Best Gyms with Resistance Machines near Chicago, Illinois

One of the better PF locations. I feel comfortable coming here. Has more equipment than other locations and the locker rooms are kept up with pretty well.

This location was my primary location while working in the area. Parking can be challenging first thing in the morning. I appreciate that they have a Total Body Enhancement. The locker room is huge and well-laid out. The free weights area is really cramped which leads to limited availability. I really enjoyed the music played here. The staff could be a bit more friendly.

The staff is always hospitable and the gym is always clean. The only thing I want more of is the Physical Therapy bike and the pectoral swing arm machine (You can take the bars and you can sit backwards and swing your arms.) Other than that, I love this gym.

The guy at the front desk was very friendly, and the facility was clean. Bad news: the music was very loud. It was like a rap gangster club. Why? Absolutely no need for the gangster rap or volume. Everyone wears earbuds now.

Great workout in Pullman! I received great service and was happy to see a strong 5 AM crowd! Grateful to my colleague for inviting me! I am getting closer to achieving my bucket list item for this year which is to work out in the 77 neighborhoods of Chicago! #77ChicagoStrong

1st day back to the health club thing. This club not as big as Others but nicely put together

This gym is exceptionally clean and well taken care of. I enjoy coming here and utilizing the massage beds at the start of my workout as it helps relax my muscles. The staff here are nice, helpful, and very professional. 5 stars!

Really nice facility. I talked to the employee Issac and he was really nice. I will definitely recommend this place to my friends and family.

This place is well kept and clean. From the morning staff to the overnight they are all helpful and nice. Definitely recommend to anyone looking to start their gym routine.

New equipment new experience. Not sure how involved staff is. Son was injured while on premises. Severe injury but went unnoticed.

I have been coming to this gym for a few years now, the workout equipment is all clean & ready to workout and the workout machines are available & clean to use. Staff are very friendly, working hard to have the spot clean & greet you. I enjoy the environment & energy when I'm at this gym. 10/10

I personally started planet fitness 2 weeks ago and it’s been amazing I enjoy being there people are friendly and the areas are kept clean. The staff is very amazing and well respected and friendly. One of the staff named Alexis has been a good help with me and I appreciate the support

Wonderful location, excellent parking, clean with really nice staff. I went here twice this year and it is consistently nice. I highly recommend!!

Since google wants to play with me and ask me how Pete’s was lol

Bunch of thieves stealing money under the table. Customer service is no help haven’t gotten help since March of 2024 lol. Stop going to this gym or they might steal your money too!

I have gone in as a guest on a few occasions. My experience was very positive. They have a variety of equipment, good music, clean environment. Staff is very helpful and welcoming. Dennis, the manager, does a great job and Nick ,staff member, was very accommodating.There's a good supply of cleaning equipment to use on the equipment before and after you work out. Some equipment may need replacement soon but that is to be expected when there is so much usage. If feel like that should be addressed by corporate and not fall on the staff. Overall, a great environment to work out in.

SH!TTY gym! Unclean, equipment is not taken care off, kids who don’t pay the membership come in and out and it’s unfair to those who DO pay. This place is always PACKED. This gym should not be 24hrs if anyone can just come in and out. Bathrooms are disgusting. Yoga mats are disgusting. Padding and handle grips on machines are nearly nonexistent. How is this place still open?!

They charge you 15.00$ if you let someone else in which is understandable. They send you the video also to prove you let them in. They charged me 15.00$ for letting someone in, but the video shows otherwise. I came in, door closed and 10-20 seconds later someone else came in. I did not let them in, but they still charged me 15.00$?. This gym used to be a good place to work out, but lately it has gone downhill. I have seen multiple people let others in and treat the gym like they own it. There’s homeless people coming and going as they please. I’d recommend either going to 71st CFX, cancel membership or work out at home.

