When I first moved to the city I had no idea what gym to join! To make it easier for you, I will be visiting as many gyms as I can and giving you an overview of them. After I have visited multiple gyms, I will make my top ten list. The first one I am going to review is Crunch.
Crunch Gym is a young, bright, fun, and lively place. I think it is the perfect place for college student and recent graduates. Crunch has about 20 locations Nationwide located in: New York, California, and Florida. In New York they have 8 locations: Union Square, Christopher Street, Kips Bay, East 59th Street, Lafayette, 90 John Street, W. 38th Street, and W. 83rd Street. They also have two locations in Brooklyn at Fort Greene and Park Slope.
They offer four different memberships: All Crunch, Crunch City, One Crunch, and Corporate. In New York right now the prices are around $89 a month for all locations in the city. Depending on the time of year and what specials they are offering will decide whether or not there is an initiation fee.
One of my favorite things about Crunch is all the different classes they offer which are free with your membership (excluding Pilates with the transformer machine). Each Crunch offers a different selection of classes. They try to rotate classes about every three months. Some fun classes they have and have gotten amazing reviews on are: Bodyweb with TRX System, Antigravity Yoga Wings, and Powerball. They also offer some fun classes: Stiletto Strength, Broadway Dance, Tu Tu Fresh, and Pole Dancing. I have been lucky enough to try a few classes and visit a few of the locations.
The locations I have been to and worked out at are:
- Lafayette, great location, very large with nice locker rooms, DJ’s come in and play music on certain days, Boxing ring/spin studio/Pilates studio (additional fee)/ dance studio and a Juice Bar
- Kips Bay, located in Murray Hill, small location located in the basement (No windows), spin studio/Boxing ring/ Dance Studio
- Union Square, great location, very large, spin studio/Dance Studio/ Hot Yoga Studio
- W. 38th Street, interesting location, feels very cramped, located upstairs, Boxing Ring/Spin Studio and a Juice bar
My favorite location is Union Square, they offer the most variety of classes and they offer hot yoga. My second favorite is Lafayette, they have some great personal trainers, and my least favorite is Kips Bay and W. 38th Street. Kips Bay is located in a basement which bugs me because I love natural light and you don’t get that and the layout of W. 38th Street is very cramped.
Overall Crunch is a very good price for what they offer. There are a lot of young people who belong there so if you just moved to the city it may be a great place to make friends and they offer a lot of locations. The only problems I have are they get very crowded in the evenings and sometimes it can be hard to get a machine (but most gyms can get like this). If you like to work out with not a lot of commotion going on, I suggest you work out in the mornings. It is less crowded and you won’t have a DJ playing music. The gyms are pretty nice for the most part, I always see someone cleaning but some of the clubs could still use some work. They offer Shampoo, Conditioner, and Body Wash but I could not tell you what brand and they also offer blow dryers but some of them are broken and take awhile to get fixed. If you are a member there I suggest you take a look at their Centerstage section of their website and look at their partners because they offer some good discounts to members of Crunch.
Hello! My name is Kristine and I live and work in New York City. Since I have been here I have realized how hard it is to maintain a healthy balance while living in the City. Work starts to consume your life and you can get lost in everything around you.
I used to belong to Crunch on 59th. It was also a basement with no windows. Awful!
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Kristine, is it definitely true that a CRUNCH one location membership is only $64 a month? I am considering joining but I was told the fee was $90 per month w/ nothing said about city crunch or one crunch plans.
I find CRUNCH to be very tricky and deceptive as far as costs are concerned.
I emailed you!
Hi Kristine! I just moved to the City this week and I’m looking for ways for me to stay in the shape that got me here, as well as improve. I was looking at different gyms in my area and am considering Crunch. (I’m reading your reviews to help me decide!) I found the same issue as Steve mentioned. I can’t figure out the $64/month. Could you explain this to me?
Thanks!
Thank you! I just forwarded this to my friend!!!
Hi Kristine!
I will be travelling to NYC for about a month in Sep, and looking for a good fitness center for the month.
Came across Crunch in 90 John street, that would be pretty close from my hotel.
Can you inform me about their monthly membership fees and are there any initiation fees?
Thanks,
Sam