YMCA Anthony Bowen

Was so excited to join this beautiful gym at the outset but have really grown to hate it. None of the TVs on the equipment are ever working, class instructors almost always seem to have subs and there is no way to give patrons advance notice of the switch. I signed up for personal training sessions and my trainer did not show up for a total of 6 sessions! I asked for a credit and while they agreed, 7 months and multiple emails, calls and visits later I am still trying to get it posted to my account! Beautiful facility but unfortunately really poorly run, I ended up canceling my membership due to frustration.

I have been a member since the Anthony Bowen location opened but the membership rate has increase so much that there is simply no more room left to get a work out. The Anthony Bowen Y is taking the overflow from the closed down town Y, making the problem even worse. It seems greed or necessity has gotten the better of the management because they continue to take new members despite the obvious overcrowding. For example, just today after work the line to get on a treadmill was three people deep. on a regular basis (even early weekend mornings) you need to arrive at least 30 minutes in advance to hope to gain attendance to one of their classes. Even if you do get in, the classes are overpacked making the work out a rather miserable experience – as you all fight over the limited amount of floor space and equipment. The recent addition of two new class rooms has done nothing to alleviate the problem.
Last year I liked the Anthony Bowen Y so much that my partner and I chose our apartment in order to be close by. But now we are seriously considering dropping our membership – it is simply not worth the stress and fight to get a work out which is suppose to be a relief from the stress of the day.
Moreover, a good deal of the front desk staff are rude and out of touch (although some are pleasant). They simply do not seem to get it, or have any idea how to responsibly manage a fitness club.
If you are considering joining, think again, and find some place else. You will be better off in the end.

Yes, the facilities are nice. But the space just doesn’t support the amount of people, particularly since closing the national capital branch. Whenever I’m there, I always feel like I’m bumping into people or am in other people’s way. Also, there simply are not enough evening classes. They get PACKED! Not to mention the majority of the classes I would like to attend begin at 5:30. Those of us who get off of work at 5 aren’t able to make it to those classes, which is super frustrating! Specifically the Pilates class which is offered only twice a week and at that one time. Compare to any sort of yoga which is offered every day at varying times. I get it, it’s the latest fitness craze but can we get some variety please??? I’m starting to look into other gym options.

I really have enjoyed my gym membership thus far. The classes are awesome! The bootcamp and Grit classes are just like Insanity and if you can stay another hour for Bodypump you will really get a well-​rounded workout. I also love the spinning classes — Michael and Francella are my favs. The equipment is top notch. I typically go in the mornings but I’ve never had to wait for a machine. The ppl are nice and you often times see the same folks in classes so it can be become kinda like a family. I was hesitant about joining since this membership is twice the cost of my previous. But I now don’t have to dish out $ 100+ dollars on top of my membership for a personal trainer or yoga studio classes because they have everything I need here. I’m a fan.

I just moved from DC and really miss working out at this Y!
The facilities are fantastic and so clean. It’s a convenient location if you live around U/​Columbia heights. Everyone that works there is friendly and excited to talk to you about your fitness journey.
The best part are the classes. The spin studio and instructors give some of the better classes in DC. The boot camp class really kicks your ass and I’ve liked pretty much all of the other classes I’ve tried there.
Also, there’s a sweetgreen next door so basically it’s a one stop shop for all your healthy living needs!
My only gripe was that sometimes it would get so crowded you couldn’t get on ANY cardio machine. I guess that’s just testament to the great gym! I miss you, AB!

I can see why people would pay big bucks for Flywheel/​Soulcycle or CrossFit, but it’s roughly $ 90 a month for membership to this very clean and well-​equipped gym with terrific classes. I do spin three times a week and my girlfriend loves body pump; we’re lifers at this point. Can’t say enough about this place.

Really nice gym. Pretty laid back as far as environment. Great staff and friendly trainers.

Brand new facility, tons of machines, very clean, good locker rooms and towel service. If all you want is machines, it’s a terrific place. If you’re a serious lifter – man or woman – you’ll be disappointed with lack of space.
Also, they have no proper, wall-​hung pull-​up bar. Yes they point to the bars on their cages, but these are all too thick or poorly spaced. All great body-​builders and weight trainers affirm that the pull-​up is simply the #1 upper body exercise known. Only Bethesda has a good, self-​standing (i.e., wall hung) bar. The bar must be no thicker than an olympic bar, but this is something most of the so-​called personal trainers don’t even know about (all due respect to the several outstanding exceptions, like Gina at Silver Spring).
I love the Y, but if I were still at an age to be training heavy, I’d go elsewhere, like Cross Fit maybe.

