I used to have a membership at 24-hour fitness and paid 20 bucks a month. Now I'm at the Y and pay 55 a month. What a deal! I feel like exercising shouldn't cost more than my phone bill per month but I thought I would give this place a chance. I mean come on, this place used to do jazzercise and the first YMCA for African Americans was founded by Anthony Bowen a freakin' freed slave dude, SWEET! What's cool at the Y is the membership card and how it tracks your exercising routine. But the photo booth has been broken since Kelsey and I became members a month ago, so we don't get to be cool like everyone else. The downside: The place is run by a bunch of teens. The girls wear way too much make-up for the gym and the dudes have their American apparel t-shirt collars way up high with their shaggy hair in their faces. Maybe it's because it's Mountain View, who knows.... But really it's not about what they look like; it's all about the attitude. I feel like I'm being judge whenever I go there in my shorts and rag t-shirt, but I smile and wait for them to give me my damn pink papered card back anyway. My biggest beef about this place is the swimming lessons offered. So I'm a grown woman who doesn't know how to tread water. Yeah, kiss my ass. Seaweed can tread water better than I could. But it's summer and it's something I should learn how to do, so I thought I should take advantage of their "adult" swim lessons. Big mistake. Getting lessons from my cat would've been a smarter move. Basically, my teen instructor double booked her 2:15 Friday slot with a 7 year old. After I complained to the staff about how I didn't get my lesson, the person in charge that day apologized and said he'll asked the instructor to provide me with the lesson. As he said that, I looked over to the pool to find that instructor already dressed and yappin' on her blackberry, while walking towards the exit. "Uh no", I said, "I want to start fresh with someone else". So as we walked to the binder with all the instructors listed, he turned to me and asked "so is this for your son or daughter?". As I wore my bathing suit I thought about how to answer this question without embarrassing him."hmm, the lessons are for me actually, don't you have adult lessons?" "Oh, sure we do, right - so what do you need it for? Do you want to improve your form or something?". I don't think he was embarrassed. At that point I realized that I needed my money back. The last thing I need out of all of this is to feel like a douche about swimming. BUT they did give me a refund, so that's cool. Oh and I always have trouble finding a parking spot and I'm not into old naked butts in the locker room. read more

STAFF: I got the sense staff here are very short-tempered, they go out of patience easily. MEMBER: A lot of member who exercised here are seriously old and ugly, in comparison, there are much nicer looking and younger member at 24 hr, city sports, rsf and even the Berkeley Y! If you like to indulge yourself around uglier or older ppl, this is the best spot for you. In summary, total waste of 2 hrs of my time. read more

They are very nice staff here and the pool has lots of lap swim hours. The only negative is that the pool is kept a little too warm for hard lap swimming. I find it very odd that a member complained about old men being naked in the locker room! Of course people are naked in a locker room! Tell your son that is normal or take him into the family locker room area! read more

We loved that the YMCA pool was so close. It was very, clean and the people were friendly. The only problem, which is a pretty big problem is that they have fiberglass on the edge of their pool covering their drain. In order to get in and out of the pool you must touch it. Two our of the four children we had, had fiberglass embedded in their skin. The lifeguard did not warn them of the fiberglass, the staff had no idea what to do if fiberglass was embedded in skin. Overall it was not pleasant for the kids. If there was no fiberglass then we would get a membership in a heartbeat. read more

Waited forever to hear back about our military membership. Karyn. Never got back with us.... we submitted all paperwork. They are very unorganized. read more

Honestly, such a great overall gym that caters to it's clients. The kid's daycare service is run by caring staff members. They not only watch your kids, but they build deep long term relationships with your kids and you! Lots of these staff members babysit for these kids outside of work too. Swim instructors are great and they have top of the line equipment that you would never find in 24 Hour Fitness. Clean sauna, clean everything! Great family oriented place. read more

