Centre for Sport and Exercise

One of the best value gyms out there. It is cheap for a year long membership for students and non-​students! And with that membership unlimited gym access, use of all equipment, and gym classes as many as you like! Not mention access to the pool.
The facility is great. It’s modern and many of the cardio machines have a TV for exercise and entertainment! But also they have done some new renovations with improvements to locker rooms, new cardio room, and more. There’s also numerous rooms that you are sure to find a workout place even during busy periods.
The downside is perhaps the hours. It’s not open 24 hours and doesn’t open very late on the weekends. However, the value for what you get cant really be beat!

As a student at the University of Edinburgh I was here for the first time 3 years ago. I used the gym during the free September trial week and attended the sports and society fairs. Though the price has gone up in the last few years, the annual membership fee, at £106, is really unbeatable. Note that it’s a bit more expensive for none-​students.
In first year I came to a few early morning spin classes, zumba, and just let out some steam on the cross trainers. My Gym (the gym at the very back) provides a great view of Salisbury crags, so you can pretend you are being virtuous and environmentally friendly by running outside when you are actually warm and cosy with music and great facilities indoors.
This year I plan on taking advantage on some more facilities at the CSE. There is a swimming pool which is included in membership, though access hours are a little awkward; morning sessions are very early and lunch time and evening classes are apparently packed. Since coming back from my year abroad I have developped a great passion for climbing, which I will be able to continue at the CSE for an unbeatable price, you just add £44 to your annual membership and can use the bouldering and climbing halls whenever you want. The £10 two-​hour induction class fee is also pretty amazing in comparison to the prices you find in larger rock climbing halls. There is a great range of classes, from yoga and zumba to archery and water polo. I have already made plans with friends to go and try out a few of these.
The facilities at this gym are immaculate and there are always plenty of machines available, regardless of how busy it is at the time. Paper towels are always available, the water fountains provide cold water and the shower/​changing facilities are immaculate.
Overall, the CSE is cheap, full of amazing facilities, great classes and everything is very well maintained. Very happy to have this place in town.

I’ve been a member of the Centre for Sports and Exercise for about two years. I think it’s an excellent facility. I mainly go for it’s classes (circuits and spinning). If you are into cardio there are over 100 machines and each have a personal screen where you can watch tv. (When I used to work close by I would watch French prince of bel air after work while on the elliptical).
The staff are very friendly and have even taught me how to punch properly. Hey did you know there’s a boxing area? Ask a staff member to show you!
The only negative I have (but I suppose it will be with all gyms) is that it can get quite busy around sept and jan.
Tip: ladies — there are three change rooms. I prefer the third one which is at the back and up the stairs. You kind of have to follow a convoluted route but you’ll get there. This change room is rarely busy. Bring 20p so you can lock up your valuables!

A very nice gym. There’s a cardio room with plenty of machines (treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, etc.) for everyone though I’m sure on particular days at certain times there can be a wait. The weight machines are connected to the cardio room which makes it pretty easy for your exercise routine.
The layout of the building can be a bit confusing though. I had a hard time finding the free weights room but a staff member happily helped me find it.
There’s also a climbing wall, standard basketball/​badminton/​whatever hard surface courts, squash courts, and more.

This is the first gym I have actually been to but it has set my expectations for any future gyms I go to very high.
There is so much equipment and many different rooms with something for everyone. I haven’t used it yet but apparently there is also a great climbing and bouldering room. Membership also comes with access to a pool which is a great advantage!
I’ve also been to a couple of the classes there, all of which have been rewarding and great fun!
As a student at Edinburgh Uni my membership was obviously a great deal but many non-​students also attend and it seems membership fees are also very reasonably for non-​students.
I would definitely recommend this gym to anyone, students and non-​students alike, it really has something for everyone — no matter what your level of fitness etc. You don’t even have to go that much in order to make the membership worth it!

Top of the range equipment, multiple rooms for cardio, weight machines and free weights. A rowing room, a spin room, a circuit room, a boxing room, a climbing and bouldering room and access to a pool as well as all the usual gym facilities and classes. All for £44 a month (discounts for longer) and no joining fee.
How could this be anything other than a five star review?

