Which gym?

sara2310gcs

So I have the choice between two options Anytime fitness or YMCA. Now I like that the YMCA is family oriented ( I have two boys) but I also like the flexibility of the hours for anytime fitness? Any suggestions on the two of them?

galgenstrick

Depends entirely on what you want to accomplish at the gym. What are your goals?

sara2310gcs

I'm wanting to lose weight, then maintain a healthy weight

galgenstrick

Those aren't very specific goals...

Losing weight doesn't require a gym. Are you interested in getting stronger? Doing endurance training? Being fit, or just getting to a healthy weight?

tofuligan

Go to whichever one will offer the least excuses not to go. I personally ended up at a gym that was stretching my budget because by being on public transit lines I'd have no excuse not to go.

riffraff2112

I used to go to the YMCA but recently they built a new anytime fitness literally 5 minute walk from my home so I made the switch when they offered us a pretty decent family rate.

Here is what I think
Anytime Fitness - less busy, much cleaner, better quality equipment. I don't generally workout at weird times so the 'anytime' part of it isn't a big factor for me. The trainers generally leave me alone too which is a bonus cause some gyms can be rather pushy trying to sell you personal training.

YMCA - you get what you pay for. It was close to home and cheap and I've had hundreds of workouts there so I am not knocking it. Had pretty much everything I needed although much of the equipment was older, it was still functional and safe.

CrabbyCancerMama

my life only allows me to workout if someone watches my kids so we go to the ymca. lots of stuff for kids. if I had no kids I'd do another cheaper gym. it's whatever fits your schedule and lifestyle

kshama2001

If I had kids I'd definitely pick the Y. Been to Ys in several states and they were all extremely family-friendly. How old are your boys?

ETA - Ys tend to be more expensive. They offer a sliding scale.

Chef_Barbell

Whichever one you will go to regularly.

sara2310gcs

kshama2001 wrote: »

If I had kids I'd definitely pick the Y. Been to Ys in several states and they were all extremely family-friendly. How old are your boys?

ETA - Ys tend to be more expensive. They offer a sliding scale.

My boys are 1 1/2 and 4. I won't be going there anytime soon, but we are looking at buying a house in a new town and that's what they have to offer. I have never been to the Y or Anytime Fitness.

Ready2Rock206

sara2310gcs wrote: »

kshama2001 wrote: »

If I had kids I'd definitely pick the Y. Been to Ys in several states and they were all extremely family-friendly. How old are your boys?

ETA - Ys tend to be more expensive. They offer a sliding scale.

My boys are 1 1/2 and 4. I won't be going there anytime soon, but we are looking at buying a house in a new town and that's what they have to offer. I have never been to the Y or Anytime Fitness.

Go tour them both once you move - see which one has more of what you want and you're more likely to go to. Choose that one.

There are several small gyms in my town but the next towns over have a big chain gym. I picked that one because they had classes I liked at good times, a pool (although in the many years i've been a member I have never used it), and I can go to any location in any state and there's tons of them around my area. In addition an Orange Theory opened near me and I joined that too because it's a great workout. So just do what works best for you and you're most likely to use.

lorrpb

Go for convenience, whatever that means to you.

Machka9

sara2310gcs wrote: »

kshama2001 wrote: »

If I had kids I'd definitely pick the Y. Been to Ys in several states and they were all extremely family-friendly. How old are your boys?

ETA - Ys tend to be more expensive. They offer a sliding scale.

My boys are 1 1/2 and 4. I won't be going there anytime soon, but we are looking at buying a house in a new town and that's what they have to offer. I have never been to the Y or Anytime Fitness.

When you get there, go to them both ... ask to be shown around, ask questions about hours, prices, activities for the boys, classes that interest you, etc. etc. Get a sense of what they're like.

I did that when my husband and I moved to Hobart, and again when we moved south. We chose our first gym because it was bright and airy, and offered classes I liked, and he could swim while I took classes, and the people seemed friendly, etc. We crossed another gym off the list because it was a dark rabbit warren, and because they preferred everyone do the programs they set up for each person. They guessed I could come in and run on the treadmill for 30 min, but preferred I use their program ... and they wouldn't tell us the price until we had done a full tour of the place. Kind of odd.

In our current location, we checked out an Anytime Fitness, but I was not impressed. And we checked out the local council community centre gym, and it was OK but just didn't really inspire us. And then just a few months ago, it dawned on me I could use the university gym ... we went and looked around and liked it, so there we stay.

happyauntie2015

See about getting a free pass for each one for a week. Once you have finished the free week at one go try the other. I think once you have gotten a feel for each gym you will be able to make a more informed decision. I happen to be a member of anytime fitness. I love it for many reasons but it took me trying out a few before I knew it's where I wanted to be! I hope you choose the gym that you will continue to go to steadily:)