Oak Marr RECenter

The new fitness center is turning into a DUMP real fast! This place is getting so filthy and nothing is being done about it. Management needs to put a ban on powder usage. This white stuff is everywhere and nobody cares to clean it up. This place was nice when it first opened about 6 months ago. What the heck happened? I paid a lot to work out in a clean environment and I regret my decision to sign up for the year long membership. When my membership expires, I am definitely not planning to renew it.
Please put a ban on powder usage! It’s disgusting! It’s everywhere! I have to spend so much time spraying down the equipment before I could use it.

This review is coming from a swimmer. Beautiful pool and the water is at a nice cool temperature for doing laps. The lanes are wide and so I don’t really notice if I have to share a lane with somebody. That happens most of the time, and fortunately, most people here will do 2 to a lane. I personally hate doing circle swim with 3+ people in a lane. They also have kickboards and pull buoys for lap swimmers to use. There are digital clocks around the pool for me to do intervals.
The locker rooms are the worst part of this facility. There’s no swimsuit drying machine. You have to insert quarters to use a locker. Please allow us to bring our own locks. The shower stalls are a bit cramped but at least they are private. The shower curtains are too narrow, so they leave gaps.
Very nice pool. I was comfortable swimming here.

I can’t say I have ever worked out at oak Marr rec center, but I went today fully intending to get a membership. I had worked out at the cub run facility in the past on a class-​by-​class basis and really enjoyed it. The rec center is very pricy, so you would think that customer service is important to them. Not so. I walked in and told the young girl at the front desk that I was interested in possibly getting a membership. She promptly handed me a flyer telling me about the specials they were having, and then that was it. No offer of a tour or anything. So I went and sat down to look over the options. The gym cost over $ 70 per month, which is expensive. I walked back over to the desk to ask to see the main cardio room. The girl was gone, so I asked a guy who was now behind the counter. Instead of offering to give me a tour, he told me where I could go to find it. I have never been to a gym where the employees don’t offer a tour to try and interest you in the place. I was irritated at this point, but walked back and showed myself to the cardio room. I knew at this point there was no way I was getting a membership at a place that does not value their customers, but did not want to be rude. I walked back and asked if I could purchase a membership online if I chose to join. I was simply given an unenthusiastic nod. I walked out of the place with no intention to ever return. I then went down to Washington Sports Club where I was given a fantastic tour, and signed up for a membership for no down payment and $ 19 a month… a third the cost of the rec center. Thank you Oak Marr for making it so easy to say no.

By far the worst RECenter within Fairfax County. The staff is not trained properly and the only one to blame is management. Making reservations for a group is very hard because you the the run around from whoever answers the phone. One employee says one thing, another says something else. Management never returns calls or e-​mail when I complained.

This summer I took Pilates at Oak Marr. I had previously taken Pilates twice before from a great instructor at the Cub Rub RECenter, so I thought I knew what to expect. Instead of personalized instruction, customizing the Pilates moves to each of our capabilities and physical limitations (e.g., my previous back injury), we had barely any instruction at all. Instead, most of the class time involved the instructor telling us all about her unusual health beliefs and her personal life. It is very hard to relax and concentrate on the Pilates movements when someone is talking about testing their own urine every day to check its pH level, or the death of their father. Or taking their dog to a psychologist.
I would have been OK if the Pilates routine had been standard (like the classes I’d taken before or the videos I’d tried), but it consisted mostly of stretching and light weights. Pilates elements like the Hundred just aren’t part of this class. So I wasn’t familiar with most of the poses or moves, and I ended up aggravating an old back injury during the third class. It is frustrating to hurt yourself, probably because of bad form, when the whole reason you took the class in the first place was to have an instructor giving guidance on form. I could have just stayed at home and done a Pilates video, and gotten a better and arguably safer workout.
Another aggravation was that we had to shut our cell phones off completely, not just silence them. This was because the instructor said that she could feel EMF radiation from cell phones. I don’t even know where to start with that, but the amount of pseudoscience that the instructor promotes in class is alarming, especially from a fitness professional. Class always started late, too, nearly 20 minutes late the last time I went. I work full-​time and don’t have the luxury of sitting around for 10 minutes while the whole class signs a greeting card for someone who none of us have met.
Most of my fellow students had taken this class previously and seemed to think that the instructor was great. I don’t get it. I have left the class and requested a refund for the remaining sessions. I definitely won’t be returning to Oak Marr.

Great place for classes! I take Pilates and Zumba with Debbie. I used to take Cycle Core but it was too strenuous for a baby boomer like me! They facility is in the midst of a 3.2 million dollar renovation, adding more rooms for classes and gym equipment and improving the layout. When the renovation is complete, (which won’t be until July, 2014) those folks who use the weight room will be back and parking will be worst. .. again! Ugh! By the way, if there is a swim meet at the center (only on the Weekend) and your class is still being held, better get there early (real early) or be prepared to park across the street in one of the office building parking lots. There is no room for all those cars.