Cheap, classes, pool, space…
New Zealand All Blacks train here
the best gym in town

I did my research before joining a gym in Edinburgh, and I think that this is definitely a five-​star gym that beats out the rest on quality and price. It is not just the new, fantastically-​built university gym for Edinburgh University, but it is also a community gym that welcomes members of the public to join as well, for just slightly higher rates.
I like that this gym has variety and great quality. The main cardio room has great machines with touch-​screen TVs that are easy to navigate and the best and most current gym technology. Behind this room is a weight room that can be very busy with lots of testosterone monopolizing the weights, but at lunchtimes it is much less busy and intimidating.
In the back, with stunning views of Arthur’s Seat, is my favorite gym room with great elliptical trainers along the walls and many large individual mats on the floor for using weights, medicine balls, exercise balls, etc. It is much more calm than the other rooms.
I also love the classes. So far, I have been to two spinning classes, two Zumba classes, and a circuits class. They have all been great with really nice and helpful instructors. You book all of the classes online from seven days before the classes, but can also sometimes show up and see if there is extra space to join in. Spinning definitely fills up quickly, but it’s worth it!
This is a fantastic place and has a great vibe about it. With your membership, you also have access to the pool that’s in another building. Thus far, I have been more than happy with all of the many other offerings in the main building!

I’ve been a member of this gym for 6 years now — as a student I joined for £70 a year and now pay £22 a month and still think I’m getting a bargain. (I get Alumni rates)
Squash, swimming, CV rooms, weights were all things I used during university and now I use the spinning bikes and weights rooms much more.
Sure enough occasionally it’s very busy, sometimes it’s a bit crowded, but if you’re serious about exercising then you will find the right time to go. Basically I avoid it on Monday evenings and any day between 5pm and 7:30pm.
The facilities are better than anywhere else I’ve been. There are so many classes and things to do that you can’t help but find a new exciting way to exercise!
*note — male changing facilities are terrible at the moment as they are putting in new changing rooms. This is due to be finished in the next few weeks.

The University of Edinburgh gym already had a lot to prove. I had been a member of my previous gym (University of Glasgow gym) for 7 years, through studentdom to my ‘young professional’ years. I loved the gym, the classes, the instructors and already begrudged any other gym as it wasn’t *my* gym.
So when I first signed up, I was biased, I admit. I only took the one month membership as a ‘test-​run’.
On first impression the reception is very underwhelming. Bear in mind this is through my cynical eyes. It’s also a bit of a maze, so I was a bit confused and disorientated.
I hobbled in here with a very bad knee injury, in search of a weights room. i’ve always avoided weights room — any girl will agree why. Grunting, sweaty men kisses their own biceps and giving you sideways looks whilst you squat your 6kgs. So I was pleasantly surprised when I was told there were three seperate rooms for machines, free weights, then ‘My Gym’ with free weights that only went up to about 10kgs so most of the heavier, harder traininers didn’t go there.
And oh my, My Gym, yep this is now My Gym. The two main rooms I’ve seen are huge, state-​of-​the-​art-​equipment. Spotless, not a greasy smear of sweat on stretching mats or empty tissue dispensers in sight. In fact, I can’t find one thing, literally, one that I could criticise the gym for.
There is a huge amount of equipment. Far bigger than the weighted machine room I’d previously seen in my old gym. ANd My Gym was huge in itself, with machines all around the ouside of the room, then at least 20 big mats in the middle, each with their own bench, seperate sit-​up matt. I was stunned at the quality of the equipment (brand new) and how well looked after it was.
Also the fact that when I was rowing away dutifully on the rowing machine, I had a view of Arthur’s Seat. Fantastic.
Ok, I know I’m now just waxing lyrical. But I will now be signing up for 12 months and I can honestly say I don’t reproach my new gym in the slightest. Once my knee’s healed I’ll be checking out the exercise classes which in themselves are very varied and fantastic. 7.30am early morning spin? Heaven.

The facilities at Edinburgh University’s gym are excellent and far outstrip those of any other that I’ve been to. The cardio machines are all in top condition and have all the state of the art functions which allow you to test your performance level. There are multiple rooms, including two devoted entirely to free weights instead of the usual resistance machines. There’s also a room full of rowing machines as well as ab mats and kettlebells.
There’s plenty of classes which run from this place including kickboxing, spinning and circuit training, all of which offer a cheap way of boosting fitness and having fun.
It’s only £95 for a full academic year’s use of the CSE so it’s well worth the money.

I’ve not been much of a gym goer in the past, but was still impressed by Edinburgh University’s sports centre at Pleasance.
The gym is spread across several floors, and whilst there is a wide variety of equipment, I’ll just name my two trusted and unintimidating favourites; the space-​walker (aka cross trainer) and the bicycle. Proper gym buffs may be able to describe all the other equipment a bit better!
There is a large weights rooms, which I’ve walked through in awe. Not at the equipment, which is impressive, but at the amount of testosterone in there! There’s something very comical about watching them struggle and silently compete with each other.
The centre also has a swimming pool, which I’m yet to use, but I’m a big fan of the sauna. It’s extremely relaxing and was very needed when I finally used it!
The gym membership for students is £95 a year, and £65 a semester. It’s also possible to buy separate swimming pool passes, if the gym isn’t your thing.

