New York Sports Clubs

Management and customer service is terrible. Called the office for a simple request got past along to two different people and the general manager did not want to speak with me on the phone and sent me along to the general customer service number.

I’ve hit up a lot of gyms in NYC and believe I have some perspective when it comes to good ones and bad ones, especially relative to their price points. The New York Sports Club on 7^th Ave and 10^th Street was a pleasant surprise.
I’m very surprised by all the negative reviews this club has received on Unilocal.I’m especially surprised by the folks who say the locker room is a stinking disaster. It’s not. I’ve found it to be clean and much larger than the locker rooms at other gyms. And I certainly did not find it to be smelly (beyond the very normal smells that come from a few guys who have just worked out). It was also clean and well lit with benches in front of the lockers (which are numerous and big, by the way).
I was also surprised by the folks who said the equipment was old and in disrepair. Neither is true. Oh, I suppose some of the bikes on the 4^th floor are a couple of years old, but so what? They worked perfectly. The arc trainers were totally smooth and up to date and the weights (free and machine) were perfectly fine. Of course, I haven’t used every machine and lifted every weight, but everything seemed to be in perfect working order. The place isn’t overly crowded (I’m there from around 5:00 — 7:00) and at no time have I had to wait for anything. The folks working out were totally normal… no grunting lunkheads looking for an audience.
I was also surprised at the reviews that said the folks who work there were unprofessional and disinterested. The guy who showed me around and eventually signed me up, Robert, was friendly and professional… and made the whole sign up process easy.
Maybe other folks have had a different experience than me. Maybe the gym was different when they wrote on Unilocal and has since improved. Either way, this is a terrific gym in a stellar neighborhood. Maybe the crowd that wants a «scene» more than a gym, and whose egos drive them more than actual fitness, will be able to find faults with this gym, but so much the better… that’s a damn annoying crowd anyway. If you want a great workout in a BIG gym with plenty of equipment in a stellar neighborhood and at a fantastic price point, this would be a great choice.

Great spot get your work in and catch your life! Amazing staff friendly and clean !! All the celebrities come through this spot have iPhone and android ready for Cell-​phie

I finally got off my keister and quit this hole of a gym.
I think the deciding factor was when a «manager» or whatever it was, sitting in an office making a private call, expressed annoyance when I asked her for some elementary help with one of the treadmills. Well, excuuuuuse me!
Or the equipment that breaks down and stays broken down for weeks going on months.
Or the dank locker room.
Or the scripted «have a great workout» after they hand you a towel at the front desk, where you get a towel or you are out of luck.
Or maybe it was how the «trainers» should really call themselves «lesson salesmen» because that’s their only function. You can be using a machine in such a way to injure yourself and they couldn’t care less. (Assuming they know how it should be used correctly, which is questionable.) The lesson salesmen spend all their time when not giving lessons either working out or joking around in one of the offices, where I once saw a chart with sales goals. So glad to pay their salaries with my inflated membership fee. Not.
Oh, and about that inflated membership fee: stick it where the sun doesn’t shine, New York Sports Club. How nice it is to see new members lured to your hole at a fraction of the fee I am no longer paying.

This review is for Donna Davidge’s Saturday morning hatha yoga class. Donna is very welcoming to students of all ages & experience levels. She emphasizes proper breathing & alignment & always has new music. She is my favorite yoga instructor at NYSC & the main reason I keep up my membership.

This is the best NYSC in NYC.
WiFi
3 Floors with all new machines
Spacious Lockers
The only small con is the cycling studio and the Yoga Room is not the largest but I’ve seen smaller at other NYSCs.
This is def. the top NYSC.

Beware the billing scam! Like all gyms, they make it hard to cancel your membership and then keep charging you «by mistake» after they confirm that you have cancelled. Won’t ever join again.

Worst customer service most gyms the people are suppose to be friendly … Not this one

The customer service is horrific. The manager, with the braids, who shall remain nameless — was neither helpful nor kind — she was actually horrendously rude. Coming in with the intention of getting information about the gym and seeking more insight into membership opportunities, the manager refused to give any information except «you can look online.» She also blatantly lied about the «7-​day guest pass» saying NYSC didn’t offer one — when in actuality, it says right here that NYSC does in fact offer a 7-​day guest pass
— for future reference, if you don’t like dealing with customers or questions, it might be better to say so opposed to lying to future customers. Especially when I was looking at the website when I was standing in front of you.

Big time FAIL on the new online registration system for classes. I’m a passport member so I get to uncomfortably walk passed the gold members into the studio. I go to the gym to relieve stress and the horrible new system just added a ton more now that I have to set six different reminders in my phone to register. Nice work NYSC planning team. Instructors — set up your side practice so we can go there for classes instead.

I am a health-​fanatic, so I decided to join the NYSC on 7^th avenue. The location is clean and a no-​judgement gym. There are not a lot of areas to stretch when the studios are in use for classes, but there are many classes offered included in your membership and I found the trainers to be friendly and accommodating. There are many machines, 3 floors of workout equipment, and 2 studios. Although I am not crazy about the student hours (you cannot go from 4 – 7), I do love the gym and am glad I signed up, but wish the prices were cheaper.

The customer service at this location is awful, and the bikes and elliptical machines are always out of order. This location is not a dependable place to use equipment or receive bare minimum attention as a customer. I do not recommend this location.

Good gym, cool local gym, with friendly staff and good equipment. I have what I call a love hate relationship with working out. I want to see the results but I don’t like the process)) The place is very chic & clean, just like any other New York Sports Clubs. The customer services was OK too. And their prices are very reasonable. Go try it!

