Love the U of MN rec center. I am now on faculty but have worked out in this facility since I was a medical student in 1994. State of the art equipment, beautiful running track, three swimming pools...its amazing and very affordable.

Generally I enjoyed the gym and was a good sport about them having less than adequate facilities for those who like to practice punching and kicking. The photo attached to this review is the current status for the last 120 day of one of the two bags they hold in their facility. I would expect this place to be more accommodating by replacing clearly broken equipment, given the revenue they pull in each year from tuition payments and sponsored events. To show pride in their maintenance, enough so to replace these bags. Bags to begin with that are generally not meant for commercial use and their place in a frequently visited gym is confusing and disappointing. The staff make a icy impression as well. They take it upon themselves to act as chaparones to adults and moderate the volunteered activity as though college students, adults, had no ability themselves to determine what behavior is appropriate in this space. They go about it in such a manner that I feel like Im 10 years old at recess again. I figured making it to collegiate level of education I could manage my own body and the activities I engage in as long as it respected others. Being easily into my 20s, closer to 30 than others expect, I never thought or needed supervision from youth that have little to no experience in what true accountability is. Who facilitate the idea that all bodies require policing even when not harming others. Thank you for reading.2/17It has been less than a week since my last edit and I am doing this because the lack of adequate and safe equipment has lead to the inevitable. Today while I was using the only punching bag that was left, as they did take down the other horribly broken bag. A student was injured. The bag was broken with sand slowly spilling out and no one noticed till that student slipped and fell. This is exactly what happens when there is no consideration in the type of equipment that is necessary for a frequently visited gym and the equipment they do have does not get fixed or replaced quickly. This bag was also another one that was light weight and not suitable for the amount of people that use it on a daily basis clearly. For the amount of money being put into this location, I can only expect that the students and other paying members deserve better working equipment and if they really care, more equipment. To have more equipment so that bags and other punching and kicking equipment isnt easily broken because there isnt a concentrated mass on one piece of equipment. Then when one piece of equipment finally needs to get replaced due to wear and tear it doesnt completely limit what patrons can do making it a small inconvenience instead of completely impacting their fitness plans. To include with the need for more equipment it also would be safer for everyone clearly after what happened. Once again thank you for reading.

The recreation is a great place to exercise and after a good workout come to the French meadow for snack and smoothie or coffee!

Its always great to come back to my school gym

My experience with the rec-well has been generally awful due to their inability to accommodate student groups. I am a member of a contact sport student group that holds its conditioning and activities within the facility, which has not properly taken into consideration the equipment needed for our activities. For a multi-million dollar facility, providing only 2 low quality punching bags is frankly unacceptable. This is without mentioning the horrendous condition they are in, as they have been damaged for months. Furthermore, contact sparring is prohibited, with the only exception being renting a multipurpose room for 75$ (plus additional fees incurred to have a “chaperone”).

Amazing gym facility. It has literally everything you could possibly need from weights, cardio equipment, great stretching area... It even has multiple work out facilities, a pool, and awesome extra curricular programs, group fitness programs, and much more. If youre a student here, youre lucky to have access to it for the price!

4 Levels of space and equipment. You can walk/run on the indoor track on level 3. New construction with an indoor connection to the older University Gym and swimming complex.

Fee-paying students and faculty at the U get a membership automatically. Anyone who goes to the U should take advantage of this huge, extremely well-stocked and well-staffed workout center. It has something for all skills levels and disciplines. Non-students can get memberships as well, but theyre relatively limited.

Great gym. All the instructors are super nice and helpful. Very friendly atmosphere. Thumbs up!!

Incredible campus gym with floors and floors of machines, courts of all kinds (basketball, pickle ball), 5 separate pools, and state of the art design. It’s so beautiful to see my tuition dollars go to something.

