Idaho Athletic Club

Idaho athletic club has been one hell of a gym from me, From the moment I walked to the door I was greeted with professionalism and courtesy and a down to earth vibe that reminds me of my high school gym,(with better equipment). Preston and parker Elliot have been two of the friendliest guys Ive met since coming to Idaho and it is without surprise that they are front desk and general managers respectively. I was awarded not one but two free ten day passes to get a full taste of the gym before making the decision to sign up Equipment is standard issue but definitely satisfactory. The bad reviews on here and made by people who have whined and complained their way through life expecting their every little need to be convienced and accommodated. Their contracts are no fun I admit which is why I give it four starts but if you give a thirty day notice on a m2m membership you will encounter no problems. If you are looking for a place to lift weights and exercise I definitely recommend giving it a try. Cleanliness could be better, but then again its a gym where blood sweat and tears should fall. not everything can be crystal clean. If your looking for a place that will cater to your every whim and need then this will not be the gym your looking for.

After seeing a post on Facebook about their poor customer service and rude employees (Bill Hutchinson) in accounts I will not be doing business with IAC and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone either. I will attach a picture that says it all.

This facility is definitely not nearly as nice as Axiom or Golds Gym. It’s older and kind of stinky, yes.
BUT…the classes are great, the instructors are fun, the equipment works well and the people are friendly and personable. This is a great gym for those of us who are looking for an affordable way to get/​stay in shape without being surrounded by cocky overly tan 20 something’s pumping iron in front of a mirror and constantly looking around to see who is watching them.

Let me tell you a little bit about my past gym experience which I will juxtapose with my experience with Idaho Athletic Club, and this Maple Grove location in particular.
For years I worked out at Gold’s Gym on Parkcenter, then it became Axiom and I stuck around for a few years. What I loved about that gym (in whichever iteration) was the location in southeast Boise which is very convenient to where I live. I also liked the equipment which was generally well maintained and decent quality. I enjoy having your own personal video screen for most of the cardio machines.
What I didn’t like was the excessive Bro-​ness of the clientele (inevitable to some degree in a gym, but it was just getting out of hand) and the general crowdedness. It got to where if I wanted to go at any reasonable hour it was difficult for me to use the equipment I wanted, and impossible to circuit train. The customer service (or lack there of) is what finally drove me away when they attempted to charge me for a new plastic card to scan on arriving at the gym, after I had been a member for three years, and lost exactly one card. That was it for me and I made the switch.
THE GOOD: I don’t come at the most peak hours, (usually roll in between 7 and 9 pm) but I have never had any difficulty getting the equipment I want, there is no crowd, circuit training is easily accomplished. Most of the clientele I have encountered are respectful and wipe their machines after use. The staff is friendly and helpful. They provide free rags for use in wiping sweat or wiping down machines. They will not charge me if I lose my scan-​card and they are always friendly when I speak with them. My membership provides me with access to all other Idaho Athletic Club locations.
THE BAD: The equipment isn’t the best, the cardio options don’t come with video screens which makes it a little tougher to zone out (for me anyway), and there aren’t quite as many options on free weights as my previous gym (for instance dumbbells jump from 45 to 50 lbs. with no 47.5 option).
If you are sick of the meat heads and the crowds this is a great alternative for getting some work in!

There is so much mold i have asthma attacks just walking in. Not to mention some very questionable billing practices from their corporate office.

See my «Check-​In» post. Staff are the most unprofessional I’ve seen at any gym. (Except for Robert.) I think they forget that it’s the members who pay their salary. If the location weren’t so close, I’d DEFINITELY go somewhere else.

Filthy sauna/​pool area. Moldy walls, stinking, standing water. Men’s showers are dirty and in disrepair. Complaints to staff and management do nothing. State Street location much better. Goodby IAC, hello Axiom.
Read the «not recommended» reviews for the REAL low down on IAC.

If you like slimy, moldy wet spas (Fairview) — (dry spa is rather cold and airy at Maple Grove), encrusted pool vents, pissy smelly slippery floors in the locker rooms (never saw a cleaning crew — like I have at other gyms), broken, moldy, rusty spa tiles this place AND Eagle on Fairview are the 2 places to go!!!

After gym shopping with my boyfriend I decided that Idaho Athletic was the gym for us. It was close to where we lived, it had cheap monthly dues and the staff seemed friendly. Seemed being the key word here. It should have been a red flag that whenever I would come to work out, no one would greet me. The girl at the front was constantly on her phone or chatting at the side of the counter.
The person I signed my agreement with called a few days later and told me that my boyfriend and I had signed the wrong agreement and we needed to come in a re-​sign. We weren’t ever told what the new agreement was or what was happening with the old agreement, and I should have asked, but I had put my trust in the person I spent weeks talking to making sure that this was the gym for me.
I should have read the fine print on the new agreement. So flash forward to the card that we were using for automatic payments gets stolen, we cancel it through our bank and completely forget to update our gym membership. We had also stopped going because we had been out of town. We get a total of one phone call on ⁷⁄₂₄ at 7:25pm. We call back say that we’re not interested and the person we spoke with says «okay no problem.» I thought this was taken care of, apparently not.
I received a phone call today from the corporate office from a very snotty lady. I said that I thought it had been taken care of and that I found it EXTREMELY weird that if it wasn’t taken care of that they only made ONE phone call. They had two phone numbers on file, if they couldn’t reach my boyfriend they had the option of calling me. She said that they sent out 4 correspondence letters, I received none. I’m calling the post office to see if it’s on their end, but I haven’t had any trouble receiving bills from anywhere else.
I asked the lady on the phone if I could go down today and cancel my membership and make a payment plan with her, she said «That’s fine». It took me 10 minutes to shower, and 5 minutes to drive. When I got there they told me that I couldn’t cancel because I had to be current. The notes on my account left by the person I spoke with only detailed that I could «make a payment plan» but I could not cancel.
A+ guys. I read the fine print and I’ll pay my bill, but if you want to keep customers you should probably try to develop a relationship with them instead of keeping quiet and then springing a bill and waving around your written contract. You should also probably work on your customer service skills when trying to collect debts. The more information you provide without saying things like «Well WE DID make a phone call» and «I’m not going to argue with you» will make customers happier.