Have you ever been tempted not to yelp a place or to give it a fake bad review because it is SO FREAKIN' AWESOME that you want to keep it all to yourself? That was my dilemma with the Mtn View Y. Lucky for you that after seeing only a few reviews for this Y I decided to yelp you the truth. This is the gym I have been looking for all of my life! Granted, usually I have ended up belonging to gyms full of either college students or the elderly, but I am still just so amazed at the diversity of the demographic here. All ages and fitness levels, a few kids but not overrun. Lots of mid-30's age folks in software t-shirts (big surprise in Mtn View). Everyone seems polite and educated. I don't think anyone would feel particularly out of place here. The equipment is in good condition and the locker rooms are excellent. There is a spa and a sauna in the locker room. The staff is so nice, very cool and helpful. The cost is more than some gyms but totally worth it. You get the pool, the gym, classes, plenty of parking, a beautiful and well kept facility, and if you are really poor you can get discounts (that's just what Y's do). Ok, now I will lie to you. Don't go to the pool. The pool is horrible. Don't go to the pool, ok? Just stay inside (yes, I want it all to myself - I'm just greedy that way). read more

I shopped around for a gym and ended up going with the Y over Equinox (my top 2 choices). The main draw for me to the Y is the variety of classes offered as well the amenities - and that I live nearby and can ride my bike there. I also like that this is a family-friendly gym so I don't have to worry about the "meat market" aspect - there's nothing worse than working out and having people stare at you or try to pick up on you. Ew! Everyone that works out there seems very friendly and mellow - sort of 'neighborly' which I like. The women's locker room is pretty gross. I hear they're updating it this year (2010). The staff is fairly friendly. I've had a couple of instances with some of their younger staff (teens) having attitude problems - but that's rare. I liked that they let me try out the gym for free before having to join. The quality of the group instructors varies - I've had a couple of classes that were BAD - instructors hardly seemed qualified - but I've also had awesome classes with really competent leaders. I think the best thing is to find instructors you like and stick with them - most of their classes have several instructors so it hasn't been an issue for me. $50/month would be a more reasonable deal but I'm willing to pay $70 to not be in a contract and for the convenience factor. read more

I LOVE MY GYM! *recently remolded *all cardio machines have personal TVs *complimentary towels *complimentary coffee, tea, and filtered water (caffeine before cardio: yes!) *great diverse group class selection. *down to earth gym crowd (no meatheads or prima donnas) More importantly, I like the Y's politics. They give back to the community via food donations, and other forms of charity. I also really appreciate that they employ those with disabilities. Simply put, I just like this place. I feel good working out there and enjoy giving this organization my $$. My only gripes (not even really gripes, I'm nit picking): *parking is a hassle *coffee pot is often empty when I get there *sanitizer dispensers are sometimes empty 5 Stars! read more

I haven't seen the front desk staff be lazy, which everyone seems to complain about, but the staff in the weight/machine room pretty much is zoned out and not paying attention to anything as far as I can tell. Also good luck getting them to ask the high school knuckleheads on the free weights to not bang the weights on the floor. They all think they're doing olympic deadlifts and drop the weights so hard you can hear them in the "basement" where the basketball gym and spin/yoga/kickboxing/etc classes are. Pro Tip...if you're dropping the weights it means you are weak and you suck, not that you're tough. I think there is some deal with St Francis High School, so the free weights always have a legion of kids hanging around as well as the usual "bro" types who spend more time adjusting their hand wraps than actually working out. Speaking of classes they seem OK. I saw an "adult taekwon do" class which was mostly pre-teen kids and had 3 adults in it. The instructor spent pretty much all his time working with a special needs member, which is cool, unless you are one of the 14 other students who got ignored. Balance, more balance.... There were a couple green belt students in the class whose skills were atrocious. I don't know if they got their belts at YMCA or some other studio and were just wearing them to this class. In any event the did not look anywhere near green belt skil level, and even would be a stretch to say they had earned yellow belts. In any event, you can't really expect there to be any real martials arts classes at a YMCA or any other gym--you can't even expect that at every dojo. There are also random cross-fit type classes, kick boxing, spin , frikkin zumba, etc. Also lots of kids running around. I'm not sure if you can get a kids only membership, or if they sell swimming lessons to non-members but there are always parents in the lobby area who are waiting around for their kids to come out of swim class. Also a lot of kids in different day care type rooms doing random projects like paper plate art or something. I give this place a low rating because it is the YMCA and they pretend to be some altruistic entitiy concerned about humanity. If they were just 24 Hr, etc and we know what they are--just there to sell sell sell memberships and make money, then I could at least rate this place 3 stars. But the fact YMCA does NOT care about you marks them down. In fact I'm not even sure they care about money. Some of the staff is just so tuned out and unhelpful that you have to just accept it for what it is, just teenagers who needed a job and this is the first place that took them. read more

