Planet Fitness has been in the spotlight recently, but unfortunately not for positive reasons. The gym’s policy, which allows members to use the locker room corresponding to their gender identity, has sparked severe backlash. Several women have had their memberships revoked after expressing discomfort with biological men using the women’s facilities.
In one case in Alaska, a woman lost her membership for speaking out about a “transgender” man shaving in the women’s locker room next to a 12-year-old girl.
After the woman shared a photo of the transgender shaving in the locker room, the Planet Fitness location reportedly received bomb threats.
Planet Fitness hit with 28 bomb threats at locations across the U.S amid fall out over banning Alaska gym member for picturing transwoman shaving in female locker room https://t.co/3OKEQOcxoj pic.twitter.com/YXlgk5VezD
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) April 9, 2024
The gym’s “inclusive” policies have also resulted in reports of sexual harassment and abuse. In one instance, a biological man who “identifies as a woman” was arrested for exposing himself to a minor in the women’s locker.
BREAKING: Male who identifies as female ARRESTED after stripping N*KED in a Planet Fitness women’s locker room.
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) April 10, 2024
“It’s a man but he says he identifies as a woman, and he won’t leave the restroom. But he is just walking around showing us his — and he won’t leave” a caller told… pic.twitter.com/bWMXwCteH5
Members are rightfully boycotting Planet Fitness due to their dangerous policies.
Now, the company’s founder, Mike Grondahl, acknowledges that the gym has “been pretty much destroyed.”
In an interview with Libs of TikTok, Grondahl expressed his devastation over the current state of the company, from which he departed in 2013.
In an interview with Libs of TikTok, Grondahl, who left the company in 2013, said what has become of Planet Fitness is “devastating.”
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Founder and CEO Mike Grondahl detailed a history of rampant abuse at the company and alleged it misrepresented its financials during a recent interview with controversial right-wing X user Libs of TikTok.
This comes after weeks of calls for boycotts of the brand after the company canceled the membership of a Planet Fitness gym goer after speaking out about a biological male in the women’s locker room.
Planet Fitness’s policy allows gym members to use the locker room associated with their gender identity. But this policy has led to a few high-profile cases of women feeling uncomfortable in Planet Fitness women’s locker rooms, and some women and children have reported abuse and sexual harassment at the facilities. Many of these incidents resulted in the women losing their membership, but an arrest was made in at least one instance, as previously reported by Benzinga.
In the 15-minute interview, Grondahl outlined the history of the company and the reason behind its founding. Grondahl started the gym, noting the Judgement Free Zone was meant to be a welcoming signal to novice gymgoers looking for a place to start. But when speaking about the company today, Grondahl says it’s “devastating” what it’s become.
“Planet Fitness was like another child for me. And I put my heart and soul into building that company and it’s been pretty much destroyed in, ya know, it’s lost all respect within the country within the last couple weeks,” he said. “There’s no common sense standing behind this.”
Grondahl told Libs of TikTok he didn’t approve of the policies or the response to them in recent weeks. Grondahl sold the company to private equity in November 2012 and lost control. Following the sale, he remained CEO until he was ousted after he reported that the chief administrative officer (CAO) and general counsel hired by the private equity firm had been found guilty of multiple charges over several years and abused minors on several occasions. In two instances, he was a teacher and was found guilty of abusing his students. The CAO left Planet Fitness in 2017.
“When we went public, the majority of the board knew that this lead attorney was a pedophile. It’s in the culture.” Grondahl said during the TikTok interview.
The Planet Fitness “culture” includes accusations of widespread abuse at the company.
“It started at the corporate office, this attorney started abusing employees, then he’s abusing them sexually, now the culture leads into the people doing the right thing are being thrown out of Planet Fitness,” Grondahl said.
