Orangetheory Fitness

Mary Kate front desk was kind and helpful. Provides non pushy advice on the best packages. Always great when you feel heard vs told what package to get. Jen the head coach led a fun class called trail run. It got me to burn 900 calories, and looking forward to coming back. Great classes to get out of the traditional gym and weights. Time flies when your having fun. Hard work and sweat kind of fun:)

TLDR? The quick and dirty : encouraging coaches, never the same workout, convenient times, adaptable for those with joint issues.The only reason I joined OTF was because the gym offered a strider. I’d injured my hip kickboxing and the lumpsucker of a sports medicine doctor I first saw told me to accept the limitations age was imposing on my joints and take up swimming. I told him where he could stick his cortisone shot and found a PT who hated chlorine and swimsuits as much as I do. He printed off some floor exercises from the internet and told me to find a strider.OTF had one.There were lots of things I didn’t like at first. Like the orange color scheme. Why orange? Numerous studies (reputable, double-blind) have shown that it’s the favorite color of sociopaths.* There is no place to sit in the waiting area and so you stand there awkwardly in your lycra leggings with your insanely long and useless arms and avoid eye contact while other, more confident people slowly take up all the space around you until you are huddled in a corner by the bathroom and have to keep telling people that no, you aren’t in line. Some coaches play songs that never end. Or maybe it’s just 15 songs that all sound exactly the same. And the aggressive optimism of the slogans on the wall can be a painful reminder of personal failure to someone whose job description is ‘trying to make people do things they don’t want to do’ (aka high school teacher). Plus, there’s the huge screen where everyone can see your name, your heart rate, splat points, and the calories you’ve burned. Why stop there? Why not my age, weight, and all the jobs I’ve lost? A scan of my aging, disintegrating joints? A close up of whatever the hell is happening to the skin under my chin?For the love of God. Where’s the dignity?Despite these numerous objections, I took a free class.After that class, where I quickly crossed the pain threshold required to release a substantial flow of endorphins, I pretty much loved everything and everyone. It’s been over a year now and I love it even more. Is it the lightheadedness or the way I almost puke every single time? The coaches yell a little, which the people-pleaser in me finds strangely very invigorating. Every day is a different workout. Every month there’s a new challenge. Classes are offered from 5 a.m. and 8 p.m. And no matter how busy you are, you have an hour. You do. Don’t argue with me. Is this who you really want to be?All of my objections have been overruled. First off, nobody has the energy to keep track of anyone else’s name and stats. And anybody who does isn’t working hard enough, so the joke’s on them. Hah. As for the orange lighting, it turns out it smooths the fine lines commonly associated with aging skin. We all look fabulous. The coaches are so kind and encouraging that I could never hold their musical shortcomings against them. Plus, once the oxygen deprivation sets in, I can hardly hear the playlist anyway.I wasn’t in awful shape when I started so I can’t profess to jaw-dropping stats. I was hoping to lose 10 pounds and I’ve probably lost about 4. Everyone tells me muscle weighs more than fat. Whatever. I’m pretty sure in my case it’s down to a shameful lack of self-will when it comes to green tea mochi. My clothes do fit better. My students tell me I’m ‘ripped’ which is inappropriate but we are all working on boundaries. My hip is much better, which is miraculous considering that I drag my geriatric joints in to work out 4 times a week. I even do jump squats. And I like them.Eat that Dr. Lumpsucker.The best stat of all, the one that pleases me the most, is when before class starts, I look up at that huge screen, find my name, and see my new resting heart rate. It’s 60 bpm, down from 72 when I first started and I don’t even have to do yoga breathing to get there.In the words of Barry White, OTF is my first, last, everything when it comes to working out.*I made that up.

I’ve been a part of many orange theory gyms over the years and this by far my favorite branch. The staff are phenomenal and make you feel very welcome.

Orange Theory in Tacoma has an incredible team of coaches and staff! Everyone is friendly and encouraging. The workouts are fun, and adaptable to any fitness level.

OTF is hard. Like, really hard. But if you stick with it, the results are amazing! And the staff is so encourage. I was amazed at how fast they all knew me by name, and how they new when and how to push me. I have loved my OTF experience and would recommend it to anyone and everyone!

Show up for an hour, move a little, feel good after. Template is already made all ya gotta do is show up, and it’s always full body. You can take it easy or go hard. You’re in control.

Great gym. Heavy focus on cardio. Would recommend separate flexibility and weight training.

I love this place. I have never stuck with any workout for more than 3 months, until now. The staff are helpful and knowledgeable at the front desk. The trainers know just how to keep you going no matter how hard the workout gets. They are amazing at helping modify anything in the weight room up or down to your ability level.

A few instructors are excellent, some of them at this location are just going through the motions. Some will never correct anyone's form during weightlifting which is a safety issue. Your experience will be totally different based on who is teaching the class. Location is a little bit small, but not too bad. Overall I enjoyed my time here and don't regret buying a membership. Really helped me to get in shape.

Clean. Safe. Fun. Coaches and staff are wonderful. And would recommend orange theory to anyone! Great job Alexis!