United Barbell – CrossFit SOMA

Having been a member and ‘drop in’ guest at dozens of Crossfit gyms across the country I feel qualified to say the Jenny and the crew at UB are some of the best coaches I’ve ever encountered. Whether your looking to join a new gym or looking to workout while in SF I couldn’t recommend this gym enough.

This place is inspiring. There are a lot of kickass athletes working out here and the community is very encouraging. I would definitely recommend this place for anyone irrespective of their current level or fitness.
I moved to the bay area in Jan ’15 and was looking to try out crossfit as a new activity. I still remember the first day when I walked up to Nikki and enquired about crossfit and she gave me confidence that it’s something I can do. I enjoy my evening WODs and all our UB coaches Trent/​James/​Jon/​Nikki/​Kristin are awesome.
I felt cannibalized by the community here and saw myself improve over time. They are always quick to give feedback if I was doing anything wrong or compliment if I was doing good. The workouts are different each day and are really challenging and fun.
Overall, I enjoy my time here and try to learn and get better each time :)

I just had my one year anniversary at UB not too long ago so I think its fitting that I write a a review that reflects my time here so far…
When I look for a gym I look for three main things: community, coaches, and programming that helps me grow as an athlete.
COMMUNITY: There is literally none better. I have worked out at a number of different boxes and gyms and I can confidently say that United Barbell gives me and others the best sense of community possible. Everyone from the athletes to the coaches are warm and welcoming and supportive. Coming to workout at the end of the day is my favorite time of the day. And I have made some of my best friends at UB. Especially being new to SF, UB gave me a sense of home. We also have parties, movie nights, charity WODs, holiday WODs, and more!
COACHES: Stellar coaching staff. Each coach at UB is very attentive and works hard to make sure each athlete is succeeding at their goals. I can’t tell you how awesome it is to have each coach rooting for you and asking you how this or that is going, or how you are recovering from an injury or what not. They personally invest in your growth and success which to me has been key.
PROGRAMMING: UB offers a range of classes from Olympic lifting to Strength WOD to my personal favorite, Level 2 classes. The range allows you to work on different aspects of your overall Crossfit fitness and the programming within each class is always different and encourages the mastery of Crossfit lifts and movements.
Overall United Barbell deserves like 10 stars. But if you want to see for yourself, even if you’ve never tried Crossfit, come by :)

Love United Barbell. As Jenny (the owner) would say, I was formerly a «gym bunny». Never squatted more than 135lbs. Never did sets with less than 10 reps. Never held a barbell above my head over 65lbs. Couldn’t do a pull up or proper pushup. (This is all really sad considering I was a D1 swimmer). Enter UB, and it’s truly been a breakthrough in my fitness. I feel so empowered from doing the WODs and seeing myself progress in strength and skill month over month.
UB provides an amazing atmosphere that brings together a community of awesome staff/​coaches with ambitious professionals from all walks of life. The energy is infectious, the classes are fun, and you’ll definitely be stretched mentally and physically. However, everything can be scaled to your capabilities as they really stress form and technique first, unlike a lot of the other nightmare boxes I hear about where people just go HAM without proper coaching and injure themselves.
If you’re looking for a place to workout (and especially if you’re just a regular gym rat/​bunny like I used to be) I’d highly recommend dropping in and checking it out!

tl;dr awesome gym, great community, safety and form focussed coaches, life changing experience.
I’ve been coming here for a little over a year and its been life changing. I don’t think its necessary to repeat what most of the other reviewers have said but I’ll add one thing. The coaching staff is highly experienced and very focussed on form and safety. One of the criticisms of Crossfit is that because HQ performs little oversight of their affiliates there is a lot of variance in quality and there are scary stories that get passed around of coaches allowing or even encouraging poor form and pushing people into unsafe areas. At UB the coaching staff has very deep experience drawing on many different disciplines. Their focus on form and safety is ever-​present and always clear.
Cannot recommend strongly enough. Just go there. Now.

United Barbell has everything you’d expect (and need) from a CrossFit gym: awesome equipment. Stellar instructors. Guidelines designed to keep you safe. But you know what makes it unbeatable? The people. From the owners to the trainers to the folks who regularly show up, it’s about the people.
Join United Barbell if you want to be a part of a community that will make your life better.

Half of success is just showing up. That’s what’s great about United Barbell… I actually want to go, I want to show up, and therefore I get better results than I have at any other gym I’ve ever joined. Location is key… around the corner from my office, so that helps a lot. And the people are great… coaches and members alike. I call many of them friends now, which brings me back to wanting to show up.

Awesome coaches! Awesome and spacious facilities! Incredible good vibe and camaraderie! Prime location in the heart of San Francisco just steps away from the Cal Train station on 4^th and King St.

I love working out at UB! Amazing coaches, super fun atmosphere, the equipment is always in good order, thoughtful programming, and plenty of options for classes.
I travel frequently for work and drop in at gyms whenever I can. Without a doubt, the biggest difference I notice is in the quality of the coaching. The personal attention to each athelete’s form, the ability to hold the attention of an entire class and keep everyone moving through the warm-​ups and workout without sacrificing quality, and the level of knowledge of all of the UB coaches are all the best I’ve seen.

Love this place! Had no interest in CrossFit but my husband wouldn’t stop bugging me until I at least tried it. It’s now been 2 ½ years and I go 3 times per week. I was really active before (soccer, running, yoga) but now I’m so much stronger. This gym is particularly good about teaching correct technique which was really important to me. The best part of this gym is the group of coaches and members who really make this place special. Nice, supportive, interesting and fun!

