February 21, 2026
Gym spam does more reps than you
24 Hour Fitness Won't Let You Unsubscribe From Marketing Spam, So I Fixed It
Gym spam won’t quit: commenters say it’s not a bug, it’s the business model
TLDR: A dev says 24 Hour Fitness’s unsubscribe link is broken—throwing a Spanish error—so he built his own, citing laws that require working opt‑outs. Commenters split between “sloppy bug” and “intentional dark pattern,” swapping jokes and naming other offenders while warning this matters because unwanted emails should be easy to stop.
The internet is side‑eyeing 24 Hour Fitness after a developer found the gym’s “unsubscribe” link throws a Spanish error and… keeps the emails coming. The author says it’s a one‑line JavaScript fix and even built a DIY opt‑out page. Cue the crowd: is this incompetence or a dark pattern?
The hot take brigade lit up. One camp is convinced this isn’t a mistake at all but a feature that keeps the marketing machine humming. Another group blames the third‑party tool OneTrust—a consent software company—calling the whole setup ironic at best, hypocritical at worst. A few security‑minded folks warned the site seems sloppy enough to let “random websites poke it,” which is nerd‑speak for “the doors look unlocked.”
Meanwhile, the vibe check? Comedy gold. The Spanish error turned the unsubscribe page into a “boss fight,” and the inbox plea “I just want to lift” became the thread’s running meme. People compared war stories: Shop.app, Xfinity… everyone’s getting called out. And yes, the lawyerly crowd reminded us the CAN‑SPAM law requires a working opt‑out and carries fines big enough to make a barbell tremble.
Bottom line from the comments: users are split between “fix your bug” and “stop pretending—this is deliberate.” Either way, no one wants a protein shake pitch when they just want to lift.
Key Points
- •24 Hour Fitness’s email unsubscribe page fails with a Spanish OneTrust token error and prevents opt-outs.
- •The author identified the problem as a one-line JavaScript bug and reported it in November 2025 without receiving a response.
- •The author built an alternative unsubscribe page to address the issue for affected users.
- •The article cites CAN-SPAM Act requirements for functional opt-out mechanisms and notes significant potential fines per email.
- •Past CAN-SPAM enforcement actions are listed, including penalties against Verkada (2024), Jumpstart Technologies (2006), and Experian (2023).