Anybody Have Experience with Curves Gym?

I agree, it is a great place to get started. The women have always been very friendly but it just wasn't enough of a work out for me.

I went because we got free passes. I am overweight and out of shape so I found it uncomfortable to stand in a cirlce looking at other women while working out. Plus, the class I took was weird. We did each station for two minutes then rotated around the circle. I did not feel like I worked out.
I also heard that many women had buy one/get one free deals and my friend paid full price. She ended up quitting after a month and she was at a normal weight. She didn't feel challenged.

My mom really liked it! She loved that it was only woman. Its basically a workout class. She lost a lot of weight. She went straight from work to curves. I thought about joining, but they closed fairly early so the hours didnt work for me, and I thought it was kind of expensive. Im spoiled with my $18 a month gym membership thats open 24 hours.

my Mom liked it, but found the staff was a high turnover & not always trained adequately. She stopped after a neck injury.

My Mom's best friend used a different facility & found the same to be true.

Both liked the atmosphere, both left due to lack of staff instruction.

I went to curves for a few years, however, being a full time student and working part time, the hours became an inconvenience. I found that a regular gym was open at the odd hours that I had available, and it was getting a little expensive. However, if I were able to go to curves when it was open, it would have been more than worth it. I would suggest it if the hours of operation are good for you, and if you like a small setting. I personally find the large chain gyms to be a little intimidating and curves is a very motivational place. Some people have mentioned that it is not much of a workout, but you can make it what you want it to be. The machines are all based on resistance, so however hard you work is how hard you workout. Since it is a franchise, not all curves are created equal. It's been a few years, but when I was a member, they had a rating system of stars or diamonds or something and the one I went to had the highest rating from the company, so I had a great experience. I think that if you went to the curves website, you can sign up for a free trial week or two, and you can try it out.

I did Curves for a few years after I started having babies. It worked really well in the beginning. I lost a lot of weight doing that and weight watchers. Then I hit a plateau. I think it is great if you have weight to loose. Once you hit your goal, it does help with keeping it off. If you want to tone up though, I suggest a gym where you can up your weights and try different classes.
I loved Curves for the fact that it is a no brainer. You go in, do your thing, and leave. It doesnt take much time and you dont have to figure out what you want to do. After while it does get a little boring (but what exercise doesnt?) I had a great group of ladies in our Curves, so it was fun. They do seem to try to make changes quite a bit. I know they have a new Zumba thing at our local Curves.
Most will offer a free trial....see if you can do that.

I did it for a while, and it was fine for starting out, but it got old quickly and very boring. If you are not active at all and are looking to get started somewhere I think it is fine, but you may quickly get tired of it. It started me on my journey of weight loss, but then I needed more challenge that I just couldn't get there, so I joined a regular women only gym.

My mom's friend bought one years ago so I joined. It was ok but I didn't really lose any weight or inches and I went 3 or 4 times a week so after almost a year I cancelled my membership. I joined an actual gym and lost tons of weight and inches. I feel it's for elderly people or obese people. A circuit is great if you can set your machine how you want it and there you can't or you couldn't when I was a member.

There is a format to the workouts, and from my experience, you follow a "tape" playing over a speaker that tells you when to switch stations.

It's 2 minutes at each station, and you alternate between universal weight machines, and "doing your own thing" in place.
I think the overall workout is 30 minutes.

It's better than doing nothing, and a good place to start.

But if you have any experience with normal gyms, or if you already have a fitness lifestyle, I would not recommend it. It's pretty basic and doesn't do much to get your heart rate up.

Just so you know - the CEO and founder, Gary Heavin donates a large amount to some fairly radical anti-Choice groups. I personally would never spend my money there. But if those are your politics, maybe a good option.

I have been a member for about 5 years. Most of the members are older (I am 34) but you push yourself as hard as you want. The trainers are very nice and helpful and it makes the workout go by faster because everyone is so friendly. It is pricey (about 45 dollars a month) but it is a good workout and there are all body types (except for the superfit model types). It is very structured but my favorite part is the Zumba classes they offer. Very fun. Plus I do sweat (esp during Zumba) and my heart rate is around 140 range during the workout.

I joined for a few months to start getting back in shape after having my oldest. It was a nice place for a very low-impact workout, but it wasn't for me. I was hoping to meet some ladies closer to my age and actually break a sweat so I've since been at a regular gym and love it!

My mom is 71 and loves it, she goes 3 times a week.

I agree with AL.. it is a good place to start if you have not been active in a while.

My mom met a young woman there that has lost over 60 lbs and she says she has always been overweight. But with Curves easier sections she has been able to keep up with this exercise program.

My office was directly next door to a curves. We had a lot of crossover patients. They would come over after their workout. Not one of them ever had a drop of sweat. It seemed more social. Our office worked out a deal to trade services with the owners. I tried it out for a few weeks. Yawn. You do some stuff for 10 minutes and move on to the next stuff. I hadn't worked out in years. I was never challenged, sore, breathed hard, or broke a sweat. It was lame, to be very honest. I can't see how anyone would lose a pound of weight, unless they had A LOT to lose.

I do think it's very good for really overweight and elderly woman. The woman that went there who would be considered morbidly obese, seemed to have a good amount of success. It is very low impact for elderly people, so it makes it quite ideal. If you're just looking to lose weight, I really don't think it will work.

My sister loves it, but it's not for me personally ... I like to go to a gym and use the eliptical (sp), but I do know for my sister and another friend it worked wonders and did the trick.

I tried it a few times but hurt in my joints too much to continue. I would advise if you have any injuries to your back, neck, or hips to try it once or twice before joining. I found it to be quick and easy to stay focused but it hurt. When I did anything that moved my neck or shoulders I just could not do it.

I did find that the exercise classes in the water at the Y did much better for my situation. I think the cool water reduced inflammation and helped make the exercises much more low impact.