This place always smells like poop. It's telling me I need more characters to post my review but…read morethat's all I really had to say. They need to figure out their septic system or something. It literally always smells like human feces, especially near the locker rooms. None of the other members seem to mind.

Planet Fitness at Porter Square is a mixture of pluses and minuses…read more Pluses: 1. Kind people at the front desk 2. Very clean 3. Plentiful and a good variety of workout stations 4. Low monthly cost Minuses: 1. Revolving door of managers. 2. Parking is difficult. Can only park around perimeter of lot. 3. Machinery that is broken doesn't get fixed quickly.

I can't believe I have not written a review so far! My favorite gym by far! Amazing classes, a…read morelovely spa area, friendly and accommodative staff and inclusive/judgement free environment. I didn't know I needed to be in an all-women environment to feel comfortable and judgement-free, but here we are! The membership is worth every penny. The Cambridge location is conveniently within the porter square plaza so the er is plenty of parking. Just try it - you'll remember me!

For more than a year, I was a member of this gym because I loved that it was a women-only space. I…read morebelieved it would be a place where all women felt supported, respected, and welcome. Unfortunately, my experience was very different. On several occasions, I felt a cold and unfriendly attitude toward me from the moment I walked through the door. As a Hispanic woman, I never felt completely welcome. The situation with the guest passes was simply the last straw. My daughter had previously been a member of this gym and is still in their system. She does not come with me regularly, which is exactly why using one of my guest passes seemed like a reasonable option. However, the way the situation was handled and the way I was treated left me feeling uncomfortable, embarrassed, and undervalued as a customer. I am not asking for special treatment. I am asking for the basic respect that every person deserves. It is sad to realize that a place that should make women feel safe and welcome can sometimes make some women feel excluded. After this experience, I decided to find a place where kindness, respect, and professionalism are part of the culture--not the exception.

Good classes and instructors and staff are really nice. The rooms aren't very clean. The bathrooms…read moreare so gross! The same stall in the women's room has been out of order in months and the toilet paper stands are often broken. They have two locations. The one in kendall square is a lot less busy.

Great gym, but they will scam you when you try to cancel! Fill out a form to cancel my gym…read moremembership since I was moving away from gym. They said it never went through. Refused to give me a refund even when I contacted the same day I was charged. Don't leave the gym until you have proof you cancelled or they will rip you off. Horrible experience, why can't they just play nice with customers. I always recommended this gym to locals but I guess that wouldn't help anymore. Had to go to credit card company to dispute charges.

Been reluctant to restart a workout routine. This place is great because it teaches replicable…read moreworouts. The coaches are all great but each has their own style which I like. You may just take classes with a few you like. Simple online interface.

I worked out for a year here and was sad to leave as I was moving out of the area. I had been doing…read morecrossfit for a year before then, and for my year at Commonwealth my technique improved immensely. The coaches like Brian, Larry and Abby are sticklers for technique, but as a result help you build safer foundations for movements. For example, I hadn't realized that I was basically throwing myself at the wall for handstand pushups when there was a much safer way of getting up on the wall, which then later allowed me to complete hand stand walks! People at this gym are great as well, laid back and relaxed. It's a great place to work out!

Get in Shape for Women in Cambridge is one of the best places to work. John is a great boss and the…read moreclients are amazing. I worked there for 3.5 years and only left to work at a gym full time. I call it the Get In Shape family because it is and was my second home. I have nothing bad to say about this place:

My wife was a member of this gym for several years and she had a wonderful experience. She would…read morealways come home and tell me about her workout because she was so impressed with how targeted and thoughtful the training plan was. The trainers are experts at what they do and take great care of their clientele. If we still lived in Cambridge, she would still be a member.