A+ for exclusivity. I registered for an «All Levels» class from there website, going with a seasoned crossfit dude and a friend who’s visitting from abroad.
When we got there and started signing the waiver (why wasn’t this also on the website) we were told that «All Levels» does not include Beginners. But it’s ok, they have a drop in session once a quarter.
They even turned away the dude who already does crossfit… we just want to give you our money, seriously.
A total waste of my evening and a rude reception from Nikki, at least they were happy to refund.

NIKKI STALEY IS OUTRIGHT RUDE. She acted annoyed from the start, didn’t want to answer any questions, and wouldn’t even tell me how to sign me up when I said I wanted to get started.
I sent and email asking if I could come in and check out the place. Nikki replied and said I could come in between classes. When I got there, someone lead me to the back to speak with her.
I told her that I was interested in signing up and wanted to learn a bit more about gym and crossfit in general. I asked her if the name «United Barbell» indicated any difference with gyms that just stated «Crossfit». She relied in an annoyed tone, «We are a crossfit gym.» So I asked, «so there is no difference?» She replied again in the same annoyed tone «we are a crossfit gym.»
I told her that I was concerned about proper form when when doing heavy weights, as not to hurt my back doing weighted squats for example. I asked her «is proper form emphasized?» She answered «that’s a very general question» and just left it at that. She wasn’t even trying to answer my questions. I really don’t know why she told me by email to come into the gym.
I don’t know why, but I tried again. I then asked her if the workouts were geared toward any specific goals, like strength, endurance or anything else. She told me that «everyone has different goals». I didn’t understand her answer, so I tried again by saying that when I trained for a marathon, I followed a training routine that included primarily long distance running. When I wanted to increase my strength, I followed a weight training routine. I asked if the workouts were geared toward something specific, such as endurance, strength or maybe something else. She got irritated and told me that I could work on anything that I wanted.
I didn’t want to dismiss the gym just because of one rude person so I asked how I could get started. She told me to check online and sign up for an intro class. She didn’t bother to give me the website address. We were actually standing a few feet from a computer she had been using and she didn’t care enough to show me either. I had actually taken a look at the website beforehand and there were no future intro classes noted on the website. So I told her that. She just seemed annoyed that I would point that out. I was just trying to get started and she was giving me an attitude for asking how. She then said that I would have to start with private coaching. I asked how I could sign up. She told me that I would have to be scheduled, but stopped short of telling me how. She just looked at me, saying nothing, as if I was wasting her time.
At this point, I gave up. I said «thank you,» shook her hand, and left the gym.

Over the past 3 – 4 years I have been a member of 8 Crossfit boxes (3 in the bay, Belltown in Seattle, 2 in London, Soder in Stockholm) and I have to say this is the best of them all.
The community here is really friendly and the instructors are really positive and knowledgeable.
I highly recommend.

This is a great CrossFit Box:
— The instructors are focused, talented and very motivating
— The program design is thoughtful and the workouts are challenging. If you come 3 or 4 days in a week you will find good diversification of movements and types of training
— The facilities are spacious and clean with lots of well-​maintained equipment
— The people training with you are supportive, welcoming and friendly
I push myself every time I workout here which is exactly what I need. I have learned a number of WODs I enjoy that I use when I sometimes train solo in a traditional gym. If you are into CrossFit or want to give it a try, you should check out United Barbell!

I’ve been coming here for about 2 and a half years now and am really happy with how the gym has grown and the quality of instruction has continued to stay so high. With the recent move into the larger space, there is more room for the WODs and for multiple classes at a time. I love this gym!

To start off, no matter what you fitness level is or fitness goals are, Crossfit can help you eliminate the physical barriers that stand in your way!
I have been doing crossfit off and on for about 3.5 years and been to a handful of different boxes (Crossfit gym for newbees), and United Barbell has the hands down most inviting community that I have experienced. Whether you are a new member or dropping in, everyone introduces themselves at the beginning of class and helps every person through the workout until the last person finishes. From a programming standpoint, the new gym and schedule provide amazing options from entry level classes to level 2 classes, strength training, and olympic lifting. The only ding I would have given this gym was space as their old location was pretty cramped, but now they have an awesome facility to go along with an awesome coaching staff!

I’ve been a member of UB for about 7 months now and it has been the best gym I’ve been a part of by far. I signed up for 3x /​week initially because of the cost — but after deciding it was money (more than) well spent — am now on the unlimited plan.
In the short amount of time I’ve been a member — my fitness has improved tremendously and I feel much better. My endurance and strength has increased as I learn new skills and hone some old favorites (except burpees — i still hate those).
The coaches are great and always willing to help any of the members. I’ve dropped in to other gyms when I travel and I have to say — the coaches at UB are top notch. The amount of time spent to technique (both demonstrating and correcting) is great to ensure athletes have proper form and don’t get injured.
The other great aspect of UB is the community — I couldn’t ask for better WOD partners. In the spirit of crossfit — they support, encourage and compete to make the experience awesome.

tl;dr: This gym is ridiculously awesome, and you should come.
I’ve been training at United Barbell for more than 3 years (it recently moved from down the street), and it has been an incredibly positive life-​changing experience. I used to be strictly an endurance athlete — first running, then biking — but never really felt in shape. Getting into CrossFit has been nothing short of transformative. Old back injuries? Healed and strong. Tough Mudder? Trained and ready. Climb a mountain? No problem.
UB is so much more than just getting in shape, though. The community of athletes is incredibly positive, patient, and supportive, and something I am incredibly proud to be a part of. CrossFit is challenging, and the skills it takes require time and practice. Having such a friendly, encouraging community around makes a tremendous difference, and it’s something I value very deeply. If this sounds like something you want in a gym, then come check us out.

same awesome crossfit gym, same awesome coaches just a bigger space to accomodate more people and classes. It’s basically 2 blocks over from the old location and across the street from a Safeway so if you get hungry after, you can stop by.