move on from this place.

After delay after delay this place is finally open. A pretty good gym for hudson mall and the 440 area. However, compared to other Retro Fitness locations it ‘s a bit lacking.
Only one regular bicycle and recumbent bicycle machine which means that you have to get lucky that one is open.
The space they are in is sizable but it seems they allocated it inefficiently. Not quite sure why so much space was used for the fitness classroom or why they bothered with an area for punching bags.
It wasn’t crowded today but I can see how uncomfortable it can get if more people were in there. I hopped off the bike at the 30 minute mark because I felt guilty about hogging it (I usually do 45 – 60 minutes on the bike and other Retros usually have several bikes).
We’ll see how this place does when more people start showing up because today’s opening was unexpected and I’m sure most people didn’t realize it’d be opening today.