The Gym Birmingham

Okay, so it’s cheap. Probably one of the cheapest gyms I’ve known for what you get. I wouldn’t go as far to say ‘value for money’ as like the other reviewers say it’s got a lot of faults.
I don’t use every piece of equipment on there. I’ll be honest I mainly just use the cardio machines on my way home. So with that in mind here I what I’ve found.
The entrance into what appears to be an abandoned part of BHS store (but isn’t) can put you off at first. There is access up via stairs and two elevators, the door mechanism has some bizarre Futurama like hover tube designed to stop people sneaking in on your pass purely because they cannot fit inside it with you but I’m sure it can be done.
The place has no personality, greys and blues do not look modern in this case just very out of date and a tiny bit draining. Compared to the vibrant reds, purples and the orange gym around the corner it could do with a face lift.
The treadmills seem to suffer the most of faults, with them starting off and then just stopping like your punched that red emergency button.
I went at what I’d think to be one of the peak times yesterday at about 5pm and I had no problem getting equipment either for which I was surprised.
The view you get does sort of make up for it, the floor to ceiling windows does prevent the hobbit feeling I got in my last gym which had no windows at all and was fondly (?) nicknamed the bat cave.
To get this type of gym in my area e. g 24 hour I’d be paying £30+ a month so I put up with its faults, if I was a fitness aficionado I probably wouldn’t go here though.
Suggestions to The Gym: —
Fix your equipment
The water fountain could be colder
A new colour scheme? Add more of that electric blue or something.

I have been a member of this gym for some time now. Recently I have noticed things deteriorate to the point that I feel it necessary to leave a review.
Up until 5 years ago I had been a fitness professional working at many different clubs and gyms for over 20 years so I know how a club should be run.
The equipment at this gym is now is such a poor state of repair it quite apparent that even basic safety checks and maintenance schedules are not being carried out.
The majority of the treadmills seem to be OK with a few making dubious noises when in use and a few that have been out of action with no sign of repair.
The cross trainers are either set unevenly on the floor so your not working on a level or they make grinding and banging sounds to the point I have to get off and try and find another one that works properly.
Out of the 3 bicep curl machines in the gym — 1 has had an out of order sign on it for about 2 weeks, 1 has such a loose cable that range of motion is severely restricted and the 3^rd the seat stem is loose so if you try and sit on it it will ‘drop’ while your using the machine.
This is just a sample — I could go on (don’t get me started on the changing rooms).
What may once have been a good gym to use in the city centre is now not.
The only saving grace this gym has is the price but even with that being so low the facilities are making me think twice.

PLUS sides:
–it’s open 24 hours,
— Secure
–Clean
–Open 24 hours
DOWN SIDES:
The weight room is the size of a bathroom. There’s a SINGLE bench/​squat area. Even at 2am there was almost an HOUR LONG WAIT to use the SINGLE squat rack/​bench

I have been a member of the Gym for few months now. it was my next option after my previous gym decided to relocate to Solihull.
The positives:
— Centrally located (City centre)
— Affordable (for a student like myself)
— more than enough machines
— accessible 24hrs, meaning I can hit the gym when I can’t sleep :)
— always kept clean by staff
— friendly staff
The negatives:
— not very suitable for body builders
— could be too crowded sometimes (depending on the time of the day)
— some of the popular machines are no more in very good form
Overall, if you want somewhere cheap, quality and central, this is for you. but if you are a body builder, you might want to try somewhere more suitable.