I joined this Y earlier this summer because their pool is warmer than the two nearby city pools at Eagle and Rengstorff Parks. I get cold easily, as does my 3 year old son whom I've been trying to teach to swim this summer. In addition to the pool, I've been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the whole facility. The weight room is nice. There's an on-site day care, free to members for up to 2 hours (enough for a workout). Clean towels are provided. Lots of classes. I like the range of ages and abilities; unlikes some gyms, there are young people and old people and muscular people and fat people. Some of my workouts included physical therapy for a bum knee and it was nice not to feel outclassed. The only down side is that the parking lot fills up at some times of day, but there's a parking garage which never fills up. You just have to allow an extra 5 minutes for the walk from the garage to the Y. read more

I love this YMCA. Workout facilities are fantastic, staff is great. The equipment is super! I rarely have to wait for a treadmill or elliptical. When it's peak hours, sometimes it's a few minutes. More often I do have to wait for a recumbent bike (total bummer especially when I get excited to bike and read!). The new stretching room is slightly awkward. Or is it one of those things that's only awkward if you make it so? Not sure. It's just a small, low-lit room. It's uncomfortable during peak hours and six people are trying to stretch. I recommend taking a mat and going to the hallway by the child watch. Huuuuuge variety of classes. I used to attend the kickboxing on Tuesdays/Thursdays religiously and talk about a wooooorkout! Locker rooms are totally remodeled, very clean, quite spacious. The most important thing is to feel comfortable where you're working out and be motivated about going. The El Camino Y does that so well! read more

Back in March 2014, I had knee surgery. Before the surgery I had a lot of pain with movement and especially with walking. I started going to physical therapy in April. I needed an inexpensive way to ride a stationary bike for the physical therapy. April happened to be a free trial membership month at the El Camino YMCA. At the end of the free trial period I joined. I go every other day. There is a sliding scale and because I am poor, I receive a 65% discount. The staff is friendly, kind and supportive. Everyone knows me there. My father died in June. I received the call while I was at the Y. Staff members hugged me and Jeff told me about the Meditation Garden across the street at El Camino Hospital. I was there for over an hour and went back to the stationary bicycle to work things out. Also in June, I started swimming again, which I hadn't done in years. The El Camino YMCA has made a huge difference in my life. I can walk. That's an enormous improvement in the quality of my life. When I first arrived there, I would practically crawl down the hallway to the gym. Now I stride. So I'm doing very well and I have the El Camino YMCA and the YMCA staff to thank for it. read more

I love this Y. This is a great place if you have kids as their child watch hours are literally all day minus 2 hours in the afternoon. The staff is super friendly and always give me an update on how my daughter did in child watch. The free weight area is very small so be prepared if you go at peak times. You will either have to be very comfortable with tight spaces or be willing to wait until there is room for you to do a workout. As far as the classes go, they are pretty consistent with others Y's I have been to. However there is a wide range to choose from. The only thing I would change is having more family swim times as these are only offered on the weekends ;( read more

I met with the executive director at the Y and another senior staff member last week. They were very patient and empathetic in listening to my concerns. Today I experienced the same dynamic with a member slamming weights loudly on the floor. I am talking about a 60 pound barbell being dropped from mid-calf height, even slamming it down. (I get that people get pumped up when they are working out, but this was crazy). On my way out I mentioned it to the staff member on the floor, who got right on it. I would prefer if the staff monitored this proactively, but the fact that they did not dismiss the concern out of hand is definite progress. Adding a star to my review for improved response. Behavior of other members continues to be a problem at this Y but there is only so much the staff can do. People will be people. read more

