The equation is in y=mx+b format. The y is the final amount that you will have to pay. The m in this case is the amount of money that you are paying for each individual month (which is $34.99). The x in this case is the number of months you are paying for (which is 1). And b is the starting fee that you have to pay in order to get a membership in the first place (but will not have to pay after the first month). Thus, seeing as there is 1 month's worth of payment and a starting fee tagged on, y would equal the average total cost for the first month of a gym membership.