I am astonished that a gym such as this is still in business. During my time at this gym I have experienced many danger hazards and unhygienic standards. To start I believe that a gym should maintain the cleanliness of their establishments to the best of their abilities. When you enter the gym restrooms be prepared to walk into one of the most foul smelling and dirtiest restrooms. To top it off the gym has managed to not maintain a certain standard for this situation. Next is the gym equipment. For the most part the equipment is not entirely clean but you can manage a good workout. The down side is weights are limited in my opinion. And the bars and bench pads are damaged. Many machines lack the material on the handles. Plus side they have kettlbells and turf. Be warry of walking barefoot in the restrooms have heard the most outrageous stories.

With in the last 3 years, this gym has really declined. It’s always dirty, the bathrooms smell horrible and are never clean, the turf patch is moldy, there’s trash everywhere, and there is a lot of defective equipment that doesn’t get cycled out, like bent barbells. On top of that, there’s always high school kids smoking and vaping in the bathrooms, and sometimes they’re wrestling in the middle of the gym. The workers seem to not care because I never see them at least address the smoking or the wrestling. As if the underage smoking in a public gym wasn’t bad enough, Sometimes, if you go early enough in the morning, there’s a homeless person in the gym. It’s just an overall horrible gym at this point. I wish I was making up this stuff.

It's not the biggest gym, but that's to be expected given that it's in Chicago. The space that they have is used very effectively though, and the pool looks huge and well-maintained, although I haven't swam in years. Some of the weight equipment show their age, but even then, everything is really well taken care of, and there are also plenty of newer equipment too. There's a good focus on powerlifting and free weights in the weight room, and the equipment selection shows that. They allow chalk which is fairly uncommon in my experience for school gyms (neither UIC nor UIUC allows chalk for example) and commercial gyms. They have a variety of barbells, including women's bar (35 lbs and 25 mm diameter) and I think even some power bars (45 lb and 29 mm diameter) instead of the standard mixed use barbells (45 lb and 28.5 mm). There are 10 (12?) squat racks (technically 5(6?) two-sided full racks, but the point is that there are 10 or 12 slots with safety bar to squat and such), although there aren't any dedicated bench stations so you'll have to pull a bench over to one of the racks to bench. They have most of the weight machines you'd expect to see. The main critique I have would be that they don't seem to have a hack squat, and all their leg press machines are horizontal leg press, which feel way worse to me than angled leg press. They were doing some maintenance when I was there though, so maybe they had those machines stashed away. Also, while they don't have a hack squat, they do have 2 Smith machines so really, it's just the lack of an angled leg press that somewhat matters. There's a decent cardio selection upstairs, and there are several rooms to play/practice other sports. It would be nice to have some matted areas to stretch and perform mobility routines/yoga, but there are portable mats available.

Received a day pass while visiting the college with my son. The pool is great and the facility was really nice and clean. There was an interesting little museum and hall of Fame when you first walk into the building that was cool to see.

A good gym just a short walk from the commons.

Weight room is crowded and not well laid out and too small for the number of people they are trying to service. The steam room has been closed for years (with no price adjustment for a day pass.) The pool is now under construction for months. Lockers are expensive--$70 a quarter. Overall an okay gym, but lots of frustrations with it.

This review is for the Gerald Ratner Athletics Center which houses the competition pool for the university. A parking garage is across the street, but other than that it's a challenge, For safety I would not park off campus. My son swam in his conference meet the UAA. He swims for Washington University. Typically Emory, Chicago & WashU are the top programs in the country. The teams are competing in swim and dive. The facility lacks adequate spectator space for very large meets such as this. The pool is a 50 meter plus diving. It's a great pool and swims fast! The staff at the event over four days was excellent. Ticketing was handled well and the lines organized. They even had a coat check. My deduction of 1 star is the spectator area. Not only small, but the design is poor. Only the two front rows can see well. 3.5 rounding down.

No Kids allowed. This is crazy, especially for single parents or parents in general. Horrible horrible. A decision like this affects an entire family and I can say it personally affected the dynamics in mine. I have the option of looking for alternatives but my issue here is that I shouldn't have to. How do you encourage people to come to the gym if they need to also pay for baby sitters?