For the price (Faculty/Staff) it is worth it. You cant really beat the value of a gym of this quality for ~$30/month. You can get a pass to do as many fitness classes as you want per semester/summer, or a rock climbing pass for a great deal too. During the school year it gets very crowded though. My only complaint is a lot of the equipment doesnt ever get cleaned. The mats and other surfaces are pretty dirty

Its a nice gym but it is too crowded. The school could use another gym on the Minneapolis campus. Unless you go after 10:00 PM or before 9 AM, it is nearly impossible to complete a workout without waiting for equipment.

Had to deal with discrimination from a specific girl behind the front desk more than once trying to stop me and have me check in after I already did, assuming that im trying to sneak in the gym but im a student

This gym is absolute garbage

Great gym, I miss it a lot. for me its better than any suburban lifetime in the twin cities area. demographic is younger except for the occasional faculty grandpa on the bike during lunch. it was kept clean and people were better about re racking and wiping the machines than your average pleb public gym. plenty of space and big variety of machines but I think they need more squat racks and bench presses. the indoor track was really great too. its just a really nice looking modern place to work out. you wont find another gym like this.

Best work out place

I love coming here! There is plenty of space to do your workout routine, a ton of gym equipment/machines, and it has a calm atmosphere. The workers here are pretty nice and they are comfortable/approachable. Those are good qualities to have when you have a question about a new workout technique and you need help on your form. The gym goers mainly keep to themselves and dont ogle. I love it.

New addition as of three years ago is phenomenal! Includes climbing wall, indoor track, and tons more! The outdoor center is located here too where they offer trips and gear rentals. Great place to train for next adventure.

The best Gym in the whole planet Earth! ️️️And I am very serious about it! I love love love this place. Ive tried couple of other gyms but they are not even comparable with Rec Center. Even the St. Paul branch is not good at all! the Natatorium pool is a pool that when you try it, you barely want to swim in other pools! The physical activity classes (although come at a separate cost) are just awesome! Overall, It is the best gym. My only complain: It does not have parking (except some random street meters that you need to get lucky to find a free spot in the winter)

Awesome gym - its gotten better over the years with the renovations. Lots of great equipment for strength training, all the cardio machines you could want, and an incredible pool. That said, its crowded during peak hours even with all the facilities, so if you come with a plan to lift with a specific program then, plan to be frustrated if you cant be flexible with it. Open to U of M staff and students, alumni, and a few other options for community members who are affiliated with the U.

Very irresponsible! Due to some unknown reason, there was no hot water in the shower room today. How come there was no sign informing us that the facility was down? As a result, I had to take an ice-cold shower today after swimming. If it happens next time, I hope someone responsible for this could at least let us know in advance!

Best gym in town hands down. The price is super reasonable for Alumni too and sponsored community members. I cant say enough positive things.

Great facilities, fair prices, and the whole place is kept very clean. You can ignore the rest of this review if you want.Wow, still here? Okay. The only issue with this gym is the quite rude front desk staff. Theres a sh*tshow. I went to ask one of them a couple of questions and was treated like chopped liver - as though my inquiry about important stuff like fees was unreasonable (I guess this work-study crowd would rather chat about pish-all than, I dunno, do their jobs?)They also made a point of tossing my cards and forms onto the counter instead of just handing it to me. Oh, so thats how its gonna be? Good move, U of M Rec Center. Train your desk employees in customer relations instead of outright alienation.But anyway, by all means go here. Its a great place. Just try to not ever have any questions or concerns for the icy staff.

World class facility, massive gym with just about anything you could ask for. Cheaper than lifetime if you are a UMN alumni. Part of your tuition if youre a student. Tons of classes offered, indoor rock climbing. Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball, Squash. Powerlifting clubs, and more! Overall an excellent facility

Fantastic gym. If youre staying at The Commons Hotel next door you can get a free pass from the hotel. Lots of power racks, chalk and everything you could possibly need. Even includes a climbing gym!