The club I go to on Maple Grove is generally great. They gave my nephew a free pass to use the club while he was visiting for a week and the club has many amenities which I have enjoyed for three years now.
I am only giving a two star rating because I have never had a good experience with the CORPORATE OFFICE. When paying your dues, you must do direct debit which the CORPORATE OFFICE takes full advantage of. While suspending my membership for three summer months, the CORPORATE OFFICE fudged and charged me for the first month, then fudged again and charged me for the third month. No refunds. The CORPORATE OFFICE went by the letter of the suspension– not the spirit which is to say, they erred on what would benefit them the most.
I would offer a word of caution to anyone contacting the CORPORATE OFFICE for anything: The IAC CORPORATE OFFICE will take care of themselves and they have direct access to your bank/​credit card to do it– «customer service» is not in their lexicon.

I am in town for a business trip and saw that this gym offered classes and I came in to check it out. The staff was super nice and gave me a week pass for free even though I offered to pay for one. I’m coming back in 2 weeks and she gave me a pass for that week too! I took the Strength class and definitely had my sweat on! So happy with this place! Thanks so much for the great customer service.

Hands down the worst gym in all of Boise. I got a good price at $ 15/​month. Not mad right? There billing department is terrible. They constantly billed me 2 – 3 times a month. I called over and over to get the problem fixed and never had any success. Finally I had to just block them from charging my bank account.

Beware! I’ve been w Idaho athletic for 2 months and they can’t seem to get there billing right. They charge me on the 1^st and 15^th always. Also when I call into to fix for the 10^th time they are very rude

Ugh. I’m a sucker that keeps going back for more. I will say the facility is not bad but that’s where the positives end. I can’t blame the gym for how awful most of the clients act and smell but I’ve had to move treadmills because of excessive B.O. and people smelling like a cigarette.
The moment the gym goes from decent to bad is when they run out of towels and the canned response to when they will have more is «10 to 15 minutes.» 10 TO 15 MINUTES!!! ARE YOU KIDDING!!! If I’m planning run non-​stop for the next 30+ minutes, I don’t think, wait, I KNOW I WON’T STOP MY RUN TO GO GET A FREAKING TOWEL!!! Today was THE SECOND TIME they didn’t have towels available. How is that even possible? That’s like Burger King saying they are out of Whoppers for the next 10 to 15 minutes.
As awful as this place can be, it will have to work until I can find a better gym.

They billed me for hundreds of dollars, even after I left and sent in a cancellation notice. With the exception of Scottie they have been rude on the phone. I hope they do the right thing, but thus far their business practices have proven terrible.

I am very picky about gyms and I have been extremely impressed with IAC (specifically the Maple Grove location).
The good:
–Fantastic Class teachers. (this is a huge deal. I have been to tons of classes at various gyms, and IAC seems to have hired the cream of the crop).
–The layout. (specifically the machine weight areas. I don’t feel like I am working out on top of anyone. also they have cardio both up and downstairs, I am a fan of the cardio that gives a view to the outside.)
–Clean. (its a gym. people are nasty and sweaty, even so, it seems to be well maintained.)
–the members. (I like that it isn’t a social club with people standing in the way or chatting, monpolizing the equipment. It is also motivating to go and be around like minded people who are interested in improving fitnes– no matter what level they are currently at.)
The less than good:
–I do wish their was more class variety. It seems like Kick Boxing is the only class at times that would be more convienent for me; Kick boxing is also a fairly serious class –gloves recommended, I guess I am more of a tae bo air boxer.
I’ve had my membership for 2 months and I don’t have any complaints.

We travel frequently and so visited this gym for the morning. It was not bad. The stair climbers were at the front door, so I felt a little self-​conscious. It wasn’t super dirty nor super clean. I take my own precautions wherever we go. The saunas are in each locker room, which is good, warm but not hot. I would go back if in Boise again. I asked for a towel but it was unclear if I could get one. Cleanliness 1 – 5 scale, 3. Equipment quality 3.5.

Positives: great spin instructor, comfortable & affordable
Negative: some classes dated & equipment especially the bikes are dated or broken. Staff can be inattentive.

I like this gym because it’s near my house, has good hours and friendly staff, and has great yoga classes. I like the friendly living room atmosphere. I like how I see the same people regularly. However, it’s not the cleanest gym in the world (I wouldn’t call it dirty, but it could use some work) and the equipment isn’t superior — the dumbells don’t come in less than 5 pound increments; the barbells don’t come in less than 10; and they don’t have elliptical machines with arm motion. Also, the sales staff is a little pushy. That said, I’m happy with my membership.