Occasionally, I get emails from friends who are debating between Washington Sports Club, ClassPass, or VIDA. I refer all of them to the YMCA Anthony Bowen because it’s the perfect compromise.
AB is the most beautiful and modern YMCA branch in the DMV. The hours of operation are convenient, located on 14^th St, excellent instructors (who often teach at other boutique/​high-​end gyms like Mint and VIDA), and well-​maintained facilities. The locker rooms have lockers, and I’m willing to take a shower due to the saunas, steam rooms, and rainfall shower heads. It is a smaller, but well-​designed gym. The gym clientele is a good, diverse mix too — you’ll see people in Lulelemon/​Athleta as well as Old Navy/​Target apparel.
My favorite classes are forrest yoga by Darin Volwiler. Evening yoga on the roof deck gives you that I-can’t-believe-I-am-lucky-to-live-here vibe. The swimming lap lane, rock climbing wall, cooking classes/​kitchen, and childcare center are also great membership perks.
* Caveat: I go to the gym during off-​peak hours… followed by a stop at the neighboring Sweetgreen.

I was a member of this gym, and after months of trying a variety of classes, I found that they just weren’t meeting my needs, so I decided to cancel.
I followed their instructions and submitted my termination request in writing with more than the required notice, and asked for confirmation of my cancellation. The membership coordinator wrote me an email stating that my account had been terminated, and that last month’s draft was the last one.
And then, I was charged again the following month. When I called the gym, I was told that there was no cancellation in the system, and after a series of questions that tried to place blame on me, I was transferred to the coordinator’s voicemail. When I did not hear back, I called again, and was once again transferred to her voicemail. I followed-​up with an email, requesting that the cancellation be processed and a refund be issued. I asked for a call back and never received one. I did finally receive an email that had one sentence:
«Please allow 3 – 6 business days for funds to appear.»
I did not receive an apology or explanation. Just a one sentence email that says funds should appear. I hardly think the gym would be okay with my not making a monthly payment and saying instead, you should receive it within 3 – 6 business days, without explanation.
Well, it’s been five business days and nothing has happened, but I guess I will have to wait until tomorrow before I invest yet even more time in following up to see what has happened, and learn if a refund is actually being processed.
I find it ironic that an institution that purports a mission of social responsibility can behave so carelessly– they clearly lack respect for my time and have no sense of responsibility for their actions.

Look, their facilities are great. I won’t pretend otherwise.
But the staff. The staff are horrible. They will be rude and ignore you and lie straight to your face. They are either completely incompetent or completely deceptive. It is impossible to tell which. I will just list below the occasions in which we were misinformed.
1. We signed up for a swimming class. AFTER paying, we were informed that we had to sign up to be community members to actually be able to attend. This was an additional $ 92. I paid with my card (my wife’s had been used for the class. This is relevant later.).
2. Okay, cool, I guess. We were told that this gets us access to the gym on Fridays and access to the pool every day.
3. After we paid it, I went to the pool a few times. I was then informed that I was not supposed to have access to the pool on other days (at the same time another family was there that was arguing about the same thing but for the climbing wall). The guy I spoke to was so angry he was literally frothing at the mouth. He was extremely insulting to us like we should have known that they were misrepresenting their own policies.
4. So I really wanted to swim. I wanted to get access for the upcoming month while I finished the class, but couldn’t afford a membership for the next month while I was out of the country. I was told that they could only do a direct debit. The only option was to terminate. Okay, so I used my card. I filled out the termination form for the next month. We didn’t receive any guides or lists of prices, etc.
5. Nearly a month later, a mysterious charge appears on my wife’s card. 3 days of phone calls and a lot of speaking to useless people later, we find out that the termination form was changed to a hold (which we were told didn’t exist!) and that we were automatically charged for it on my wife’s card without ever signing anything or authorizing this charge.
6. Well, okay. A hold doesn’t seem SO bad. They say it’s just a hold for the one month. But they can’t charge my wife’s card for this. They need to charge mine, which should be the one attached to the account.
7. We make many phone calls before someone calls us back. We are told that we have been placed on a 6 month (!) hold and that they will charge us every month. We have never signed up for a hold. We have never asked for six months. We have not authorized the use of this card. We have not been told of the charges.
8. Now, they’ve changed it to a 3 month hold. We find out that a 1 month hold doesn’t exist. They won’t go back to the original termination paperwork, and I’m sitting here fuming while hoping to hear back from one of them.
Look, I am happy to pay the monthly gym membership. But honestly these people make it HARD to have one. All I am asking for is a straightforward list of fees or SOMETHING. But all of these people are so shady it is nearly impossible to know what to expect.
Don’t go here. Don’t give them your credit card information. And most importantly, do not believe a single thing that any of them tell you.

A beautiful facility that keeps prices low so that everyone can afford to work out. Love the class variety. I’m a big fan of the steam room and pool for lap swimming. Although I don’t have kids, I hear the child care option is wonderful too!

Wonderful gym for the community! I am so grateful to have access to this facility and the people who run it. This YMCA offers so much choice for activities. I go to regular yoga classes and instructors are fantastic.

