Which gym would you choose?

[Hatake88]

Hey guys

I've recently had to leave my old gym due to taking a new job. Unfortunately, my new gym is crap (classes are almost exclusively cardio based with very little technical critique).So, I've decided to look for another gym.

The problem is that I currently work 50-60 hour weeks. 9am-7pm is the norm while busier weeks can see me working from 9am-9pm. Thankfully, my boss does allow me to attend classes twice a week; however, to do so, I have to come back to the office after training. This means any time I spent commuting/doing MT will be added on to what is already a fairly long day. Thankfully, I am unmarried/single/childrenless at the moment. I am however studying for another qualification which take-ups another 5-6 hours a week.

Putting yourself into my shoes, I was wondering what Sherdog would choose if they were me. I used to fight as an amateur (and am a purple belt in BJJ) but am now only looking to train for fitness purposes and to improve my technique. The maximum I think I can do is 2-3 classes per week. As I see it, I have 3 choices:

(i) Gym One (10-15 mins walking from work; $52 a week for unlimited BJJ/MT & Boxing)
Pros:
- Closest to work
- I also get to train BJJ and boxing (note however: when push comes to shove, I prefer doing MT over BJJ though)
- Coach is technical and has 50+ fights

Cons:
- Classes are only 45 mins long
- There are also only 2 MT classes on the gym's schedule which means I will get a maximum of 1.5hrs of MT training per week
- No sparring
- No weekend classes
- There is no separation between beginners and advanced students. From the trial I attended, most students seem to be beginners and - because of this - the instructor focuses more on basics.

(ii) Gym Two (25-30 mins from work; 45-50 minutes from home; $44 a week for unlimited MT)
Pros:
- The instruction is in-depth (goes into detail on why/how a technique should be executed).
- The coach is really experienced (having trained kickboxing world champions before) and has an eye for correcting technique.
- Classes are somewhat separated by skill level (beginners's MT and MT) so there is a chance to learn more advanced techniques.
- Classes on both Saturday and Sunday - best timetable out of the 3 gyms
- Classes are of a decent length (1 hour to 1 hr 15 minutes)

Cons:
- People who have 6+ months of instruction are allowed into the general MT class so I fear the level of instruction there is still going to be relatively low.
- The gym only has 4-5 fighters and they are all much larger than me (I used to fight at -64kg) - I don't know if I would get the chance to train with them.
- There is BJJ but it cost an additional $28 per time or an extra $44 a week. I'm probably not going to do BJJ at that price point haha.

(iii) Gym Three (30-35 minutes from work; 1 hr & 10 minutes from home; $40 for twice a week/$45 for unlimited MT & Boxing; $60 for unlimited MT, Boxing and BJJ)
Pros:
-The instruction is very technical and detailed
- The head coach is really experienced at fighting and coaching and was an ex-world champ. Other coaches are Thai fighters with 90-150 pro fights.
- Classes are separated by three to four levels (beginners, intermediates, advanced and fighters). I can definitely get into advanced. I am not too sure if I can get into fighters though considering I don't currently plan to fight.
- Lots of advanced students and fighters my size - this means decent training partners
- Classes on Saturdays
- BJJ is a viable choice ($15-20 extra a week isn't too bad for one or two classes of BJJ)
- Classes are of a decent length (1 hour to 1 hr 15 minutes)

Cons:
- Its the gym that is furthest away.
- The classes are at slightly awkward hours - I wouldn't have to explain why I'm leaving at 6pm for Gym no 2 but I might seem lazy if I left at 5:10pm for Gym no 3 (even if I do come back).

I have done trials at all 3 locations (which is how I came up with my observations). Sorry for the long post but, given my situation, what will you guys choose?

 

[bobthebuilder]

This seems easy. Train at gym (i) for one or two fights, and see how they prepare you. Move to gym (iii) if you need to, and if you are in shape.

 

[maxi diablo]

Sounds like you train at a UFC gym.

 

[Mad Dollar]

I would probably go for gym 3 or 2 because the classes are longer and better coaches

 

[Azam]

I'd go for 1 or 2.

Take it from personal experience - driving an over an hour to get to the gym - will result in inconsistent training.

You might go for a whole year to every session but eventually you'll start missing some sessions here/there & maybe even longer periods of inactivity - especially if you get busy or just get tired of having to spend that much time driving.

It's worse if you have a really intense training session where for example you might have been sparring hard - then you have to drive over an hour to get back home. I've been there and done that. Better to choose something within reasonable distance.

 

[Jonathan Mohr]

Time to do some soul searching and determine what your priorities are; Work or Fighting.

There are going to be compromises either way, it's not an easy decision. Personally I would go with gym 3, but only you can decide if that will work for you in the long-term. Too bad gym 3 couldnt be as close to work as gym 1...mierda.

Good luck!

 

[j123]

Time to do some soul searching and determine what your priorities are; Work or Fighting.

 

[Reyesnuthugr]

I'd go for 1 or 2.

Take it from personal experience - driving an over an hour to get to the gym - will result in inconsistent training.

CM Punk drove 2 hours back and forth (4 hours total!) to Duke Roufus' Gym every session for a year+ when he trained for a fight against (who would turn out to be) Mickey Gall. Use that for inspiration, TS!

 

[Reyesnuthugr]

Honestly, if the 1st gym (I see there is no sparring) has an actual good technical coach (at boxing-- because I see you are in the standup forum), then I would take PRIVATE LESSONS from him. This will make the most of your time and get you learning stuff much quicker than in a group format where there is no sparring. Also is he is mainly a BJJ guy I would not go there for boxing. I don't know a single person that's great at BJJ AND Boxing. Maybe BJ Penn, he comes the closest (that's why they call him 'Prodigy'), but most people are only good at 1 maximum, that's just how it is. There's a statistically zero percent chance of him being technical at both (ime)

Do the group classes @ Gym 1 include partner drills? If so, and the coach is indeed technical, then go to the classes anyway. Drills are awesome, even quicker progres than sparring, plus I'm sure you can find a willing sparring partner or 5 outside of the classtime because sparring is good for getting used to applying what you learned in drills and experimenting to see what you can get away with and what works in a broader context.

So if I were you, I'd get only private lessons with the coach for a few months, then get into his class if there were partner drills.

After that, if you want to go forward and have more fights and spars, elevate even further you can go to another gym farther away. See how you feel then. You can always continue to get private lessons with your first coach if he's that good, you don't have to tell anyone and it's not scandalous even if anyone finds out.

That's my answer, hope you like it a lot