How do you choose your gym? Is it the location, facilities, instructors or something else that matters for you when looking for the right gym?

I have had memberships for several gyms during my life. The reasons why I have chosen them have varied depending on my lifestyle and other various reasons. Here's a little list what you should consider when picking up the best possible gym for you:

• Costs
• what is your budget?
• what does the fee include?
• can you sign out easily?
• Location
• should it be near your home or work place?
• easy access
• Equipment
• do they have those machines you like to use?
• weight machines
• cardio machines
• stretcing area
• weights, matts, pilates tubes etc.
• Cleanliness
• how clean does the space look?
• what about the locker rooms and showers?
• are there spray bottles and wipes to clean the equipments after use?
• Hours of operation
• is it open when you prefer to wotk out?
• morning/evening hours?
• weekends/holidays?
• Classes
• do they have group classes?
• at what time are the classes?
• do you need to pay extra fee for joining classes?
• do they have that instructor you want to follow?
• Personal trainers
• is there someone you can ask how the machines work?
• can they provide personal trainers?
• do you need to pay extra fee for their services?
• Facilities
• how are the locker rooms?
• showers?
• sauna?
• swimming pool?
• shower gel, body lotion?
• towels?
• hair dryers?
• drinks? snacks?
• day care for kids?
• does it have day light or is it below the ground level?
• Membership privileges
• do they offer something extra for members?

At the moment on the top of my list are:

• costs - as low as possible
• location - as near my home as possible
• daylight - for me it's important that I can see outside
• open 24/7
• not too crowded
• basic equipment for cardio and weight, good space for stretching
• shower

So my choice is the simple gym above. Fitness Nro1 is a budget gym and works well for me. The gym below - Holmes Place - is a luxury gym. It has everything. Unfortunately it's a bit too costly for me and as it has a swimming pool and jaquzzi it also means that I would stay there longer as I love to a have a swim and relax in bubbles.

Here's a bit more about Holmes Place!

Which one is your choice - a simple gym or a luxury gym?

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(FI) Tässä kaksi kuntosalia. Toinen on pelkistetty, mutta toimiva ja toinen on todellinen luksussali uima-altaineen, poreammeineen, kosmetiikkatuotteineen, vitamiinibaareineen...

Tämän hetkinen valintani on ylimmäinen eli simppeli sali, jossa ei ole ohjattuja tunteja eikä saunaosastoa, mutta toimivat laitteet, paljon luonnonvaloa ja auki vuorokauden ympäri. Aikaa ei kulu muuta kuin tehokkaaseen treenaukseen.

Kumpi olisi oma valintasi?

The Ultimate Fitness Center - Holmes Place

(EN) I have one week of ultimate fitness behind now! Went to gym every day and tried different fitness classes at Holmes Place in Budapest.

First of all the location of this fitness center is perfect - it's in the middle of the city on Pest side - secondly the place is big & spacious and it even has a swimming pool.

Here's the schedule of my ultimate fitness week:

Monday: 12.00 BODYART

Tuesday: 12.00 SPINE GYMNASTICS

Wednesday: 8.00 DEEPWORK

Thursday: 11.00 AQUABALANCE

Friday: 7.00 STRETCHING

Saturday: 10.30 SWIMMING

Actually wanted to go to BODYSHAPE but the class was canselled, so made some stretching on my own and went swimming for 20 mins.

Sunday: OFF

Had so much to do that decided to have off from exercises.

All the instructors were super good and professional. They always checked that everyone's doing the exercises correctly and helped when ever needed.

The locker area is spacious enough and so are lockers as well. One a bit weird thing for me was that you need to rent a lock or bring your own, otherwise you can't lock the door of it. My solution was not to carry any money and I took my phone with me to the gym.

A super great thing is that you don't need to carry shower gel nor body lotion as both are available there and there's even cleansing milk to clean your face from make-up.  There're also several hair dryers which makes life so much easier.

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(FI) Viime viikko oli todellinen fitness-viikko! Kävin salilla joka päivä ja kokeilin eri liikuntatunteja Budapestin Holmes Placessa.

Ensinnäkin paikan sijainti on mitä mainioin - aivan kaupungin keskustassa Pestin puolella. Toiseksi se on tarpeeksi iso ja tilava ja siellä on myös uima-allas.

Tässä viime viikon kunto-ohjelmani:

Maanantai: 12.00 BODYART

Tiistai: 12.00 SELKÄJUMPPA

Keskiviikko: 8.00 DEEPWORK

Torstai: 11.00 AQUABALANCE

Perjantai: 7.00 STRETCHING

Lauantai: 10.30 UINTI

Olisin mennyt BODYSHAPE-tunnille, mutta se oltiinkin peruttu. Venyttelin itsekseni ja menin sitten uimaan 20 minsaksi.

Sunnuntai: VAPAA 

Oli sen verran muuta tekemistä, että päätin pitää kuntoilusta vapaata.

Kaikki ohjaajat olivat todella hyviä ja ammattitaitoisia. Jokainen katsoi, että liikkeet tehdään oikein ja auttoivat tarvittaessa.

Pukuhuonealue on tilava samoin kuin pukukaapitkin. Tuntui hieman oudolta, että kaapeissa ei ollut lukkoja vaan ne piti erikseen vuokrata tai sitten tuoda oma lukko, muuten ovea ei saanut lukittua.  Oma ratkaisuni tähän oli se, että jätin rahat kotiin ja kannoin kännykkää mukana salin puolella.

Tosi hyvä juttu on se, ettei tarvitse raahata suihkugeeliä eikä vartalovoidetta mukana, sillä molempia on saatavilla paikan päällä, kuten myös puhdistusmaitoa meikin poistamiseen. Hiustenkuivaajia löytyy tarpeeksi monta ettei niitä tarvitse jonottaa.

(EN) If you are interested in getting fit at Holmes Place, pop in at Gozdu udvar and ask for Tibor Kiss and he will give you more details!

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(FI) Mikäli kiinnostuit kohentamaan kuntoa Holmes Placessa, pistäydy Goszdu udvarissa tapaamassa Tibor Kiss'a ja hän kertoo tarkemmin eri mahdollisuuksista!