LIFT

I tried LIFT (Long Island Fitness & Training) under a one week pass that I printed from the company's web site (http://www.liftgym.org/). The facility is located at the end of Lumber Road in Roslyn, right under the Roslyn viaduct. The gym looks brand new and is very spacious and clean. There seems to be a big focus on personal training, with all three co-owners all providing PT as well as several free lancers.

Group Exercise: very limited schedule with only 9 spin and yoga classes available very early in the mornings. Spin is offered Mon, Tues, Thurs at 6am, Fri at 6am and 11am, Sat at 8am and Sun at 9am. Yoga is available on Wed at 6am and Sat at 7am. Additional classes can be taken at Tokey Hill (connected by hallway) for an additional $10/class (vs. the non-member walk-in rate of $30). These classes include Kickboxing Mon-Sat at 9:30am and Plyometric/Kettle Bells at 10:30 Mon, Tues, Wed and Fri.

Amenities: Very nice locker room with all sorts of potions and lotions, clean showers and lockers.

Cool feature: virtual reality bikes. I am not a big fan of stationary bikes, but these machines took my mind of the boring ride. You can pick from several types of rides, from mountain, to race track to ocean and many difficulty levels. You can also create a log-in, track your progress and compete against others.

Price: $100 initiation fee and $69 per month with no towel service or $74/month with full towel service.

SPORTIME at ProHEALTH

I tried SPORTIME at ProHEALTH in Lake Success (www.SportimeNY.com/ProHEALTH) under a free one month pass I received in the mail in one of those coupon mailer packages. The club is a little hard to find as its located in a huge medical complex between New Hyde Park Rd and Marcus Avenue (the official address is 3 Delaware Drive). Because of the club's partnership with ProHEALTH it is somewhat geared toward people recovering from injuries, surgeries or who have been told by their doctors that they need to start exercising for their health. As such, it is definately a great place for people just starting out on an exercise regimen. The club is new and very clean.

Group exercise: There are three studios - one for spin, yoga, and group fitness. There were 44 classes available each week, 2-4 each morning and 3-5 M-F night. Interesting classes include Sharqui Belly Dancing, Zumba, and Kick-n-Punch (kickboxing).

Amenities: The club offers full towel service, lots of lotions and potions, hair dryers, a steam room and a sauna, and a flat screen TV in the locker room. There is also a full spa available as wellas a nursery that cares for children from 3 months old and up.

Cool feature: most of the machines on the floor are connected to a FitLinxx system, a cumputerized fitness and tracking system. Each member/trial is given two Personal Training orientations which are geared to utilizing the FitLinxx system. The system not only stores your exercise regimen, including each machine utilized and number of reps, but it measures the appropriate range of motion for each exercise. If you don't complete the full range of motion, the rep is not counted.

The price: The initiation fee for an individual is $255 (the highest I have ever seen), which is often discounted to $149 or $0 (a full-price family initiation fee is $295). Full-price monthly dues are $109/individual, $206/couple, or $260 family and include reciprocity with other SPORTIME facilities, unlimited racquetball, full and half-court basketball (both at other facilities). At the time of my trial, they were offering a reduced monthly fee of $99 for an individual membership.

Bally Total Fitness

January 7, 2010

I tried Bally's in Little Neck, NY on a one week pass that I printed from the company's web site (http://www.ballyfitness.com/). The gym is located on the eastbound LIE service road.

This was by far the worst gym I have tried. I couldn't even bring myself to come back after the first day.

Parking: free two hour parking, after that its $2/hour. However, the attendant's watch is slow at check-in and fast at check out, so no matter how long you are in there for, it will be at least $2 to park.

Facility: old, dirty, and jam packed with machines. There is a swimming pool but it was closed at the time of my visit so I didn't get to check it out.

Classes: offer 40 morning and evening sessions in an old, dark studio, with the dirtiest exercise equipment I have ever seen. The mats were shameful and I saw people bringing their own into class for the first time. The instructor was also the worst I have seen - she looked like she just came out of a biker bar, with holes in her clothes and didn't even exhibit proper form.

Locker rooms: very basic, lockers and showers, no towels (you can buy a sweat towel at front desk for $3.95), not even paper towels, so if you forget yours you will need to use the hand dryers to dry your body off. Luckily, three of them are positioned rather high up, possibly with this purpose in mind.

