Bow Creek Recreation Center

Great place to go to work out on a daily basis. They don't open early enough to go before work but they do stay open pretty late during the summer months. There's a nice playground outside, and park area out back to walk through, and a gym that has most of the gym equipment you could hope for at a Rec center. However there are two big downsides... 1: Their kiddy pool and main pool are connected by design for accessibility but that has a tendency to make the water in the main pool a bit nasty. I have never used the pool at this Rec center for this exact reason. Look at other reviews for confirmation. They have gotten better over the last 2 years, just be aware that this IS a continuous issue that's being actively mitigated through more pool cleanings. 2: The gym is upstairs and their A/C does not work well for that specific area. It gets really hot and humid during the summer months and it's not ok to go work out during the middle of the day during said months. They did not account for the fact that heat rises and could accumulate up there due to a multitude of factors while designing the place. There is no work around for this except better A/C or going to work out in the early mornings or late evenings. I'll just say the better A/C is not working. They say they fixed their A/C but I honestly can barely tell the difference. The architect who put the gym upstairs in this place while not considering the additional A/C and ventilation needed to keep it cool due to basic thermodynamic laws should get slapped upside the head.

Bow Creek is a very nice rec center and well equipped and maintained. It’s usually moderately used during the day during main work hours. I am 87 years old and healthy after heart bypass surgery, pacemaker implant, four eye surgeries and aches and pains from arthritis and neuropathy. I need the exercise to maintain my agility as long as possible. The only part of the facility I use is the gym/weight room. I only have one complaint. The attendants play so-called music to , as they say, to offset the noise of the exercise machines and weights. I don’t know where they get the idea that adding more noise reduces or offsets other noise. The music is nothing but constant thumping which after an hour or more becomes more annoying. I have measured the decibels of the thumping music and it ranges between 65 and 75, in the range of hearing damage. I use hearing aids and the lowest settings do not ease the noise. I have tried plugs and the banging noise still can be heard. It is interesting how many people wear wireless headphones that cancel out noises. There is obviously no thought given to the need for such amplified noise because it is the same level of thumping whether there are ten people exercising or thirty. Noise from weights last a split second but the thumping is incessant. Some quiet time without the thumping would be welcome, at least some breaks from the added noise. Usually when background noise gets louder the people get louder. With noise comes tension and exercise is supposed to help reduce tension.

We usually go to the Kempsville Rec Center, but decided to try out Bow Creek because they offered a game room for the kids. I called before we went to check and make sure all the kids could go into the game room and was told the generic info and the staff never confirmed anything. I asked several times if they would be able to play and was told yes. When we arrived, the front desk staff was no help and we were told we couldn’t use the game room until after 3:15pm because of summer camp? Why did we get passes for the rec center if most activities can’t be used until the end of the day? There should be scheduled times for other people to used these activities room throughout the day.

Last Wednesday I lost my dance shirt in the shower room.Thank you for finding the important clothes that I needed here is 5 stars.All stuffs help me a lot to find my dance shirt.

I guess it's all about what you like to do. My exercise as a semi handicap person with leg issues is the recumbent bike. It's easy for me to use this piece of equipment. I live within walking distance to the kempsville center which is over crowded and I cannot access this equipment. It's worth a 20 minute drive to always access this equipment ten out of ten times I visited. It's worth the time to drive. Someone else pointed out no indoor track at bow Creek which is correct but during the cooler time of the year they have a small circular trail outside and access to the old bow Creek golf course if you really want a workout.