Does Your Gym Make A Difference?
Aug 1st, 2007 by Kaiser
I’m a member of two gyms, and they both couldn’t be more different. One is the Evolution Fitness Club in Astoria Queens, a brand new state-of-the-art gym that is spotlessly clean and the Powerhouse gym in Bayside, that looks like the equipment was bought at a yard sale. As you can imagine, the crowd and congestion in both gyms is different, but most of the machines are surprisingly the same.
However, I’ve found that I get a much better workout at the dirtier gym. At Evolution, because the place is nice and the most of the members are over 30 and not very advanced, you always feel like you can get away with a little less effort.
The Powerhouse on the other hand always seems to have an air of menace to it. On certain days it feels like most of the members are on steroids, and the others are the neighborhood kids that remind me of myself at their age - working all out every single workout.
While it’s not uncommon to see a dead water-bug on the floor, LL Cool J and Zab Judah pop-in every now and then to work with their trainer Scooter. In general, I’m always evaluating myself and my intensity differently in this gym. When you hear the guy next to you yelling and working at an ungodly intensity, it pushes you to keep up.
I think exposing myself to the intensity at Powerhouse also helps me bring something new to my clients as well. Sometimes, to push to a higher level, we need to get a little dirty.
Do you still go to both gyms? I heard that Powerhouse got new equipment.