Leading gym chains

When choosing a gym, there are numerous choices to make before you can reach a decision. Do you want somewhere close to work or close to home? With or without a pool? Is a nursery important to you, or are you more likely to favour a gym with a place to hang out after your workout?

But of all the decisions you have to make, one of the most important is likely to be choosing between a local gym and one of the leading chains. There are a dozen or so leading chains in the states, and we'll review each of them in the following pages. But before we look at them individually, it's worth taking a look at what the leading chains offer overall.

As with any major brand, the leading chains offer a certain degree of comfort. If you've been to one, you have a pretty good idea of what to expect in another. But it should go beyond that. There can be a huge difference in the ambience or atmosphere of different gyms, and that is something that most facilities consciously set out to achieve. They do it through the d?cor, the marketing, the choice of equipment, the type (and volume!) of music they play.

For that reason it's essential to visit as many different places as possible. When you go, don't just compare prices and equipment, try also to get a feel for a place - is this somewhere that you want to come several times a week for the foreseeable future?

So take look at the pages that follow to get an idea of which of the more well-known gyms might be right for you.