Price isn't the issue. The issue is that Genesis has stopped being a place for people who actually…read moretrain.
The equipment selection puts a hard ceiling on anyone trying to make real progress. The dumbbell rack ends well before a serious lifter's needs do. The hex bar is exiled to the second floor, where loading it with meaningful weight is inconvenient and impractical, while comparable gyms nearby let members train heavy without treating it like a problem. Every bench is bolted to the floor, eliminating most of the versatility that makes free-weight equipment valuable in the first place. The machines and racks are the same tired equipment that was here five years ago--only now they are more worn down. There are barely enough mirrors to check your form, positioning, or technique.
The K-State Recreation Complex--a college facility--has better equipment, better variety, and a better environment for strength training than this paid membership gym. Let that sink in: a student rec center outclasses Genesis.
The facility itself is not maintained at a level that justifies the membership. The locker-room odor can be bad enough to make you want to cut a session short. Somehow, the elevator is one of the only consistently fresh-smelling areas in the building. The pool is so heavily treated with chemicals that I regularly left feeling itchy afterward. Whether the chemical balance is technically within range or not, the experience was unpleasant enough that I stopped wanting to use it.
The gym culture is just as frustrating. People leave a bottle or cup next to a machine, disappear for 15 minutes or longer, and expect everyone else to treat the equipment as reserved. A water bottle is not a claim ticket. When weights are still loaded and the person is nowhere to be found, other members should not be expected to put their entire workout on hold. What makes it worse is that this behavior is not an occasional exception--it is normal here, and staff appear completely uninterested in addressing it.
Getting an uninterrupted workout is unnecessarily difficult. Trainers routinely take over areas, place their belongings and materials on equipment other members are actively using, or use benches and machines as tables while working with clients. I have had staff interfere with equipment during my own sets as though paying members are secondary to personal-training sessions. That is not professional, and it should not be considered normal gym etiquette.
The turf area is rarely available for anyone trying to perform sled work, carries, sprints, jumps, or serious athletic training. It is frequently occupied by stretching sessions and low-intensity activities that consume the entire space for long periods. Those activities have every right to exist, but a well-designed facility should provide enough space that one group does not effectively eliminate the area for everyone else.
The atmosphere can also be openly disrespectful. I watched people point and laugh at a woman performing plyometric exercises. In a legitimate training environment, staff would shut that behavior down immediately. Here, it barely seemed to register. A gym should be one of the few places where people can work on themselves without being mocked for training differently.
Genesis feels less like a serious gym and more like a general wellness center that happens to contain some weights. There is nothing wrong with serving casual members, beginners, families, or older adults--but those groups should not be used as an excuse to neglect progressive strength training, athletic performance, equipment upgrades, cleanliness, and basic gym etiquette.
For anyone who wants to train heavy, progress consistently, use functional space, or simply complete a workout without constant interruptions, there are better options nearby. Genesis has the size and resources to be an excellent facility. It has simply chosen not to operate like one.
