Sweating Out the Application to Work Out

Remember when eager fitness enthusiasts had to wait a few months for their Pelotons to arrive? Or when cycling devotees were outraged when Soulcycle classes filled up in 42 seconds? Those were the good old days.

Today, those coveting a lavish workout experience may do everything short of getting on their knees and begging to be accepted into application-only gyms. In the last four years, about a dozen fitness centers have opened nationally that require letters of referral, long-winded applications, interviews and a deep dive through your social media to decide if you are fit to be fit.

In June, Cori Zigman decided she wanted to join Heimat, a fitness club that had opened in Los Angeles that month. So the 44-year-old real estate developer filled out an application which included questions about whom she knew at Heimat and what her social media handles were. Then she waited. And waited. And waited.

Nearly a month passed before Zigman received an acceptance letter — but some of her friends who also applied didn’t.

“It was awkward,” she said. “It felt like everyone wanted a membership, but they just weren’t handing them out.”

Sebastian Schoepe, president and chief executive of RSG Group North America, which owns Heimat, said he was very specific about the types of people he wanted in his fitness center.

“For those that look at a gym as a selfie opportunity, a place solely dedicated to performance- oriented training or a workout that needs to be done, you can probably find a gym that’s more affordable that can deliver those things,”

Schoepe said. “We are not looking to bring in people who keep to themselves and don’t see the value of mingling with like-minded people.”

At Ghost, which opened in Brooklyn in 2019, members are accepted if they are “thought leaders, creatives, founders or executives,” said Aqib Mamoon, the gym’s chief executive and founder, though he added that his “wellness destination” is not exclusive to any profession. Memberships, which cost up to $300 a month, are limited and require an application, an in-person interview and an internal review process.

Prospective members at Remedy Place, a “social wellness club” that opened in West Hollywood in 2019 and in the Flatiron district of New York in 2022, must go through an application process and an interview.

Memberships range from $595 to $2,750 a month and offer everything from cryotherapy, I.V. drips, a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, a lymphatic compression suit, meditation, sound baths and more.

“We’re looking for people who are a good representation of the brand, and they should inspire others to take care of themselves,” said Dr. Jonathan Leary, the founder and chief executive, who also described the average member as a young professional in their 30s.