My first time at this location and it was a great experience. Went close to 11 am and not a lot of people and I welcome that. The summer program for teenagers is awesome! I saw many kids when I went today. Hope you keep this program in the near future!

Me and my friend just decided to check out the Planet Fitness. Upon exntrance Tania was very helpful after helping me set up my guest pass my friend and i walked around the gym and we decided to go to a different location , due to construction being done and the machines we needed were being used. As we were leaving we saw tania and her coworker looking at us and pointed at my friend and I, we had assumed we left something because we saw them pointing and staring we didnt think much of it but as we got into the car they were just staring out the window at us. we looked around and noticed nobody else was around us , so we went back because we didn’t know what was going on. We went inside and respectfully asked, “if there was an issue”, the coworker girl started to say “ I don’t know is there, you’re not the only person in the world” with the nastest attitude while holding her fist in her hands. if or there was an issue, the staff should’ve addressed us instead of staring at us while we got into our car. and if there wasn’t an issue, why did she give hostile answer as if she wanted to provoke something? Nonetheless, Tanya was very lovely thank you for all your help. Your coworker should learn some customer seevice tips from you.

Today was my 1st day going to planet fitness to workout I signed in and I went to work out nobody showed me anything they just sent me on my way no tour of anything I guess that's not how they do things there and I told them it was my 1st day but I guess it didn't matter But besides that I had a great time For what I could do I'm trying to work on my arm strength and my legs strength Could not do as much as I wanted to do today But tomorrow's another day And maybe I'll get someone to help me And make a workout routine They have a lot of machines and on every machine they tell you what muscles that it works out I wanted to get on the stair climber but I cannot step up that high because of my knee But all in all it's still Was a great time

Great place to work out. Clean. Low pressure environment, not intimidating if you’re new to the gym scene. A few machines need maintenance but there are usually others available. Staff is friendly.

Lovely space.... HORRIBLE STAFF! last year and this year, the non profit I work with, was scheduled to host events at the fieldhouse. After detailed and thorough communication they seem to always follow up after weeks of silence saying they messed up and can't supply the proper time frame of our needs. Today was the worst incident, being a free public event through the Chicago arcs program where a signed contract for our event to leave at 5pm. After they tried to move are event because of their management doubling booking the space, we ended up getting the space back and then they decided to kick us out and hr early even tho our contract said 5pm.... This is an unacceptable way to run a fieldhouse especially when communities are relying on community events that are ment to empower art and creativity. Would give 0 stars if that was possible.

The newest paving of margate park in Aug 2024 paved over all of the drains on the side of the path - they are useless drains. Simply the newest mediocrity of Chicago construction. You can't make this up... And no one is going to do anything about it - the park will flood everytime it rains now. Good job...

The fitness center is slightly better than other park district fitness center that being saided if you are serious about your fitness goals explore other options

Very family friendly! Family recommend Ed Movies in the park my family had a great time #free popcorn.,😎🤗👍

Clean bathrooms playground in the back baseball diamond dog friendly and it's beautiful to relax and get a piece of mind

Some improvement is needed but it has its advantages. You get 24 access and you can just come in and do whatever. Rules are common sense nothing weird. It’s a small space so sometimes it can feel crowded but comparing to La fitness and your other gyms it’s not as dense for sure. There are two things that are noticeably wrong though. 1) the ventilation isn’t good so it always smells musty, u can almost never see out the windows in the front bc of how foggy they are due to the sweat and poor ventilation and while this is unpleasant in the winter, it’s even worse in the summer time when they don’t have the AC at a good temperature. My other complaint is that often it’s not clean when you start paying attention. Like the machines, weight resting areas and sometimes the carpet. I’m sure it’s a hard job to have but this would make a huge difference. Could use a little more upkeep.

