Do any readers have experience with gyms in Ottawa? I am thinking about joining one as a complement to cycling – especially for the winter months, when the roads are all serious ice hazards. Benefits would include being close to LeBreton Flats, being open at unusual hours, being inexpensive, and offering a discount to government workers.
Any advice or suggestions?
Author: Milan
In the spring of 2005, I graduated from the University of British Columbia with a degree in International Relations and a general focus in the area of environmental politics. In the fall of 2005, I began reading for an M.Phil in IR at Wadham College, Oxford.
Outside school, I am very interested in photography, writing, and the outdoors. I am writing this blog to keep in touch with friends and family around the world, provide a more personal view of graduate student life in Oxford, and pass on some lessons I've learned here.
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You’ve got a couple of options in Ottawa….
The Lifefit at the RA Centre offers a lot for a decent price if you can get a discount (they generally offer one to all government workers), but its not the most convenient location and there is only the one location, and if you can’t get a discount, the price is on the higher end.
Depending on your department you might be able to get an executive/group membership to Goodlife Fitness, at my dept. (CRA) they offer something that is reasonably priced. This is good because Goodlife’s price structure is normally all over the map, this is pay one price and its good for a year. The bonus with Goodlife is they have gyms all over (even in other cities) and you can use them with your membership, are large so there is no waiting for a machine, and have good equipment. I’d inquire with your compensation dept, maybe a “wellness” dept. if you happen to have one.
Third, get a city membership and use Plant Bath. Its cheap, at least at the Plant the gym was fully renovated in 2004 so the equipment is top notch and the facilities are nice, depending on the level of membership you get, you can also use the pool, and the membership is good for other city facilities (Nepean Sportsplex, Jack Purcell, etc…) which are scattered all over the city. Cons are that its (at the Plant anyway) a smaller gym and certain times are busy and you can have to wait for a machine…
Oops. Linking related mishap…
The Plant Bath site is here:
http://www.ottawa.ca/residents/parks_recreation/facilities/rec_centres/plant/index_en.html
I’d also add that, at the CRA anyway, the Goodlife drives are normally only once every 3 to 6 months as they have to sign at least 10 people up at once to get the corporate rate…
If you can get a CRA Goodlife membership that would be amazing. They have fantastic Spin classes.
– They have a goodlife at Queen/Bank St.
– They have a few in the city that are 24 hours (you would have to look it up to see which one is the closest)
– Some gyms have special features. Queensview has squash if you would ever be interested in trying that. It does not cost extra to use.
– Plus you can use your membership at ANY location (toronto, kingston, etc..)
Other spinning classes that I’ve found is one at Cyclelogic (sp?) on Wellington St. West
BuddyRich,
Thanks a lot for all the information.
I will probably give Goodlife a try. I live close to the Plant Rec Centre, but it certainly doesn’t seem cheap: $51.75 per month for just weighs/cardio, and $69.50 for an all-inclusive membership.
If Goodlife costs more than that, I am almost certainly not interested enough to justify the expense, except perhaps in the depths of winter.
If you can get a CRA membership, it’s about $350 (+ or -) for the year.
I will look into that, thanks.
What about the gym at work? $20 a month.
I spend enough time around here as it is…
The City option is only cheap if you know you are only going to use it for 6 months of the year (ie. the winter months) and just do outdoor stuff during summer. Get either 2 3-month passes or a 6-month pass which would only run you~250-300 . That and a big plus for me personally was the location of Plant (walkable) and the pool as I got into triathlons as the next step up from cycling… and if there is a time you want to use it during the summer, you can always pay a drop-in rate…
No question if you can get a corporate rate at Goodlife and are going to use it year round it is the best bang for your buck but for me it was wasted money to get it for the summer, I had one and never used it, instead preferring to be outside for my exercise.
Try ….
http://www.OTTAWAGYMS.COM
CHECK YOUR VARIETY !