I’ve thought a lot before writing this but I decided to act for the greater good. My fear was that if I let you all know about my favorite classes, then too many people would show up and the class would be packed. At the same time, I feel you should all know about some of the great teachers at the Y.
Disclaimer: I haven’t taken all the classes so if I don’t mention someone it’s not because they’re not good. I just haven’t taken their class.
So hear we go:
1. Any class taught by Chris Torres. He is a fantastic teacher. You’ll learn proper form and get a superb workout. He combines functional training with kickboxing intelligently, giving you one of the best movement therapies for your body. If you ever find yourself in a bar brawl, you’ll know what to do ;-)
2. Aerial Yoga with Angela Meyer. Another fantastic teacher. Not only is the class a ton of fun, but you get the best decompression and lengthening of your life, using the hammocks and aerial moves. Best part, you get to be a kid again!
3. Yoga and Meditation with Andres. I wish he’d teach more classes! Right away you can tell Andres knows his stuff and has years of study. You come out of his class completely renewed and stronger. He’ll show you proper technique so that you get into poses safely, intelligently and progressively. Until I took his class, I didn’t know I was doing push ups completely wrong. He showed me how to access my core and engage key muscles. No more shoulder pain! The best part is the 30 mins meditation after the yoga class. Complete bliss!

I’ve been a Y member for about 6-​months, but it hasn’t been until recently that I’ve had the opportunity to really utilize my membership on a regular basis. This location is very modern and all of their facilities and equipment are pretty new. I like to take the group classes here & I’ve really enjoyed them. They have a HUGE selection of classes compared to other gyms. If there’s any class you’ve ever been curious about taking, chances are Y-​Anthony Bowen has it. Now that I have more time to actually use my membership, I’m really looking forward to coming in to check out their classes more often.

Friendly front desk staff but they’re all about sales. They asked what I needed when I arrived, I said I was there for membership info and they in turn asked if I wanted a tour, to which I said, no, just rates. They asked me to wait while they finished up with a customer. I waited until it was my turn only to be pushed to sign up for a tour again. And once more I declined, saying I only wanted to know rates. The female staff member replied that they only give rates during tours and, «when would be a good time for you to come back for a tour? We have a lovely facility.»
You made me wait to tell me that? It’s like I’m talking to a wall, or in this case a saleswoman with her own agenda. I don’t need to know about all the wonderful equipment you have that I’m not going to use when all I want to know is how much it would cost me to use the pool. No thanks.

The gym is an easy place to hate… but I love my gym. It’s sparklingly clean and has almost a spa feel w the huge granite showers, steam room and sauna. They have tons of classes like spin, Zumba, yoga, body pump, kick boxing, barre, boot camp and more ! A few of the really unique classes are paid like aerial yoga and Krav Maga .
It also feels like a community. I get half price for being a community member which means lower income. They also have free cooking classes and child care and frequent open houses where you can bring guests. Also five free guest passes a year and you get a few visits to ymcas throughout the U.S. With your membership .
But wait … There’s more ! All the cardio machines have tvs and even Internet ! I run to YouTube music videos. You can also chose to run a special course so the treadmill displays a Norwegian forest or German mountain route that you are running through .
Also free towels and the lockers have built in locks ! There’s also usually parking on the block of the gym. There’s a rock climbing wall, roof top terrace, kitchen .
I hear from people who are into lifting that the weights options are somewhat limited ! But for someone whose into basic lifting, what they have works.
If you have trouble getting to the gym, this one might just inspire you

This gym suits your needs if you like cardio and general exercise and maybe have kids. Not a great gym for hardcore people though. For example, the hours are awful, especially the weekend– it closes at 7 on Saturday! Wish it was open latter (until midnight) every night.
++++Pros+++++++
Community feeling /​Nice people who work there
Tons of free classes
Financial aid for people with lower incomes
Very clean!
Towel service
— — Cons — — —
Hours!
Small — Weight room is tiny and trainers take up space with students. Huge room for kitchen that is rarely used.
Internet drops out consistently
****Weird end of year fee = to membership cost that they didn’t tell me about at signup

I don’t often write reviews on Unilocal,but my experience with the YMCA Anthony Bowen was so obnoxious that I thought I should warn others!
I’ve been a member at the YMCA Anthony Bowen for several months now. The facilities are pretty good, but the staff is TERRIBLE! My boyfriend and I went in recently to upgrade to a family membership. We had to wait over an HOUR while the incompetent front desk staffer fumbled around with the paperwork, joked around with coworkers, and swiped in other YMCA members. No apology for the ridiculous wait! The staff just sat around laughing and not getting any work done!
After that fiasco, they messed up our billing details and charged us twice for two different kinds of memberships. When I tried to resolve the matter over the phone, the front desk staffer was incredibly rude and unhelpful. I was put on hold (phone placed on the desk) and could overhear her chatting with a friend.
Needless to say, we are leaving YMCA Anthony Bowen for a gym with a more friendly, professional staff! With all the billing mixups, this place ended up costing us more than a REAL gym! So frustrating!

Classes are amazing! If you never use a piece of equipment take all the classes you can. I have literally been to almost every class offered and none are repetitive even if they’re taught by the same instructor. The instructors take time before, during, and after classes to ensure you are properly grasping the techniques and will guide you through the class.
You can tell every one is sincere about their job from when you’re greeted at the front desk every time you enter to the cleanliness of the locker rooms and the gym itself. Coaches and personal trainers take the time to tell you if you’re using a piece of equipment incorrectly or how to improve to see maximum results and feel the burn.
This place is awesome! They have really nailed the customer service experience