Going Home Again, to Gold’s Gym

Our Cardio Confidential Columnist Pumped Up to Return to Gold’s Gym in Santa Barbara

Amy Ramos in Body Pump class at Gold's Gym | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

In my first column, I promised to return to my longtime gym and report on what it was like for those of you still on the indoor fitness sidelines. Beyond lingering COVID concerns, I had my own trepidations to overcome: Would the classes and instructors be the same? Had my lockdown workouts kept me in decent shape? And how safe would it feel to share air with a roomful of hard-breathing exercisers? In search of answers, I ordered a bag of KN95 masks in assorted colors to match my workout wear and headed back to Gold’s Gym, where I’ve been a member since 1991.

Even if you’re not a member, you probably know Gold’s. The original in Venice Beach helped bring bodybuilding into mainstream culture, but the offerings these days are a lot more diverse than the cartoonish bodybuilder in their logo suggests.

Our Cardio Confidential columnist Amy P. Ramos recently returned to Gold’s Gym, where she’s been a member since 1991. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

What makes it a gym and not a club? As far as I can tell, it’s the lack of a pool — and the marked absence of exclusivity. I run into everyone from high school students to my elderly neighbor at the gym, and while the weight floor is mostly men, the fitness classes I take are made up of (and taught by) mostly women.