OP, I’m in Orange County as well. Kinda in a similar boat, living at home and saving lots of money. If I were to move out, I would strongly consider a roommate so you don’t have to pay $2k+/mo. The rental market here is expensive and you pay a huge premium for 1 bed units. Can’t blame you for not wanting a roommate though.

Check all membership options. LA Fitness is a bit complicated, they have the CA membership like you mentioned, they also have a single club membership as well. They also have an option to include their “Signature” fancy clubs. If you have a LAF membership, you can use that for Esporta as well. Esporta is a cheaper option, but you can’t go into LAF gyms with Esporta membership. The convenience of having a gym only 5 minutes away is great. Someone else mentioned trying to negotiate with sales at a location, they may be able to waive initiation fees