This gym continues to improve---they've just recently upgraded all their Life Fitness cardio…read moremachines (treadmills, ellipticals, & stationary bikes) to the latest "Club Series+ SE4" version which come with beautiful 24" touchscreen monitors. These monitors feature something like two dozen different "virtual terrain" selections where you can choose different places in the world where someone runs or bikes while wearing a GoPro camera, providing you with their POV experience of moving through scenic urban areas (Paris, San Francisco, Buenos Aires, etc) as well as stunning natural landscapes (tropical island jungles, desert trails, volcanic beaches, etc). This pretty much takes care of the #1 problem with cardio machines: soul-crushing BOREDOM from being stuck indoors huffing and puffing while going nowhere...in this case, a somewhat claustrophobic-feeling, fluorescent-lit basement gym. But with New England weather being what it is, especially those long dark winters when the sun sets at 4pm on icy/slushy sidewalks, what are you gonna do? Coupled with 5 separate free weight areas, a boxing gym with lots of free hanging bags including two Thai bags, and the highest-temperature sauna I've ever set foot in, this remains the best Y in the greater Boston area. Yeah it's in an old old non-pristine building (the Celtics used to practice in the upstairs basketball court during the 1960s, I've been told) that could use some massive sprucing up, but to be honest I'd rather they just invest in the actual fitness gear like they just did with these $11K treadmills! 4 and 1/2 stars (Deducting 1/2 star only because they continue to refuse to restore their pre-pandemic hours, when they closed at 10pm weeknights and 6pm on weekends.) Wish list of further upgrades: matched pairs of 20/24/28kg kettlebells, a Perform Better Glute-Bridge-Roller, and NON-eco showerheads so we don't waste so much TIME waiting for the soap to wash off.

Kind of conflicted on the 4 or 5 - for the price point this place is a 5. It's surprising how few…read moregood gyms that aren't a billion dollars or jam packed with sweaty students exist in the area. But by a general gym metric, this is more of a 4. The equipment isn't in the best shape, the basement is kind of dingy and sometimes the staff just doesn't have time to deal with you. But most of the time it's just a quality place. Decent classes, all the equipment you could need and it even has a sauna. Fair, the sauna is essentially a converted broom closet, but we're talking about a Y here, I'm just surprised it's not just actually a broom closet. I really found it impossible to find a place that had so much resources in one place, even at a higher price point. I'd imagine Cambridge would be chock full of uppity gym, but it isn't and the ones that are out there don't really hold a candle to what the Y has.

Clean 25 yd pool that wasn't too crowded. I went after work and didn't have to share with more…read morethan one person. Also, there's a very large diving well and separate kiddy pool so the lanes don't get full of aqua-joggers or families. Compared to some other local (non-university) pools, it's not quite as over-chlorinated or quite as warm, and definitely cleaner. Cheap entry by day, multiple-session card (I did the 10 entries for $40 which I think is budget-friendly) or gym membership - although I haven't checked out the gym yet. Only complaint is limited hours of lap availability and no AM lap swim during the winter session.