I don’t know about the negative reviews but I liked it. I never ran into staff and there’s usually 3-4 people in the entire gym. It’s cleaner than any other gym I’ve been to and everything has always worked. I wish they’d dim the lights a little but that’s just my personal preference. They also replaced “Member of the month” board with a “Pet of the month” and I got to enjoy looking a cute pets when checking in. In my opinion, the manager’s replies are what any person with common sense would think to say, but wouldn’t since ya know…corporate. I find it brave and refreshing. I’d recommend this gym without hesitation.

Devon Washington was an awesome person for streamlining and getting us ready for a week pass during my visit with my parents in Chicago. He was able to address any concerns I had and was very helpful. The gym was pretty cozy with very clean and updated equipment, and kudos to whoever organized the weights; it was no problem trying to locate the right weight to rack on to the squat bar. I am definitely going to reup my week pass next time I'm visiting my parents.

This is a great neighborhood gym. The staff is super friendly and they go to great lengths to ensure everything is always clean. The membership is a great community - never seen anyone with negative attitude or any kind of body shaming. And, if you're able to go during off-hours, the place is hardly crowded and equipment is always available. Plenty of cardio machines as well. This is a great local business to support - highly recommend.

I encourage anyone who is considering going to this gym to look at how the owner (or social media team?) replies to negative reviews so that they can see how unprofessional and egotistical they are. Instead of putting their efforts into improving the customer experience, someone is spending hours going on bizarre power trips where they reveal personal information about former clients? On the plus side it's really funny how dramatic they are. It sucks that I have to go to a gym further from my house to avoid this toxicity, but at least I can check back every once in a while to laugh at these small-minded weirdos. Hopefully at some point this place is under new management, because it would be nice to go to the gym that's closest to my house but there's no way I'm going near it in the meantime.

Easy to navigate gym with clear signage and plenty of machines. No nonsense attitude so I can get down to work with my partner. Nice front desk staff. Everything in good working order. Low price for the black card overall.

Hey hope doing okay if may ask? Staff is considerate and show care in a way by communication skills and maintenance as well. Visit many locations and refer a lot for health reasons too. Just would like pricing to be more negotiable and know amenities vary in specific areas.

Not from the area just visiting family, but a black card member. Pros: 1. A lot of space. 2. Good choice of free weights. 3. Good selection of machines. Recommendations: 1. Adequate lighting = more lighting. 2. Bands. I didn’t know you had to give an I.D.; I get why you do it. 3. Update more of the equipment. 4. The pull up bar within the TRX system is quite high; can be lower to accommodate others of shorter stature. 5. Lower the the holder for the yoga mats; accommodate others of shorter stature.

The place is not well kept half the machines are usually always not working. The water fountain is either not working or nonstop spilling out. I just feel like you can do a better job at keeping the gym at its standards. I've given this location plenty of chances but every time I am disappointed.

Egdar was very helpful and very nice. He was able to assist me with all my questions. I recommend his customer service and urge you all to ask for him if you need anything.

Great full service Y with classes and weights and sauna and steam! Old converted school with character. Cardio and other machines are like new and clean. Amazing and friendly staff.

Only hit the weight room this morning. Well maintained facility with a good variety of machines and quite a few squat racks. Dumbbells up to 100 pounds. They call it the "Bears Den" and it's full of Bear's memorabilia.

The schedules and services are constantly changing with no update to members in the app or online specifically the open swim schedule. The pool was closed for training and no contact was sent to members or signage posted in the facility. The second time I called to confirm the pool schedule and was given the wrong hours. The communication is very inconsistent across departments. As a long time member I’m constantly disappointed by the misinformation I receive by the front desk staff regarding scheduling for family programming at this ymca and it has been this way for several years through any leadership changes.

I enjoy this YMCA... Great staff and facilities! The equipment is decent and I can usually get in and out quick. The men’s fitness center needs a TV or at least one close by so I can watch the game while I relax after working out.

So impressed with our experience joining the Y, Leilanie at the front desk was so sweet and accommodating. She gave us a great tour and answered all our questions. The facility is super clean, has nicer equipment than most “high end” gyms, and isn’t overcrowded at all.