New 24-hour gym opening in Poway

By Emily Sorensen

Anytime Fitness, a new co-ed, 24-hour gym, will open in the Poway space vacated by 4 Women Only Fitness.

4 Women Only Fitness closed unexpectedly in early February, leaving behind uninformed, confused and angry customers, many of whom had just paid their monthly fees.

Taking over the now-empty space in Pomerado Plaza, on the corner of Poway and Oak Knoll Roads, Anytime Fitness plans to gut the space and do a complete renovation, with a opening aimed at mid-May to early June. “We’re starting from the bottom up,” said owner and manager Michael Cosper.

Anytime Fitness plans to offer “the highest end” cardiovascular, free weight and circuit training equipment, with touch LED screens that can track and save your progress, which you can access at home on your computer or iPad. They will also offer 24-hour “fitness on demand,” a room where you can choose a class and level of difficulty, anytime, and then work out to a video. “This allows people who are uncomfortable [in taking a class with others] to come in on off hours,” said Cosper.

In taking over the space, Cosper said he felt for the members of the former 4 Women Only Fitness, who had lost their gym without warning. In addition to the special low rate Anytime Fitness will be offering at the opening of their gym, Cosper said former members of 4 Women Only Fitness will receive an even lower rate, as well as zero enrollment, a nearly $50 savings. “We’d like to retain as many members as possible,” said Cosper. “I think they’ll be surprised at how upgraded the facility will be.”

4 Women Only Fitness’s unexpected closing came as a blow to its members, many of whom had transferred to the gym after the closing of Women’s Fitness World in Rancho Bernardo. “We feel like we’ve been kicked in the teeth,” said Mary Ann Moats, a member of the gym who discovered the gym closed without warning on February 5.

According to Moats, a fellow member at the gym called her on Tuesday, Feb. 5, to say that she had found out the gym would be closing. Moats called and emailed manager Lori Golia without receiving a response. “I went down with a copy of my email on Feb. 7 and had her sign it,” said Moats.

Moats also discovered that Golia had not cancelled her reoccurring membership fees, or those of anyone else she spoke to, and didn’t offer her a refund for the month of February, for which she was charged before the gym closed.

“Lori said, ‘Call your bank and they’ll take care of it,’” said Moats. “But the bank said it was a contract, and while they could stop payment (this time), they couldn’t do anything about subsequent fees.” Moats said that she hasn’t been charged for March so far. Since meeting Golia in person on Feb. 7, Moats says all attempts at contacting her have gone unreturned. “I’ve heard absolutely nothing since,” said Moats.

The 4 Women Only Fitness website said that the gym hoped to reopen at the end of February in a new location, something Moats was also told. “It hasn’t happened,” said Moats. “And if they really were trying to reopen, this isn’t the way to keep their customers. They’ve made a lot of enemies.”

Multiple attempts by Pomerado Newspapers to contact Golia were unsuccessful.