With barre, spin, and boxing studios opening daily, it’s hard to find a fitness studio or gym in New York City these days that feels super unique. Brooklyn Athletic Club, which just opened in May, defies those odds.
The Williamsburg-Greenpoint workout destination, which sits on McCarren Park just next to happening rooftop bar Berry Park, was originally scheduled to open as far back as July 2014. And when you get inside, you can see why the build-out ended up taking a while.
Owner Larry Betz, who first opened Maxim Health Fitness in Williamsburg in 2004 (since closed) traded his small training studio, Betz Method, which was right next door, for an exponentially larger space that’s now Brooklyn Athletic club, a massive four-story training facility that offers private training, small-group training, open-floor workouts, indoor cycling, yoga, swimming, and, yes, more.
“You need variety in training to to keep it interesting, and also to prevent over-training and imbalances,” Betz says. “If you keep getting injured, maybe you should spend less time lifting weights and more time doing yoga, or if you can’t go up stairs, maybe you should spend more time on the treadmill. People can come in and get everything they need in one space.”
In case you’re thinking of taking his advice, here are five crazy fitness amenities at Brooklyn Athletic Club that will be very hard to find at other elbow-room-challenged boutique studios in NYC.
And the best part? The gym is not only accessible to Williamsburg’s new-monied elite—prices start at $85.
1. Endless pools, AKA two pools that generate currents so that swimming in them is like running on a treadmill. Perhaps your dream of training for a triathlon just became a little more possible?
2. A roof deck that overlooks McCarren Park, with cycling and yoga classes when the weather is nice.
3. A childcare center, which is sadly an ultra-luxury on the New York City fitness scene, even if it is par for the course at many gyms across the country.
4. Beginner group-training classes for those who never learned how to properly do basic moves like a squat, deadlift, or lunge, which is probably more of us than we’d like to admit.
5. Private saunas that you can book, and a spa that uses S.W. Basics products and offers acupuncture. —Jamie McKillop
For more information, visit www.brooklynathleticclub.com
(Photos: Brooklyn Athletic Club)
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