My 92 year old dad just joined the Y, he had orientation with Don today.. He was great at explaining everything and although dad was at first reluctant to join, he is now looking forward to his next visit. Don told us a story of a man he STARTED training at age 100, and he made it to 104 without a walker! Way to go Don, you're the man!. Deduct one star for parking, it's like trying to find a space at Valley Fair the day before Christmas. Also if you have a flexible schedule the limited hours membership is a great deal, also locker rooms have finally had a much needed remodel. read more

I love the windows in the gym area that let in sunlight. You also have a view of the lawn and paths (depending on the machines you are using). My beef is with the lap swim hours. Who gets up at 5 am? We tried to swim on a Tues afternoon, but were kicked out due to the kids' lessons taking up the entire pool. There is a smaller pool that could be used for swim lessons. I know it's summer, but you should schedule at least two lanes for lap swim every day. Adults are people too. It's too bad the community voted down building a public pool in Los Altos. There's obviously a need for one. read more

I really like this YMCA They have a lot of classes and options. It is family friendly, the equipment is good and new, and the locker rooms where renovated few months ago. The building is nice, and general areas are well maintained. I like the classes for kids also, and the fact that they have a good baby watch. I can work out in peace knowing that my kids are close and well cared. The only thing that is not so good is that they do not have late hours, or daycare after 1:00 pm on weekends. Staff is friendly. read more

I really have enjoyed enrolling my kids in the youth basketball here. It is low pressure and does not break the bank! The director of the program "Chas" is really great! I have also enrolled the kids in the swim lessons---please be aware that not all instructors are the same. When my kids were early learners I found the teachers to be below average but as the got to the higher level of swimming the quality of the teacher improved greatly. read more

I don't know why my original review was removed, but seriously cannot recommend this YMCA. The members are pretty much the worst and don't bother to follow any of the posted rules. Honestly the only reason why I continue to go to this Y is because of the childcare. Otherwise I find this gym lacking in so many ways. First the staff is a mixed bag. Some are great and some act like you're interrupting their social life to ask them a question. There are not enough spray bottles btw and there were days when there weren't even paper towels for wiping down equipment so they provided tissues (Kleenex). The water faucets are disgusting. I can post pictures. I did let the staff know, but 3 days later the situation hasn't changed. And the real kicker is the complete lack of gym etiquette here. People don't wipe down machines, exercise with weights in the hallway that has signs that say don't bring weights into this hallway, do burpees in the stretching room that's supposed to be QUIET, have loud conversations right outside the quiet stretching room (right beside the sign that says this room is to be quiet), leave equipment on the floor, drop weights on the floor (there are signs asking people not to drop weights). They don't understand what it is to work in a set. And they rest on the machines/benches etc. during busy times. I can go on and on. Obviously this gym is for illiterate sociopaths with active social lives. Too bad they can't read my review. read more

Time/Date: Noon weekdays Type/Quality: YMCA. Its a gym ladies and gentlemen... Clean & friendly. It includes a full cadre of workout equipment as well as an outdoor pool. Price/Quantity: Membership fees: 100 YMCA BAY AREA ONE Drop in: 15? Service/Accesibility: Available and friendly staff to field your questions.. I have never had parking problems here. Structure/Ambience: The gym is clean and has alot of equipment. Nothing fancy, just a regular gym that you feel comfortable in. The interesting part is the pool... It constantly smells like marijuana. At first I thought it was stoner lifeguards but now I think its the sap from the trees. But hey, maybe its people smoking out in the park that boarders the pool. In either case it makes me smile. The naked old people in the shower don't. read more

This ymca has a great selection and very challenging group exercise classes. I highly recommend the classes by Andrea and Kim. Parking can be a huge hassle and I try to arrive 20 minutes before a class starts to find a spot. Childcare is great. read more