The gym itself is decent given the price. I live out of state but my fiancé lives in NYC so I have a gym membership there for weekends. They told me that if I signed up, I could freeze my membership if I wasn’t going to be in town for a month but when I’ve tried to do it in the past, their customer service is incredibly difficult. They even tried to claim that I visited the gym during a month that I wasn’t physically in the state. They’re pretty sleazy and probably best avoiding in the future. Here’s hoping they let me cancel when my membership actually runs out.

There is nothing special about this NYSC location, however it’s a fine gym. What I like most is that it is never crowded to the point where you are waiting for equipment. That is really my main concern when going to the gym, I don’t care if the space is really decked out with crazy lighting or if there is a Juice Generation in the lobby. I have come multiple times during peak hours and have never had a problem getting a machine or access to free weights. I really like the UXF section of the weights floor, which includes a turf area with free weights, kettle bells, boxes for jumps, TRX suspension equipment, and ladder/​dot markings for plyometrics and calisthenics. Every machine you need is here, and there are a decent amount of benches and squat racks. They really utilize the space they have without it being overcrowded. There are two studios for group classes, while machines and equipment are always well maintained and in good condition.
Yes, you do have to go up and down stairs to go between the cardio equipment and weight equipment, but aren’t you there to work out anyway?
The women’s locker rooms is fine, however I would probably avoid the showers or at least definitely bring flip flops. The lockers are oddly shaped but still large enough to fit your belongings.

What a strange, strange location. It’s like this NYSC location is stuck in a time warp. The lockers are these weird retro red ones. The machines look like they were inherited from a high school. And you have to walk up a barren staircase to reach the different workout locations.
But hey, it works. The lockers are actually bigger than most other NYSC locations (if only slightly). The machines are surprisingly well-​maintained and movement is smooth. The free weight section is a bit cramped, but they have all the major machines. Just don’t expect anything crazy.
And yes, you can feel the rumbling of the 1 train when you’re in the locker room.
Also, they have a Dyson hand dryer, which is also a weird feature in an otherwise very 80s gym.

As far as NYSCs go, this place isn’t so bad. The multi-​level set-​up takes some time to get used to, but in the time I’ve been going here, I’ve gotten my rhythm down.
Basement, locker rooms
Second floor, cardio and classroom, small stretching area
Third floor, free weights, nautilus, UXF/​Cross-​fit area with 4 TRXs balance boards, 2 sets of kettlebells, etc., small stretching area
Fourth floor, small cardio area (bikes and rowing only), spin classroom, small stretching area
The locker rooms and showers are not great and do not smell good. I have a strange appreciation for the 1 train rumbling by now and then, which you can hear and feel pretty easily in the locker room. In the men’s locker room, the 2^nd and 4^th showers are the best ones — they drain easily and don’t have ice-​pick water streams.
It’s rarely too busy here and I often do not have to wait for equipment (except for the occasional flat bench). Sunday mornings can get a little hairy, but it’s never a madhouse (like Varick St can be after work in the evenings).
Staff at the desk are friendly enough — trainers and sales staff are unapproachable and aloof (switching the credit card on my account meant interrupting a personal phone call and a resultingly surly, annoyed salesperson). I’m glad to see other reviews here from people who have good training experiences, but I don’t find the trainers proactive or kind.

Overall rating remains 2-​stars but want to give a shout out to a couple of their staff.
Jessica, in sales. In 18 years I’ve met 2 people in the NYC gym business (in a managerial type role) that I trust, Jessica is one of them. If you want the straight scoop, no BS, go see Jessica.
Taeisha, at the front desk. Some smart business person is going hire this girl away and pay her a lot of money to make them a lot of money. Smiley (my name for her) comes to work every day with a great attitude in general, and great customer service attitude specifically. If I owned my own business I’d hire her in about 2-​seconds. (true for both girls)

Despite what reviewers have said about the management of this location, they are very effective: they are completely attuned to improving corporate profits. They invest the least possible in amenities (the locker rooms and showers are abysmal) and aging equipment.
The club’s design is exemplary: they allocate ~25% of the floor space for their UXF program which alleviates members’ need to carry around excess cash (as the management is more than happy to charge for this program) and increases comaradery for other members (as the rest of the equipment is dangerously squeezed into the remaining floor space, giving members the opportunity to get to know (and smell) their neighbors).
I also really enjoy the up to date TV shows available on their cardio equipment: I don’t know where else I can enjoy my choice between I Love Lucy, The Brady Bunch, an The Love Boat.
The trainers are very interested in your physical training: the amount of aerobic activity required to chase a trainer across the gym to answer questions is greatly appreciated.

5 stars for Sean on Sunday mornings/​afternoons kicking my ass in his body conditioning, abs and boxing classes. 5 stars for the guy in front on Sundays making me laugh, smile and exchange kind words and offer me rolos! 1 star of this completely outdated gym: small locker rooms with completely outdated and dirty lockers, small showers that just don’t seem like they can ever be clean no matter how much bleach you pour all over it and one roll of plastic bags (for your smelly gym clothes) hiding in a random corner.
This gym is one of the smaller NYSC locations that I have visited and it’s like 3 levels which kind of makes it a b*tch (i.e. if you are upstairs on the treadmill, you have to go 2 floors down if you need to go to the locker room). Regardless, I come here Sunday’s and it gets the job done, I’m real glad this isn’t my regular gym though, that is for sure. No zen like aspect at all to this dumpy gym. It’s all about gettin’ your sweat on and gettin’ the hell outta there.
P. S. The towels are TINY. Bring your own if you are planning to shower.