American Family Fitness is a Richmond, VA-based chain of fitness clubs, operated by Richmond Fitness, Inc. It has been in business since 1988, and claims 1,050 employees and a revenue of over $7 million annually. American Family Fitness was ranked the 30th largest revenue producing for-profit health club in North America in 2007, according to Club Industry magazine. As of September 2008, AFF has a total of 8 locations, 7 in the Richmond, Va area, and one in Fredericksburg, Va

Fredericksburg, Virginia

Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...

, with a total membership of over 110,000. AFF's mission is centered around providing a positive fitness experience for the entire family, and includes a number of programs targeted at kids , such as the "Kid's Zone" and other specialized youth programs. It also provides workout and nutritional counciling, access to personal trainer

Personal trainer

A personal trainer is a fitness professional involved in exercise prescription and instruction. They motivate clients by setting goals and providing feedback and accountability to clients. Trainers also measure their client's strengths and weaknesses with fitness assessments...

s, numerous free classes (yoga, cycling, etc.), exercise machines, an aquatics center, raquetball courts, and other similar activities. Another unique program offered by AFF is "AmFam U" - an 8-week training course with certificate, even open to most children, designed to teach proper workout techniques.

AFF's official mission statement is "Each day, every one of us is in the business of improving the physical and mental well-being of our members".

AFF has been very active in supporting local charities, and has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to support efforts such as children's hospital

Children's hospital

A children's hospital is a hospital which offers its services exclusively to children . The number of children's hospitals proliferated in the 20th century, as pediatric medical and surgical specialties separated from internal medicine and adult surgical specialties...

s, and local boys and girls clubs.

Cancelling Membership

This can be a difficult process. After the one-year reduced membership period has lapsed, the client must go to the gym itself and cancel the membership. This can pose a problem for those who move out of the area. If the client is able to successfully cancel the membership, they should be sure to keep a record for many years. There are numerous blogs and reviews stating previous member's displeasure with customer service and price gouging as this company often does not cancel the client's membership as requested. The company has been known to send previous clients to collection agencies, often unbeknown to the aforementioned client.