How do you choose a gym?

[Ronin74]

What criteria do you use to choose a place to train?

I'm trying to pick a gym to train at, and I finally have it down to two gyms, but having a hard time coming to a single conclusion.

Suggestions?

 

[Tez3]

What is your aim in MMA? What MA do you already study? If you want to compete you will need a gym with a proven record of bringing on people , having good coaches, not pushing people straight into competitions, people who know about everything concerned with competeting from nutrition to fitness training. If you don't want to compete then the choice will be the same as if you were going to any other MA club or school.

 

[Ronin74]

What is your aim in MMA? What MA do you already study? If you want to compete you will need a gym with a proven record of bringing on people , having good coaches, not pushing people straight into competitions, people who know about everything concerned with competeting from nutrition to fitness training. If you don't want to compete then the choice will be the same as if you were going to any other MA club or school.

Well I wouldn't mind competing just to guage my abilities and help guid my training, but I'm not looking to be a world champion or anything like that.

Both have good coaches, and both gyms have quite a few pros vs some very minor cons. I'm trying to think if there's any criteria I'm missing, before I start using parking availability as a criteria.

 

[Tez3]

Well I wouldn't mind competing just to guage my abilities and help guid my training, but I'm not looking to be a world champion or anything like that.

Both have good coaches, and both gyms have quite a few pros vs some very minor cons. I'm trying to think if there's any criteria I'm missing, before I start using parking availability as a criteria.

Don't knock a parking space lol! if you come out of the gym absolutely knackered you don't want to walk far! Other than the normal thing of going to have a look at both and seeing how comfortable you feel there, if you fancy fighting have a talk to the coaches to see how they approach starting you off. We never suggest to anyone that they fight, we let people come in and train and say to us that they fancy a fight, then the instructor will tell them if they are ready or if not what they should do to get ready. All our fighters start off with amateur rules first unless they have done boxing or kickboxing and are happy with headshots then they'll start with semi pro rules.
As a club we teach MMA as a whole as we aren't full time we can't do separate sessions for BJJ/grappling, standup and fitness etc, some places can so you'll have to think whether it suits you to do it that way or as an all in session.
what are the minor cons of each place?

 

[Ronin74]

Don't knock a parking space lol! if you come out of the gym absolutely knackered you don't want to walk far! Other than the normal thing of going to have a look at both and seeing how comfortable you feel there, if you fancy fighting have a talk to the coaches to see how they approach starting you off. We never suggest to anyone that they fight, we let people come in and train and say to us that they fancy a fight, then the instructor will tell them if they are ready or if not what they should do to get ready. All our fighters start off with amateur rules first unless they have done boxing or kickboxing and are happy with headshots then they'll start with semi pro rules.
As a club we teach MMA as a whole as we aren't full time we can't do separate sessions for BJJ/grappling, standup and fitness etc, some places can so you'll have to think whether it suits you to do it that way or as an all in session.
what are the minor cons of each place?

The minor cons were solved today. One was the parking, but there's a cheap parking garage around the corner. The other was the distance from home, but that's sort of negligible.

I start Monday

 

[Tez3]

The minor cons were solved today. One was the parking, but there's a cheap parking garage around the corner. The other was the distance from home, but that's sort of negligible.

I start Monday

Good luck! let us know how you get on!

 

[Ronin74]

Good luck! let us know how you get on!

Thanks. As luck would have it, I met most of the trainers yesterday, including the head trainer, and they told me to take the week to find out if the gym is the right fit for me.

On a side note, I also found out one of the trainers was on a show called Fight Girls. Unfortunately, I don't watch enough TV to know if that's good or bad... lol

 

[Tez3]

Thanks. As luck would have it, I met most of the trainers yesterday, including the head trainer, and they told me to take the week to find out if the gym is the right fit for me.

On a side note, I also found out one of the trainers was on a show called Fight Girls. Unfortunately, I don't watch enough TV to know if that's good or bad... lol

I didn't see the programme, not sure if it was shown here but from reading up on it I think whatever the programme itself was like the Muay Thai skills of the fighters was of a good standard.