Fitness First - the place to get and stay fit (Fitness First in General)

Member Name: fionamcg

Product:	Fitness First in General
Date:	09/06/09 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: country wide, reasonable cost, variety of machines, opening times

Disadvantages: no swimming pool in my local

I have been a member of Fitness First for over two years now and I would highly recommend it as a gym. My local Fitness First has a good selection of fitness equipment which is split into two sections - the weights area and the cardio area. The cardio area has treadmills, cross trainers, two types of bikes, climbers and more and an area for mats, Swiss balls and a few free weights and a weight machine that you can alter. The main weights area has a huge variety of machines and free weights to tone up and build muscle. Around the edge there are the machines which focus on one area e.g. the back, the inner thigh, the outer thigh, the upper arm (bingo wings) and these are more popular with the ladies and the free weights in the centre of this area is much more popular with the guys as the compete to see how much they can lift!

There is a good deal of very muscular guys in the weights area, and it can be quite intimidating, but you just need to forget your fears and get on with the exercising, and as it turns out they can be quite helpful at giving exercise tips!

Fitness First has a lot of exercise classes which are included in the monthly price, the most popular being the spinning class where the fitness instructor motivates the class to push themselves to the limit and burn the fat and get fit. Other classes include boxercise, yoga, legs bums and tums and circuit training. The classes are spread throughout the day to ensure they can fit in with your timetable.

The other features I particularly like are the steam room and sauna, they are great to relax after a work out and help to loosen up the muscles. My local Fitness First also has a beauty clinic which has the full array of treatments at very competitive prices.

The only real drawback is that there is no swimming pool as it would be great to do a few laps after a work out, and to provide a change to the regular work out session. But I still use the gym a lot and find that once you get into a routine of going to the gym then you stick to it. The opening times are very good from about 6.30 - 10pm most days and 8am - 7pm at the weekend. I find going straight after work is good but busy, and going on a Saturday and Sunday morning is great and not busy at all. My one suggestion would be get an ipod or just headphones to keep you motivated. The machines at the cardio section have a plug for headphones and several tvs to distract you while you work. I find that watching Saturday Morning Kitchen is always good as I work out and then feel I have deserved the tasty meals!

At only £30 a month I think it is a real bargain, and when I work out pay per use, it is much cheaper than going to the Leisure Centre, and although you can go for a run for free, I come up with too many excuses, especially the weather. So this is the best way for me to get fit, and vary my exercise routine which helps me stay fit!

Summary: A great gym with plenty of equipment and classes - just get down there!!