Gym just off Lordship Lane

[geh]

esph

good on you. can't fault it!

(slimmer)geh

[nylonmeals]

I am actually on my way to cancel my membership this morning. I wanted to do pilates - for a monthly membership I pay ?139 a month (I need to check my direct debit, but it is around that) and while they are small 1:3 classes they are almost impossible to book. You can book the same time slots in advance, but if you need to change you end up paying a small fortune and not getting access to any classes

[benjaminty]

Nylonmeals - have you expressed your dissatisfaction with ESPH? Think they'd take that on the chin and do something about it.

I Love ESPH.

I've had proper induction as to how to use all the contraptions, as and when I need help I can either get it there and then or book with my trainer/physio for an hour or so. I can spend an hour or so getting good advice and not pay any extra!

As with all gyms you get out of them what you put into them.

I never wait for a machine and no muscle divs (massive plus)!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been to many gyms and none of them compare.

Well done ESPH for offering something different from the standard sh1te.

Worth every penny!

[eater81]

Sam, as I said earlier its all about what you want from a gym. All I want is a no nonsense, good value gym where I can go in, do my thing and go home. ESPH is not that.

If it does well, good luck to it, but it is not my kind of place.

I admit I have never run a gym before, but It does not take a genius to see that ESPH is overpriced. If it is still going a year from now, I will be very surprised.

[giggirl]

Reading this thread I think what has become clearer and clearer is that it really is horses for courses. ESPA suits me; it's clean, it's quiet, it's friendly and well supervised; it doesn't play house music and it has nice soap (I'm a real girl). I try to go for an hour 4 times a week; I just arrive, plug myself into my i-Pod (Nirvana or the Stones) and get on with my programme. What's not to like (for me)?

[Nero]

WSPH is relatively expensive, compared with other gyms in the area and beyond. For my (discounted) fee I get great service, a new gym, personable and well-trained staff and a sense of professionalism that far surpasses that of the other gyms I have been a member of.

I've done the free-weight stuff, got very slinky, but needed a more 'mature' way of doing things post disc problems. ESPH fitted the bill.

I sense this thread, like so many others, is ultimately doomed to reach no conclusion. To get down to brass tacks, some people like ESPH, others don't.

[Ticklish]

I've been a member of ESPH since January. When it first opened, I picked up a price list, balked, and didn't join. Then, I saw a 10% off per month deal on a forum, and thought that although it was pricey, I'd actually have a look round this time. A physio showed me round and I was impressed by his knowledge. All the staff have at least one degree and are fully up to date with the latest education and research into physiotherapy/ sports performance. I fully appreciate that if you only fancy going to the gym for a run once a week, then paying extra for staff with this kind of knowledge will make no financial sense, and probably have no effect on your fitness whatsoever. However, if you have any kind of injuries/problems or are a serious gym goer, then I think the service provided is well worth it.

That said, I've been frustrated at how hard it has been to get into certain classes - especially pilates- because classes are kept so small. It's great once you are there, as there are never more than 7 others in the room, so you are closely watched by the physio taking the class, but annoying when you can't get into a class. I'm getting irritated by those who book and then don't turn up, effectively stopping someone else from attending. I have been told that they are extending the rooms down to the basement, so more classes will run soon, hopefully solving the booking problems.

There is a nice, cosy feel as it is small, and the staff know me by name, and I know all of them. The equipment isn't cheap/crappy as seems to be suggested- it's been chosen specifically from a physio point of view. It's really a case of each to their own: for me, it works out at ?16 a week to attend an hour each of yoga and pilates and do a few cardio sessions. I think it's money worth spent. If you don't have, or wish to spend, that kind of money, I fully understand, but just don't join up, as opposed to slating the place!