Sorry to take so long to answer! I got caught up in some real life leisure activities last night, oh well.
Anyway.... anyone can join my gym, but your doctor has to sign a permission slip. My doctor wants me to exercise and lose weight so he had no problem doing that. Also on the form they want you to say whether or not you have a number of health issues, including high BP which I have (although it is under control with medication). I lied and checked "no". I don't know what they would do if I hadn't and didn't want to find out.
Another great thing about this gym is that all the personal trainers and other employees have been highly trained at first aid and might even be EMT trained. When I passed out at the gym a couple of years ago (due to stupidly not cooling down after some vigorous cardio activity), within just a few seconds they were there doing all the right things, taking my BP and assessing my condition and so on. Being older I like this. With an older clientele such as they have, every now and then somebody has to be taken away by an ambulance and they deal with these situations very professionally.
Back when I was working, around 2000, I was looking for a gym and one of my co-workers said she was leaving this gym and going to another. Her reason was that people at this gym were old and fat, and didn't motivate her, and the gym with all the buff young guys was cheaper.
As an old/fat person who is internally motivated and who isn't one bit interested in gym flirtations or flexing muscles at the opposite sex, her list of negatives sounded like big positives to me so I went there and joined.
I think this gym has been wonderful for me. It is huge, with two indoor Olympic sized pools, a big hottub, an indoor walking track, massage rooms, a steam room, lots of classes, and a huge weight lifting area with lots of cardio machines like treadmills and ellipticals at one end, and more. The only parts of it that I have used are the weight lifting area and the indoor track. It is located about a block from the hospital, surrounded by medical office buildings.