Edinburgh has a few good gyms. One might be tempted at first to avoid what is essentially a student gym however the Centre for Sport and Exercise (or CSE) is worth a try if you’re «shopping» for gyms.
The CSE was the first gym I tried when I moved to Edinburgh. I have always been apprehensive about joining gyms but the CSE did its best to make me feel welcome
CSE is well attended by non-​students. There is a great variety of cliental which does a lot to make you feel comfortable, whatever you are there to do. Some gyms can feel competitive and mascho, CSE is far from this. Of course there is always a little showing off, but the cosmopolitan and diverse nature of trainers keeps this to a minimum.
The gym is well equipped, apart from the standard equipment (which it provides well) to be expected the CSE also contains a dance studio, squash courts, climbing wall, boxing facility and archery and rifle range. All this for £95 (full membership) or £45 (off-​peak membership), which is a great price for a city centre gym.
The CSE also offers a range of other essential services such physiotherapy and sports massage as well as quick advise from trainers whenever you need it, or full work out plans if you’re new to gyms or just want a reanalysis.
A well-​staffed, well-​equiped, clean and professional gym.

This place has amazing facilities and a plus to it is it’s affordable, especially to students and members of staff of the University of Edinburgh.
You can also get an off peak membership for less if you know when about you want to hit the gym. Their pool, climbing wall and squash courts are particularly good.
Personally I am not a fan of gyms at all. But, I still have to admit that this is a well equipment gym, complete with plenty of classes if you are that keen to work out. The running/​treadmill room is slightly intimidating (everyone’s trying hard to look healthy and fit and I have an issue with running to nowhere) but their screens are a pleasant distraction (I still don’t get the point but anyway).
Only real downside I can think, is being a University gym you may bump into your tutor at the swimming pool. Awkward.
I can’t say yay I am a fan (I just can’t be for a gym) but it is a good for you and a good gym.

Those with the intention to upkeep their fitness levels will certainly be satisfied with the facilities on offer at the CSE. University of Edinburgh students get a generous discount equating to £95 for the full membership and £65 for the off peak package. This is an absolute bargain as most gym memberships are utterly extortionate and offer nowhere near the levels of space, variety of equipment and service you find at the CSE. Many a time I’ve been helped by the staff in planning a work out régime, instructed on how to perform certain exercises etc and have never been dissatisfied with their advice.
General public memberships are more akin to the pricey gyms you’ll find anywhere else, nonetheless as a student its great to see those tuition fees being put to good use. So I guess under the proviso that your a student, the CSE is truly great value for money.

Technically, this is the University gym. But membership is also open to non-​students, and this place is so good that I’m going to continue coming here after I graduate.
The facilities are great: it’s clean, there are loads of machines (you do have to queue for them during really busy times, but not often) and the staff are always on hand to help you if you need your fitness routine updating.
The best thing though, is that all the classes are included in your membership fee, and there’s great range of them to choose from. The boxacise class on saturdays will definitely cure you of the effects of your friday night out, and you’ll definitely feel the effects of it the next day!
There’s a sauna, a separate circuits gym upstairs, a climbing wall, squash/​badminton/​basketball/​netball courts, an on-​site physio, and your membership also includes access to the swimming pool just around the corner.
You can get a membership in any multiple of 3 months, and you can also choose to opt for the off-​peak option if you don’t want to spend the full whack.
Dragging myself to the gym is hard enough as it is, but at least at this one I know it’ll be worth it.

By far, one of the best gyms in Edinburgh, mainly attending Edinburgh university students but the gym is open to members of the public too. There is no joining fee and the membership options spread from 1 to 12 months according to customer’s preference. Additional to the exclusive equipment, there are squash, basketball, volleyball halls, tons of free classes, like dancing, pilates, etc; a number of workshops with FASIC and outdoor workshops with FIRBUSH centre offering sailing, mountain biking, sea kayaking, etc. On top of this coolness, you can join the swimming pool for free swimming classes. Unfortunately, the university swimming pool in Leopold place is mainly used as a training pool so it is not very often open for public access as a community swimming pool would be but it is accessible at least 7 days per week and you can make your pick!

The University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Sport and Exercise is a fantastic gym providing a broad range of classes and facilities at some of the best prices in town. Although very busy at peak times (and particularly at the beginning of each semester) the gym offers excellent facilities, including tvs on each machine, a circuits gym, and nautilus machines, plus access to the university’s swimming pool is included in the membership. The staff are helpful and keen to provide tips and advice, and the teaching staff offer a high standard of classes. The hip hop and dance mix classes are particularly enjoyable! The changing facilities while sometimes a little cramped are clean and were recently modernised. The new climbing wall is a great example of the near-​annual improvements which continue to be made to the existing facilities.