At Oak Marr, I mostly just participated in the evening swim classes. I think that they have a very nice pool, locker room and sauna. I’ve tried the whirlpool as well –not bad.
The instructors were all very helpful and seemed to really enjoy teaching. The pool can get pretty crowded but I found that after about 7 pm (during the week) there is enough «free» space for those wanting to come in for open swim. Although I don’t use any of the other parts of the facility, it always look clean and organized. I still have yet to make a Farmers Market here (Wednesdays) and I can’t wait to see what it looks like after they complete the rennovations.
Planned service enhancements include:
* A new two-​story 5,500 square foot fitness center with state of the art fitness equipment
*A 150 – 200 square foot area for stretching in the fitness center
*A 250 square foot fitness center entryway area with cubbies
*Three new multipurpose rooms totaling 3,700 square feet for class programming
*A 700 square foot babysitting area with restroom
*Updated lobby, administration area, and relocation of the building entry to improve building security/​control

To me, Oak Marr is all about the pool. I love the Olympic sized pool and the serious swimmers doing laps. There’s also a pretty large jacuzzi and a wading pool for parents with young children. I’m also impressed by the times that the pool is open — 5:30AM-9:30PM on weekdays. (The weekend hours are more limited, since you can only swim in the afternoon.)
Admittedly, the cardio/​weight room is inferior to most gyms. They have a smaller range of weights, the equipment isn’t as new, and the only deadlift is with an assist that limits range of motion. However, I’m willing to put up with this for the convenience of swimming and lifting weights in the same workout.
I also really like the atmosphere at Oak Marr. Sure, the walls are made out of cinder blocks, but I like that there’s always people around. On a Friday night at 9PM, there were people playing chess in a rec room. On a Saturday afternoon, there’s parents lounging on the couches while their kids attend classes.
Oak Marr has flexible options for joining at pretty reasonable prices. If you don’t think you’ll use a membership for a full year, you can join for just 4 months, or even just buy 25 passes that can be used over a long period of time. For families who just want to walk in, they offer a very good price — $ 16 for a family consisting of 2 adults and 2 children.
Oak Marr may be a good fit for you if:
–You like lap swimming.
–Early class times work better for you.
–You play racquetball.
–You’re a family looking to do a walk-​in gym visit.
Note: To the extent this affects your decision to buy a 1 year membership at Oak Marr, I heard that Fairfax County is planning to open a rec center right by the new Metro West subdivision by the Vienna metro. I believe it’s supposed to open at the end of 2013.

This is the best recreation center that I have been to in the MD/​VA area. It’s a multilevel recreation center that has a good sized gym and pools. They have two separate sides, one for leisure swimming and a water slide for children, while the other side has pools for laps and diving. This is a really impressive center that is well kept and clean overall. The changing rooms and bathrooms are decent and pretty clean most of the time. The only downfall is that it gets overly crowded and can be very hard to swim. The front desk is friendly and very helpful. It’s easy to navigate and they offer a great selection of classes for kids and adults. If you can come when it’s not crowded, you will have a great time.

Have only been here for the pool and aerobics class, can rave about both. The aerobics studio is big and airy, and has tons of mirrors for us vain people who like to look at ourselves working out. The pool area is huge… a separate diving pool area, an olympic sized pool, and a leisure swim area. Nice, large bleacher area to watch the classes without fear of being splashed. Would come here again if it wasn’t so far away from home.

This is a decent fitness facility for a good rate. I used to belong here when I was a grad student, and the student rate is far lower than gym memberships available anywhere else. The fitness room is small, though it has pretty good equipment. The pool area is large, and the facility also offers a pretty good selection of fitness classes included in the regular membership. It’s certainly not the nicest gym around, but it’s not bad for the price.

4.5 Stars.
I’ve been coming to this place almost my entire life, ever since the 1^st grade.
The facilities are always very clean and nice. The pool is huge and there is plenty of room to swim or just mess around if you so choose. They have classes that you can take or fun stuff for the kids. Speaking of kids, the diving boards are always fun to watch when some hotshot 10 year old performs a belly flop of epic proportions. The locker rooms are very clean as are the showers.
The gym is pretty nice and I don’t think the equipment is that old. Racquetball is always a fun (and tiring) way to spend some of your Saturday or after work time. I’ve never done anything that made my butt cheeks sore in my life other than racquetball.
Overall, it is a great place and doesn’t cost a lot. Check it out!

I belong to the Fairfax County Rec Centers and yesterday decided to try out Oak Marr as it’s on the way home from my work. I was disappointed. I usually go to Audrey Moore/​Wakefield and their cardio room is pretty complete with plenty of new equipment. The selection at Oak Marr wasn’t that great. The elliptical I used had duct tape wrapped around it so it had obviously seen some better days. I would definitely choose Audrey Moore over Oak Marr for going to the gym.

Olympic-​sized swimming pool, gym, racquetball, and aerobics fitness classes, at reasonable prices. There is a golf complex next door. This facility is newish compared to some of the other RECenters.