A powerclean involves pulling a barbell from the floor up in the air (around chest level) and pushing your elbows out. I know that's not really the best explanation, but the bar basically starts on the floor and ends up resting just above the chest. It's a powerlifting movement. There are quite a lot of machines in all honesty, but all are designed to target different muscles. There could be about 20-25 machines altogether (there's one area dedicated to cable machines and another to machines that use plates) but that's a complete guess. Sometimes I've seen the 'out of order' signs on broken machines the whole week of training, maybe longer.

Hello, Okay. So I've used the gym 23 times (including today) since my 18th. When I arrived today the treadmills were completely full and it was absolutely roasting! About half the bikes were in use. The squat rack wasn't as busy as usual and I managed to jump straight on one (the other was in use). The gym in general though was pretty crowded (most of the weight machines in use, groups of guys stood around certain equipment). Three machines were out of use today, I have attached photos of all three plus a close up of the sign. [ATTACH=CONFIG]51958[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]51955[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]51956[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]51957[/ATTACH] The showers/sinks/toilets/changing area looked to be fine. I forgot to mention another of the 'unwritten' rules they seem to have. I don't do these movements myself but they're something I plan to do in the future. I was talking/training with a guy a few weeks ago who says he's been threatened to be kicked out a few times for doing things like powercleans because they're 'dangerous' and 'damage' equipment. Not sure if I missed anything! -Yale

In reply to BF: I have been to the gym since my 18th, but not often. I took a long time off because of college and I've been working since the end of April which has been leaving me exhausted. I couldn't tell you an exact number. Yes, I get debited around the middle of every month. Had I known that I would have cancelled before March, the gym wasn't the best even from the go. The management invented a new rule (which they haven't exactly stuck by) a few months ago, maybe February, preventing people from taking bags into the training areas. I unknowingly broke this rule (they didn't inform anyone other than updating the tiny A4 things stuck on the odd wall) and towards the end of my session they threatened to ban me from the gym and continue to charge me for the year (without allowing me to explain). From what I've seen they pick and choose who they warn and they seem to have stopped altogether lately. Yes, I have looked into that. I couldn't find any information/stories regarding cancelling during the contract period (would help if I had a copy of the contract), though I know to expect 'admin charges' and 'penalties' if I do cancel. I have spoken to other people when training (mostly the people who are clearly more serious about training) and they seem to share the same opinion about it being busy and the lack of racks in particular. During my sets using the rack I can sometimes be asked by 3/4 people how many sets I have left, and that leaves out the people who are too shy to ask. In reply to Slick: I will take notes tonight. If we're talking cardiovascular equipment then all the treadmills can be in use at once, but I mainly use the weights. The bikes, rowing machines and steppers I'm not too sure about. Any cardio I do is usually outdoors. I'm not sure if anything will be broken or out of order but sometimes there's more than one machine unusable and it can take a while for them to be repaired. Regarding the showers/toilets/changing rooms, I have never had a problem with them. Showers have always been working from what I've seen and the only things I've seen out of order are the hairdryer and odd sink. Yes, that's good. I was just working out if it would be worth my time and effort to cancel. As you can imagine I'd rather not pay for something I'm not using. £9.99 a month does add up. I will be much more selective and wary about any contracts in the future, especially ones of which are larger in scale! I think I'll avoid gym contracts altogether!

Hello, I signed up to my local Xercise4Less before it opened. I think I signed up at the end 2013 and the gym opened in December 2013 or January 2014. I signed up for the 12 month contract though I do not possess a copy of it. I was 17 when I signed the contract. I am 18 now (I have been since March) and was wondering if it would be possible for me to cancel my contract early. The reason for this being the gym isn't living up to what I expected it to be; it's almost always overcrowded, for the amount of members the equipment is lacking and a lot of it is always broken. Not to mention the management seem to make up rules when it suits them. I am thinking of switching to somewhere more suitable (a more serious gym) pretty soon and obviously if at all possible I'd like to stop payments to Xercis4Less. My latest payment to Harlands was on the 16th of June, which I think means I still have July, August, September, October, November and December remaining. Is there anything I can do? -Yale