Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Getting Physical

When I was in Amsterdam, I went to the gym regularly. The gym I went to, called SportsCity, was cheap (about 30 or 40 dollars per month), extremely clean, and the staff was friendly. It was the same three or four people all the time. There were unlimited classes, including yoga and martial arts, and a sauna. My favorite part of going to the gym was the sauna, which really helped with sore muscles and made my skin look nicer. Even though the treadmill had a time limit of 10 minutes, I didn't mind.

I never enrolled in a gym in New York because of the price. It seemed the cheapest options were still 60 dollars a month (which is a lot for a human rights lawyer), and they were not so close to me. Last year however, I found a place called Mid City Gym that is only about $15 dollar a month. It's cheap, but it's a bit dirty. Apparently Arnold Schwarzenegger used to go and still has close ties, so of course the majority of the clientele are weight lifters and body builders. I go only for the treadmills. Everyone is very nice, but I find that I don't go so often because I still have to take the subway there, and it's not a very pleasant experience. When I enrolled I had asked if they had a sauna, and they laughed and said there is no way to find a gym with a sauna for less than $100 per month.

Yesterday, I went with a friend of mine to a party at her gym. She enrolled in a really nice gym called Equinox, famous for their hyper sexualized advertisements. To quote Business Insider's comments on their advertisements, "This year, hot, scantily-clad models return — but this time they are acting like crazed outlaws instead of porn stars." Membership is $200 dollars a month, so I guess that's why they are the type of gym that throws parties. The two of us are training for a half marathon, and I remember when she sent me a text that she was visiting Equinox. Shortly after I received a series of texts about how great it was and how she couldn't possibly fathom why she shouldn't join. By the time I sent a text reminding her that it's ridiculously expensive, she had already signed her papers. On the plus side, when you make a $200 per month investment on a gym, you are more likely to force yourself to go. As a result, she's been doing a lot better on her training than I have, since I feel less bad about my $15 going to waste. I guess that would be a good reason to join--it's like the opposite of an all you can eat buffet; to get your money's worth, you'd work out a ton.

She invited me to go to this gym party with her, and it was very nice. They offered free massages and facials, as well as food, wine, and my favorite brand of tea. The chair massage was probably the best chair massage I've ever had. In the bathrooms they have Khiel's body products. It was really nice, but not much better than my gym in Amsterdam, which I'm surprised to say I actually miss a lot. And for $200 a month, Equinox's upper west location still doesn't have a sauna.

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