A quick review of the gym Carlos and I work out at.
We are members of Rapid Fitness and have been with them since the fall of 2009. Rapid has three locations in Raleigh: Glenwood Ave., North Ridge, and the newly (re-opened) Downtown location.
The Glenwood location is the largest, but also my least favorite. Here you can find a regulation MMA cage and they offer a variety of Mixed Martial Arts classes. There are also 2 rooms designed for Group Fitness classes, a cycle room for cycling and RPM classes , and a large aerobic room where Body Pump, Zumba, CXWORX, and many other classes are held.
There is an area specifically for Kettlebells and TRX Suspension training, and this location also has an indoor running track.
The Glenwood location has the largest deck for cardio equipment, and of course, you can also find a good selection of free weights, and other strength training equipment, including Hammer Strength.
Additionally, child care & kids’ club is offered at this location as well as a private women’s only training area. A great thing about Rapid Fitness is that the majority of group fitness classes are available at no additional cost to members.
The building is large and open, but I don’t like the arrangement of the free weights and strength training machines at the Glenwood location. However, this is the most popular location, and the energy here is high. The group fitness classes have great attendance and this is thanks to the fact that the classes are led by many great instructors. I am quite selective when it comes to trainers and instructors, so when I say “many great instructors,” I’m not exaggerating. My favorite Les Mills instructors at Rapid Fitness are Monica, and Renee, but that is probably because I have participated in their classes more than with other instructors – they are all very goo here. Rapid Fitness does not offer many freestyle classes, however, there is one class that has remained on the schedule, and that is cycling (spinning). The instructor for this class is Krystal, and she is great. She is not only a good instructor, but also offers her own outdoor HIIT classes and leads a eating clean lifestyle. The locker rooms and bathrooms are nice and kept clean which is something very important for any gym.
The North Ridge location is much smaller than Glenwood, but it has more than enough equipment and classes available for every person’s needs. This location also has an indoor pool as well as a sauna.
In this location, there is no MMA cage but there is an area designed for personal training, and in this room you’ll find heavy bags, speed bags and Kettlebells. The North Ridge location has a cycle room, yoga studio for Hot Yoga, a group fitness room, an indoor running track and child care is available. It has a good selection of free weights, strength training machines and cardio equipment. Carlos and I attended this location when the downtown location closed last year. We got used to working out at this location, but often missed downtown, which was our favorite. A few things I’m not happy with at North Ridge are that the rest rooms are not always as clean as I would like them to be. Also, on weekends, the paper towel dispensers are often empty, so machines and benches go without being wiped down after use. I wish the types of music played was more varied, and lastly, I would like to see the barbells and plates better maintained .
The recently opened new downtown location is smaller than the other two locations, but it’s our favorite.
The locker rooms are very nice and very clean, and the machines are very clean. This location has only one room where group fitness classes and cycle classes are held, but it seems to work just fine. The free weight selection is good, but in our opinion, the cardio deck is larger than it needs to be; we have not seen, more than five people on the cardio machines at any given time. We would like see less cardio equipment, have more space between bench press racks and squat cages, and maybe have a area for TRX and Kettlebell training. We still enjoy going here more than the other locations. What we would change, other than what I’ve mentioned, is that we would keep the temperature a little lower. I have seen the thermostats set at 80, on days when it’s just over 80 degrees outside, so it’s quite warm inside. I would also like the music to be more varied. Often it seems that in North Ridge and the new downtown location the music is set for one person’s personal preference. Asking to change the station has never worked, I’m just told it’s preselected and the person who can change it is not there.
Overall, Rapid Fitness has great locations and I consider it a good choice for anyone wanting to join a gym in the Raleigh, NC area. Of the gyms we’ve been members of in the Raleigh area, Rapid Fitness is definitely our favorite.
If you want to check out Rapid Fitness, I recommend you talk to Walter.
Source: images found on Rapid Fitness page.