What Is Your Experience W/a YMCA Membership?

We are members at North Oakland YMCA and the staff there are great. Swim lessons for kids are rarely full - last time we made up 2 of the 3 kids taking class so great teacher kid ratio. The lessons I have done have been good too. The gym is not too full and not full of gym bunnies but normal looking people...!They let you pay a retainer (I think 75% off) if you know you are not going to be going for a month so that saves money. Only downside for us is no outdoor pool but the indoor one is nice and clean and has a slide and sprinklers for the kids

I'm not sure of that location but the Lakeshore Y, will give you discounts on membershi. If you work in the childwatch (it's the one for classes not the fulltime child care) you get either a membership or discount on it. It's usually only one weekday or night a week. You can bring your kids with you too. I believe the people also got paid a small amount of money. Wish I would have known this when my son was little b/ the cost of this Y didn't justify the memebership or so I thought.
Since then I've met many women who do childwatch and enjoy their membership. It's worth checking out...

Hi. I just joined the Y back in February. It has been SO worth it. My children are 3 and 1. They have their issues from time to time with the daycare (I am a SAHM, so they aren't used to it). But trust me, the workers are used to it. They just want you to go and use the benefits of the gym.

They have a limit, 2 hours per day for the daycare, but that is more than enough time to get done a work out. Just be warned that most classes charge extra. There are very few that are included in your membership. I took a pilates class 1 day a week for 8 weeks and it was a $30 charge. Not too bad, but the family membership is around $75 per month.

All in all I am happy with the Y (we go to the one in Mt. Clemens) and considering before this I had my daughter at Gymboree for $55 a month, the extra $20 for all you can use equipment and the babysitting is so worth it. The FitLinxx or whatever it is called is really helpful at tracking your progress in the actual gym. It even sends you reports in your email about what you have done that month.

At least take a tour. They are really nice and the tour takes a half hour or so. We were on the 'yes' side of things within 10 minutes of the tour and are not sorry with our decision....

good luck!

We joined the YMCA in Auburn Hills when we moved here 2 years ago. We LOVE it! The facility is always clean, the staff is very friendly and helpful. My twin daughters have been going to their childcare since they were 6 months old. I go to a couple of exercise classes, workout with a personal trainer in a small group, my girls take swim lessons and we attend a playgroup. We have had only positive experiences. I also hear the preschool is very good but I haven't checked it out yet (I do know it includes swim lessons). There is a free playgroup on the third Tuesday of the month for the summer (7/15 and 8/19) at 12:30 on the 3rd floor if you would like to check it out. Just call and register ahead or the day of at the front desk. It lasts 1 hour (format is free play, circle time (sing songs), craft/free play and closing circle to say goodbye). Perfect for your daughter's age.

Don't know about the Y, but you could also check into the Warren Community center. They have a nice pool and awesome kids waterpark. Mi kids have enjoyed their swimming lessons there. They have a fitness room and classes and childcare too.

Good Morning A.,

Well my family and I are members of the Boll YMCA downtown Detroit. WE LOVE IT! The staff is very friendly and we feel safe when they are watching our son. The swim classes are great as well...they have very good instructers. I am taking a Kick-boxing class right now and I am truly getting a work out.

I can't say anything about the suburb Y's but the Downtown Y is a winner for us.

I'm glad I joined the Birmingham Y (even though I don't use it nearly enough). I've always felt completely comfortable dropping of my 6 month old in their daycare. In fact of friend of mine use to work at that location and assured me that the daycare staff were really really good. They are all CPR certified and seem to love working with the kids.

I am a member of the South Oakland YMCA and I am hapy with it, BUT I do have a word of caution. I was a member at Lifetime and loved the classes there. I moved to the Y because it is right by my house and I thought it was a lot cheaper. After I joined I realized that the classes that I want to take require you to pay an additional fee. There are a few free classes offered, but not a lot. The classes are not expensive, but if you cannot go at the some time every week it is a little inconvenient. I like having the ability to drop in to a class at the time that is convenient for me that day.

My one word of caution is to check the scchedule and class fees before you commit.

I am currently a program member at the Royal Oak YMCA and I LOVE it! They have the best Pilates classes around town as they are divided into "levels" so you don't have people who are accomplished and have been doing it for years and years with the people like me that are brand new. Very incremental program that doesn't get people hurt, but keeps moving them up toward new things.

There is a gal in my class who has little kids and they have the family membership. She takes full advantage of the kids dance classes and swim lessons and has told me how much cheaper they are than the "dance studio" classes and she thinks, even better!

Enjoy.

My best friend is a trainer at the YMCA in Auburn Hills and he has several friends at the Birmingham YMCA and he is thinking about moving there bc he feels that the people who work there care more about their job and the people who come to their facility. He always says what a great facility it is and how is clean and people are friendly and even tho I dont have a membership at a YMCA I thought that Id throw that info out :o) I do know that if you are looking for a person trainer at all that Josh is supposedly great, he is a great mentor of my friend! Good luck and I hope you find what your looking for!

Hi Angela,

We have been members at the B'ham Y for the past 4 years. I was also a member when I was a kid...over 30 years ago, yikes!

I love this place. The people are always very friendly. They have a great child and will have older kid care that's open 6 days a week.

They have great group exersize programs for any level.

The wellness center is a bit smaller than you would find at other clubs, but they have most every machine. There are at times wait times for some of the cardio during busy hours, usually saturday mornings or the mon-fri five o'clock rush. The trainers, although I haven't used them are always energetic, friendly and creative with training their clients. You often see them outside if the weather is nice, which I think is great.

The facility itself is a bit older than other clubs, but overall I wouldn't go anywhere else.

South Oakland YMCA is great. My sons did their Summer Day Camp for several years. We have a family membership. Since I work in Farmington Hills, my sons attend the Farmington YCMA Summber Day Camp. It's been a great summer for them.

You should join, your family and you will be glad you did!!!