This isn't really a sport, but it's a fitness thing so close enough

I had been going to the VA in Edenglen for about two years, then about a week ago I changed to the Bedfordview one. It's supposed to be a flagship club, have more facilities, be better, cost more every month and etc...

Now I have found many many things that I don't like about the Bedfordview VA, it's generally less clean, they have lots of old cardio equipment, whereas the Edenglen one just had all the old equipement replaced a few weeks ago, some of the equipment is not layed out very nicely, broken machines never seem to have a notice on them saying they are out of order, the body fat reading machine seems to be a bit unstable usually. Yesterday I tried to use it and the "arm" just kept falling down, so I couldn't use it.

I am totally dissapointed, and I payed R180 to change! Thinking about calling them and telling them to change me back to Edenglen at no charge.

Does anyone here goto either of these gyms? Just annoying that their supposed "Flagship" club, is a lot worse than the "Club Plus" one.

i'm quite suprised because VA gyms are usually of high standard! but i can relate to being a member of a really really bad gym! it just puts you off the whole thing!

Well even the one in Bedfordview is oh a high standard. But there they seem to focus too much on the little things. Like flat screen TVs that show adverts, etc... and not on themore important things.

It's still a nice place but I just expected better from the Bedfordview one. I've been to the Sandton one as well, now that was my favourite, it's also a flagship club, but much much nicer

The only problem I have with the Randburg VA is that its usually very busy when I go there....

And most of the prettiest girls hide in the aerobics classes

the bedfordview gym you describing makes me think of the gym owned by Ben Stiller in dodgeball

LOL, is that the cheap gym that the one guy owns? Or the big gym that that little weird guys owns? Don't really know who Ben Stiller is



Try and find a time when it's not so full. I hate it when it's full, if I have to wait to use a machine I'd rather just go home.

All gyms I've been to are very busy between 17:00 and 19:00, oh and in the morning actually when they just open.

I try go either after 19:30 at night, it's usually not so full then, except on Mondays, or in the afternoon or mid-morning if I don't have university.

I usually go any time from 18:15 to 19:15, depending on work.
I cant realy go early in the morning because of the traffic in the mornings and afternoons.

Ya, I know what you mean. Traffic is bad at those times usually. At least the club I go to isn't that far from my house.

If it really bugs you that the gym is full rather try go a bit later, say between 19:30 and 20:00. That still gives you a good hour of gym, provided the place does actually close at 21:00. That's when Edenglen closes during the week.

Ben Stiller is the dude that owns the BIG gym.

Carrots, why don't you join them in the aerobics class. That will give you an awesome work out, and you may impress some of the ladies.

I don't do the gym thing, so I can't really comment on them, but I would say that I would expect a gym to have working equipment, rather than a tv screen....

one of the gyms i train at is so bad that half of the equipment has been stolen. seriously

That sucks..

I tried going to the gym at WITs, since it is a lot cheaper. But compared to Virgin Active, it is really not nice.. And there are two gyms in quite different places, one with the weights, and the other for general fitness.

tell me about it... how are you supposed to gym with one dumbbell lol. or enough weights for one side of the leg press...

What about the Melrose Arch Virgin Active - even though it'll cost u an arm and a leg (which would make it tough to gym then )? But ja, that is pretty much state-of-the-art.

The gym at PUK cost R60 (??) per year to join, and then R2 per visit to the gym. It worked out pretty good, except that as a student I was lazy and only went about 5 times a year. :-p

Not sure, I've only seen it from the outside. It's a place especially for rich people who don't wanna gym with the not so rich ones. Well that's what a staff member in Edenglen told me.

Don't get me wrong here, the Bedfordview VA is still a very good gym, much better than most others that I have been to. My point is that it's a flagship gym and costs more, but yet the Edenglen one is better maintained, has friendlier staff, newer equipment, etc...

To join gym at WITs. It was something like R250 for access to all 3 gyms for the year, which isn't too bad.

your guys' uni gyms are cheap. at tuks, the student gym costs either R100 a month or R900 for the year.

But I bet that Tuks has a bigger gym as well? The local gym in my hometown was something like R30 pm, although that was back in '99.

That was cheap, not much equipment, but weights is all you realy need. Not very busy as well.

Must be bigger Even the gyms at WITs are all pretty small, not in good condition and not much equipement. However the few times I did go they were VERY full..

There's a gym close to my house that charges something like R200 a month, almost as bad as VA and they aren't as well equipped.

its average sized. yeah the crappy gym back home is 50 a month, but it sucks.

This is the second case of disparity between VA gyms that I've heard of.

Myself and hunter train at the VA in Sandton. It's what I always thought was quite a standard gym.
The equipment is well laid out, muscle groups together and enough space.
The Sandton VA closed for a week a couple of months ago and we had to go to the Morningside VA. I couldn't believe how badly laid out a gym could be. It looked like one big room that they had just decided to dump equipment into. No thought was given to grouping the equipment together i.e legs all together, shoulders etc.
Not to mention the loud-mouthed Jewish old boys club who thought they fkn owned the place.

Now with what you say about the difference between Edenglen and Bedfordview branches I'm very surprised that there is such a big difference in lay-out etc. within one gym group.

They should standardise lay-out as best as possible.