Great facilities in term of conditions and room to walk. However, there is not many squat racks, or benches.Multiple floors do allow for workouts in isolation which is nice, and plenty of running machines and random machines.

They have at ton of different exercise options, both on your own and group classes.

Good facilities. Helpful friendly staff (Jared and Damien are the best). Dank climbing wall. Gets really busy on the first week of every semester.

Really fabulous gym. Only complaint I have is the hours arent amazing on weekends. Id love to be able to go later.

If you are a student you have to take advantage of this! It is the best gym facility I’ve ever used!

Awesome gym with a million different machines, free weights, and cardio, but every time I go, I have to walk around for 20 minutes to try to find a free squat rack. They have a lot of great equipment, but also have a lot of people using it!

Its pretty good. Some of the instructors leave something to be desired but they are likely new to this. The classes are pretty good, but its too Zumba heavy for my taste. More step! More dance based stuff thats NOT Zumba!

The new renovated gym is beautiful. Very spacious. The track on the third floor could be busy at time.

They pretty much have everything you would need for exercise here, although I mostly just use the gym access.

There is a wide range of recreational activities offered at the Rec Center. As well as a great number of classes such as ballroom dance and yoga. The staff is young and energetic.

So much equipment it is an amazing facility. I would recommend avoiding 4-6 pm because it is very busy.

Amazing place. Any game you name it, you can play the game. Excellent gym. Only for enrolled university students and faculty.

Lots of equipment but a strict dress code makes working out more sweaty and less enjoyable. It is crowded on occasion but the North Building is usually much more open. Also surprising is the lack of 35lb weights. Not an issue, just surprising.

This facility is one of the best I have ever worked out in. Over 4 floors of weights, bikes and machines as well as an indoor track.

The new renovated gym is beautiful.So much equipment it is an amazing facility.

Great facility .. but lots of stolen laptops and phones from lockers.?. UMPD no help.. you will NOT be reimbursed.

Ive been going to this gym for the last 20 years. The indoor track is especially outstanding.

Great facility with friendly staff. Wish it was open a bit later throughout the year.

Great new gym! Indoor track. Three floors of weights. Multiple basketball courts and rock climbing!

Love the Rec

All star gym facility, modern equipment and helpful staff. Also BIG!

New workout equipment. Nice sauna room after shower.

The new Rec building is now open, and there are even more machines, squat racks and treadmills now, so everyone doesnt have to queue to get your workouts in. They also added a new biometric admission system which is pretty cool.

Had lots of classes here

Very large and nice center.

Always crowded. Youll rarely find equipment available if you need a squat rack or bench press.

I love it!

Its a decent gym. I like how they allow chalk and they have oly platforms, but it can get crowded during busy hours and there isnt enough equipment to accommodate the crowd.

Best place to work out near the U. Gets crowded in the afternoon/evening.

Beautiful space, great equipment available for most all types of workouts.

Huge. Great classes, lots of machines and free weights. Usually busy though.

Excellent facilities and equipment -- love working out here!

Best gym! Really nice facilities.

In of the best rec center in US for public universities .

State of the art facility with everything you need.

Great facility but gets crowded easily

Such an awesome and welcoming place!

Its The Best Place Ever️️️

Cant beat the price. Best gym in the metro.

Party cool b

Amazing facilities. State of the art.

Good equipment, and they keep it nice and clean.

Refreshing coffee! oatmeal is really good!!

Nice running track around the facility.

Great facility but staffs are poorly trained

They have an indoor track that hangs over a floor below by cables

Clean and in order. Friendly staff.

Awesome facility

Great facility

Clean & new! tons of equipment available most of the time

Great facilities!

Squash courts are great.

Busy

$$ well spent!!!

Excellent rec center, but a bit expensive to non-students. Roughly twice as big as it probably needs to be.

Huge!

Nicest gym Ive ever been to.

Massive facility with the latest gear.

It has all you need, but too crowded during the school year.