Fitness First Brighton

I would highly recommend this gym to anyone who was looking for a decent gym in Brighton.
The staff are professional and friendly, they don’t hound you to sign up for a Personal training session with them — which they do in LA FITNESS. It’s clean and spacious — you don’t need to worry about really waiting for machines or bumping into/​getting in the way of people– which you do in LA FITNESS.
It’s also got some really good high quality and state of the art equipment. I particularly enjoy running, but sometimes it gets a bit boring — especially if you run for a while! Some of the machines in this gym have screens which enable you to choose a route to follow, so it feels as if you are actually running through that scene. My favourite by far is the German Mountains run! Its great and has kept me really entertained!
This gym is a little more expensive than the other gyms such as LA FITNESS or pure gym or The gym. Their membership is around £45 or more so perhaps a little more than others but its worth it!
You avoid queues, it’s not as busy, and really the main thing… people who go there know what their doing and don’t dress in vans, skinny fit adidas tracksuits and wife beaters/​vest tops that look like they should be bungee jump straps!
One disadvantage… No pool!

Needing to shift a few pounds, I heard about a free 5 day trial FF was offering, via one of the cashback sites (
, i think.)
Getting set up was a bit of bother– having to enter your details online, THEN call them up, to book an intro session?
Failing to get through on the 3^rd or 4^th attempt, I went into the actual gym, and was sorted out straight away.
On the 1^st session, I was briefly shown around, and then left to it. from reception, you have to doewn down one floor to the open plan gym, with changing rooms etc on the next level down.
The impression I got was of a converted factory, who’s owner had got a job lot of grey paint — grey is everywhere! The rarther harsh lighting does no favours, either.
There is no escaping the corporate FF brainwashing — posters, large tv’s etc are in view everywhere you look, enticing you to sign up for more pain (er, I mean courses.)
Equipment wise, there is a lot of choice, though rather tightly positioned, (with one or two partly obscuring fire exits?) — could be tricky whenever it got busy.
I would say about a dozen running machines, same again for step /​cross trainers, various other leg /​arm /​body machines, 4 rowers, and plenty of free weights too, with a few members of staff around, to guide you through if needed.
Downstairs there are lockers with credit card type (RFID?) locks, with shower stalls, leading to the wet area–
The steam room was not working when I was there, though the sauna was– indeed very hot, and it took a few sessions (going to /​from shower) to build up tolerance to the humidity.
I do not know how much membership is, though I guess you get what yuou pay for.

I was a member of this gym for a year when it was still a Fitness First for Women (a single sex gym– dull or relaxing? I didn’t think it would make much difference except to give me less to look at, in fact it made me feel much more comfortable– I guess men give of aggressive/​sexual vibes at a gym– I didn’t even realise I felt that way… anyway back to the review). It has now been refurbished and opened up again as a welcome to all gym but is little changed apart from some newer machines and different décor in the changing rooms. There are two rooms upstairs for classes like Yoga and Pilates and the main gym is downstairs. Although you have to go down to the gym it is incredibly bright and light because the whole right hand wall is ceiling to floor windows looking out on Trafalgar Street and the Prince Albert pub. The main gym room has a good assortment of machines– pretty much every weight training machine you would need, several rows of treadmills and bikes, and a corner with mats and free weights. There is the usual flank of tv screens in front of the treadmills and bikes to distract you from your pain. The changing rooms are nicely kitted out and there is a small sauna and steam room. All in all small but well put together. I used to go weekdays so it was usually nice and quiet– it does get busy in the evenings but not so much in the mornings before work. Book early for any classes. The monthly rate still seems astronomical to me but it is quite reasonable I think compared to others.