I am trying out several different masters swim programs in the Boston area and this is my second…read moreone I've tried. (See my other review for Quincy masters). So, I have to say, this one is just okay. You get a decent workout, but it's not HARD. And the reason why is not because of the workout itself, but it's because there are no SEND OFF times. Basically, the workout is, you do X amount of sets, but resting wise, you just do 10 or 20 second rests after each set. And so personally I'm not motivated to swim faster because I'm not trying to do anything on a specific time constraint. I find myself a little less focused to go faster without sendoffs. Also, the workout is pretty much the same each time- you start with a warmup, then 2 underwaters, and then the main set, and then an IM set, and the same kind of sprints where you try and do each 25 with zero breath or one, or whatever it is. It's not a bad workout, but I'm incredibly bored because I know it's the same each time. The main set changes each time, of course, but the sameness of structure makes it kinda boring. We get a decent amount of yardage in- anywhere between 2400-3200 per hour and 15 minute workout time. Practices are twice a week. As for the coach, Elyssa, she is a lovely woman. However, she doesn't quite have the enthusiasm I'm personally looking for. I want somebody to yell at me and give me critique. However, in her defense, she does have to coach 6 lanes of people so I understand it's not easy to give personal attention, so I don't blame her. But personality wise, I like a little more spunk in my coach. But everyone is there for different reasons so it's hard for a coach to be everything. The one thing that really bugs me is the staff that works there at the front desk- they are SO unfriendly, rude, impatient and clearly underpaid. They are CRANKY and they are the first people I see when I walk into that building so it makes me want to not be there. The pool is about a 10 minute walk to Harvard T stop (cut off across Harvard campus will save you ample time), so it's not terrible in terms of location. Oh, the pool itself really sucks. First of all, there are bulk heads that's separating the different sections of the pool so there's nothing to GRAB onto when you're doing two hand touches; it's completely awkward and irritating. Imagine finishing and doing two hand touches on a wall. Also, when you get into the pool, they have these blocks that are covered by orange covers that sorta get in the way and make it hard for you to get in- not to mention it is IMPOSSIBLE to get out because of the depth. You have to swim to the ladder to get out of the pool, because there is no way you can get out from the pool otherwise. It's kinda ridiculous. Cost wise, it's $105 for 20 sessions, so that's $5.25 per session, which is pretty cheap. I've looked into many other programs and this is probably the cheapest one. So pros: -Pretty good location if you're in Cambridge -Decent yardage of workout -Nice coach -Inexpensive Cons: -Sucky pool -Unfriendly front desk staff -No real send off times, just go at your own pace (which can be a pro if that's what you are looking for) - A bit dull (atmosphere, people, some of the workouts) If you are in Cambridge and are looking for twice a week workout for fitness, this is probably a good option for you.

I have been taking Angelica Teixeira's classes whenever I can. She is such a motivational…read moreinstructor and makes even hard exercises fun. Her classes are always varied and interesting.

If the gym would take greater care to tell members not to drop weights, or if the gym would add…read morebetter vibration isolation, then the CVS employees and customers downstairs wouldn't have to hear the booming noise at odd intervals. The noise is disturbing. A few days ago I asked a CVS employee about the noise, and the person said the noise happens all day. I've been going to that CVS for years, and I've heard the noise plenty, and I figured it was time to complain to the gym. I don't know of anyone who likes the noise, or who wants to hear the noise while standing in line to pick up a prescription--do you? At the time I visited the gym and complained about the noise, I was told the manager wasn't in. What I was told by the person at the front desk was a series of standard deflections, which didn't sit well. To paraphrase: 1. The gym tells people not to drop weights. I'm not sure I believe this. It's not hard to monitor. The gum should make it a policy to kick someone out (for the day) if they drop weights. -- 2. The gym can't do much about it. Sure the gym can! It can warn people or tell them to leave for the day. There is no right to disturb the peace because a gym member can't handle the weight they're lifting. Members who won't learn to handle weights properly could have their memberships cancelled. They can find somewhere else to work out. Imagine a gym that showed greater concern for other tenants of the same building--that gym could have a better reputation. 3. No one else has complained. Go down to the CVs during normal gym hours, and ask yourself whether you would prefer no noise, or whether you would prefer noise (with no benefit to you). Not many people will complain even if something bothers them. That's too bad. But when noise is loud enough to be noticeable, it shouldn't require a complaint. It should just be fixed. CVS employees (like other people in retail) might be concerned about possible reprisal. I would be. --- It's not uncommon to encounter people in gyms who like the thud of weights dropping. They may even be in good shape, and they may only drop weight during some exercises, but when they drop weights they're not acting as good community members. For many exercises, if someone in a gym drops a weight, then the person isn't actually *doing* the weight. It's an incomplete rep. I've been in gyms where more people understood this: if the weight is barely under controllable, consider reducing the weight until your form improves. Here's to hoping the gym will do something about the noise problem.