I get asked about this a lot. “What’s the best gym in Milwaukee?”
I’ll answer it. But…I also have a point to make with my answer.
Here’s my List:
Top Line in Glendale. Blacked out, turf floor, really nice equipment. You feel like Batman. It’s quiet because it’s exclusive. Last I checked it was around $100 a month. The owner is an incredibly disciplined and hardcore guy. Great if you live on the north side and want to get your work in alone, without distractions.
Social Candy Athletics, down by Potawatomi. Same blacked-out feel, but with people. A lot of the serious bodybuilders and executives in this city train there. Turf, machines, free weights. Around $100 a month. If you’ve got the money, this is my top pick.
MKE Muscle in Brookfield. I trained there all through college. Great management, huge variety of equipment, priced reasonably. Packages are around $50 a month, last I checked. The downside? It’s packed in the evenings and you’ll wait on equipment. Still near the top of my list.
Brickyard on the south side. Upstairs in an old apartment building. Old-school bodybuilding gear and memorabilia, some of it signed by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronnie Coleman. The day passes are cheap. I’d tell everybody to go once or twice and meet the staff. Would I train there regularly? Probably not. But it’s worth a rip.
Animal House in Hales Corner. All red equipment. The gear is fantastic and I know good people who train there. But ownership isn’t what it used to be. Last time I went, there was a sign telling me to be quiet and not use chalk. Instant turnoff.
Metroflex in Brookfield. Concrete jungle. Spray paint on the walls. More bodybuilder and powerlifter. I usually go for a different experience and to meet some hardcore lifters.
If you’re looking for something more 1:1 and hands-on. MKE Fit in Greenfield is my top pick (obviously). Boutique style, one-on-one. Never more than 8 to 10 people in the building. Good for learning form or getting back into it for the first time in a while. I train several clients there, so I’m biased.
But the real question…
Why are you shopping for a gym?
Be honest. Is it because your current one is bad? Or because a new place feels like a fresh start?
Because I’ve done that move MANY times. New gym. New membership.I’ll start Monday. And it feels like progress, because you did SOMETHING.
But did you train?
There’s actual data on this. DellaVigna and Malmendier, 2006, looked at real gym members on flat monthly contracts. They paid around $17 per visit. The pay-per-visit price was $10. They overpaid because they believed they’d go more than they did.
So what was that membership actually buying? Not workouts. It was buying the “feeling” of being someone who works out. This is how Planet Fitness makes ALL their money.
You already know what to do in a gym. You’ve done it. That’s not your problem.
Your problem is you don’t trust yourself to show up when you said you would. And a blacked-out Batman gym 25 minutes away doesn’t fix that. It gives you a nicer place to not go.
So pick the gym that you will ACTUALLY go to…not the coolest one.
How far is it from your house or your office? Can you get in at 5:30 and be done by 6:30? Will you wait on a rack for 20 minutes? Can you afford it without hating it?
Lally et al., 2010, tracked people building a new habit. Average time to build one? 66 days. Some took 18. Some took 254. So look for a gym you can see yourself walking into for 66 days when you’re tired, stressed, and it’s raining outside.
Try this week
Pick two gyms from the list. Two. Grab a day pass or trial for each.
Then ask yourself:
Did I actually go?
Was I out the door on time?
Would I do this again on a bad day?
Put three sessions on your calendar, same time each day. Treat it like a meeting at work or doctor’s appointment. Then see which gym you actually enjoyed.
And…if you’re local…hit me up on instagram. I’d be happy to get a Saturday morning lift in.
Still not sure which one fits your schedule, your budget, or your goals? Fill out a free consultation below and we’ll map out your gym and your week together.
Studies Mentioned
DellaVigna, Stefano, and Ulrike Malmendier. “Paying Not to Go to the Gym.” American Economic Review, vol. 96, no. 3, 2006, pp. 694-719. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.96.3.694.
Lally, Phillippa, et al. “How Are Habits Formed: Modelling Habit Formation in the Real World.” European Journal of Social Psychology, vol. 40, no. 6, 2010, pp. 998-1009. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.674.