Price: The cheapest of any gym I have yet to visit, and understandably so given the low quality, $32.99/month, no initiation fee but $20 credit card processing fee. No commitment but need to pre-pay first and last month's fee and need to give 25 days notice to cancel, so effectively committed for a minimum three month membership.

Would not recommend this place under any circumstances.

Power Ten Fitness Club

January 12-14, 2010

I tried Power Ten Fitness Club in Port Washington, NY on a three day pass that the company advertised on its web site (http://www.powertenfitness.com/). Its a small neighborhood gym with a very honky tonk feel to it. It reminded me of ski vacations I took in towns like Big Sky, Montana and Crested Butte, Colorado. The club seems to attract novices and fitness enthusiasts alike and everyone seems to know each other.

The gym offers, cardio and weight equipment, free weights, classes, and personal training.

Classes: There is a limited schedule of classes relative to other gyms I have tried, with 30 in total, including 4 teen classes. However, the class size is smaller and the instructors provide individual attention. The club also offers lunch time classes, which is somewhat unusual for Long Island gyms. Formats include spin, Zumba, step, core, sculpt and dance.

Personal Training: I saw the owner of the club training two women who looked like professional athletes. I was completely mesmerized by the workout they did, I had never seen such equipment or drills before. By far the most innovative training I have seen.

Amenities: There is one small shower in the ladies room, with cotton balls, q-tips, etc. supplied. Sweat towels are available for free.

The bad: not enough warm water for an enjoyable shower. I tried three days in a row and the water was barely lukewarm.

The price: monthly memberships are $75/month with a $100 initiation fee, while an annual membership is $65/month with the same initiation fee (Students/seniors are $60/month with a $50 initiation while public service employees (police/fire/teacher) pay $50/month with a $50 initiation. Personal training sessions are $75/hr for members and $85/hr for non-members, with lower pricing for 10 and 20 session packs ($699/$749 and $1299/$1399 respectively).

LA Fitness

January 8, 2010

I tried LA Fitness in Lake Success NY on a three day pass I printed from the company's web site (www.lafitness.com). At first I was impressed by the sheer size of the facility, the largest of any gym I have seen, and at least 2x the size of Equinox's flagship location at Columbus Circle.

Group Exercise: Offer 108 classes per week, the most of any gym I tried, from morning until lunch time and early evening till 10pm. Classes range from yoga, spin, boxing, step, pilates, cardio kickboxing, belly dancing, abs, latin dance, and water workouts (in the pool). I tried a circuit class, which easily accommodated 50 people. This was also the largest fitness studio I have experienced. The class was challenging and incorporated about 7 stations.

Amenities: The locker rooms were simple and clean, with large showers, but lacking in amenities (no towel service, hair dryers, cotton balls/q-tips, or lotions). There is also a kids club that is open during group exercise periods.

Cool feature: Long hours - the club is open 5am - midnight on Mondays, 24 hours Tues-Thurs, and Midnight to 11pm on Fridays. In addition to the sea of cardio equimpent and weight machines there are also at least four raquetball courts and two basketball courts.

The price: $150 initiation fee and $65 per month. Technically there is no commitment, but you need to pay for your first and last month and give 60 days notice if you want to end your membership, which in effect ties you up for 4 months.

The bad: I have never encountered such a hard sales pitch before. On my first, and what turned out to be only day there, my membership consultant tried very hard to convert me to a member on my first day. When I told him that I wasn't ready to make a decision yet, he indicated he wanted to introduce me to his boss, so that in case I came back and he wasn't there, I'd be taken care of. Instead I am greeted by someone akin to the mob boss, who tried to shake me down to join. When that didn't work, he tried insulting me and my inability to make an on the spot decision to join his gym ("Did you drive here? Well, when you drive, you have to make lots of quick decisions"). I was completely turned off by the tactic "I don't like a hard sales pitch" and grabbed my bags to go. At this point, the mob boss reassured me that they didn't have me tied to the chair, softened his voice and walked me out the door. Too bad they felt the need to try so hard that they completely scared me away. I probably would have joined once I got done trying out all the other gyms as they had more to offer than Equinox at half the price (granted though they have no locations in NYC).