I was a member until about four months ago. I miss the YMCA. I have never *missed* a gym to which I belonged. What I miss: The communal and supportive feeling I got from the staff and other members, which I have never felt at any other gym. The members are average folks, just like me. The men aren't super pumped and the women don't wear makeup and spandex gear to work out. Coming to the gym at 6:30 in the morning and feeling like I've accomplished something without having to hassle with anything or anyone. Fitlinxx (though I don't miss the spelling). This awesome system tracks my workout routine and my progress. I can go to a weight machine (on which I have been previously set-up), enter my PIN, and it tells me my personal settings for any adjustments I need to make to the seat or leg bars, how much weight I lifted last time, and how much weight I want to lift this time. The only tracking I have to do is if I want to increase my weights, I have to count back on the screen how many times I've lifted that weight amount. I love this. I can also add any additional workouts I've done at the kiosk, like cardio or that weekend hike or tennis game. What I don't miss: The irregular billing. I once got a bill for over three-hundred dollars because they hadn't automatically billed my account for something like six months. I ended up canceling my membership because they couldn't get the billing straight and I hit a busy period (about Oct - Dec) where I wasn't going for weeks and weeks at a time. Okay months. Josh Rose was a champ though and he waived the bill and accepted that they had made an error. Parking. God. The parking. Yes, there's a new(ish) parking structure, but I don't always feel like walking almost two blocks before and after my workout. Granted, when I was going at six in the morning I was able to park in the main lot near the entrance, this was definitely a factor in my feeling fed up with the club. However, as I stated above, I miss The Y. They sent me an email asking me to rejoin without paying the initiation fees, and I'm excited to get in there and reinstate my membership. I really miss my morning workouts, and I'm ready to jump back on the elliptical. read more

I've been coming to this Y for over 20 years now and our kids have gone thru swimming classes, summer camps etc too. It's a wonderful place to exercise and to enjoy the experience. The place is kept clean, with enough equipment, lots of classes and friendly, knowledgeable staff (for the most part). There have been issues over the years with the infrastructure (mostly as more members joined) but the Y has renovated at least twice and expanded and improved. They are part of the community and one feels that when one is there. People are friendly and helpful. Yes, once in a while there have been hot water issues, parking issues, even stealing from lockers. I think the organization has addressed these issues well. Love the place. It keeps me exercising (including swimming) regularly. read more

This is for the kids swim class at the Y. My son needed to take his first swim class and the Y came heavily recommended by a family friend. The Y itself is very clean and the staff was incredibly helpful (because we looked lost). I took a stroll around to check out the gym while my son was in class. The gym looks great and they have lots of private rooms for classes. As for the class, it was hard at first to get my son in the water. I expect that from a 4 year old's first time in the pool. The instructors were incredibly nice and patient with him. After some time he was able to be coaxed into the pool and slowly got comfortable. As time went on he became more social and really enjoyed himself. I would definitely recommend people to have their kids try the swim class at the Y read more

Still a great gym with new e-gym weight machines added. The renovated lobby looks revitalized and they continue to add new programs and classes. Compares to many other health clubs the Y is really clean. Excellent staff who are willing to help. read more

This YMCA is really family-friendly (I don't have kids, but i see tons of them around this place). I like going here to avoid the meat-market that is any 24-Hour fitness. I like popping in my iPod and chugging away without being interrupted and this Y is great -- I get to work out with the old people. Swwwweeeet. Big plus: good number of machines and its very clean. People tend to be pretty nice too. Also, there are trainers there who are actually fit and muscular (not in a freakish Gold's Gym way but also not in the flabby 24 hr way). They have lots of classes to help with your nutrition or New Years resolutions for extra... Only downside is: very expensive for a gym -- i paid a discounted price for being younger than other adults there. UPDATE: 3/5/07: So I just renewed for another year with the Y, really the fact that its generally a bunch of chill people with the occasional gaggle of high schoolers, trophy wives (man, one of these days I'm going to ask her how much her "assets" cost) and adorable old people. I hear the classes are cool -- still have to go to one! (ditto on the outdoor pool). read more

Beautiful facility, great classes. Happy to find a new gym close to home. Can't wait to try more classes. Machines are new and in great condition. read more

This is a large, well-equipped, clean, diverse facility that is not fancy, but delivers a lot for a relatively low membership fee. We love the free child care and find that the care givers actually entertain and care about the kids, give them their snack, and take them potty. They aren't just there to make sure that they don't hurt themselves. The group excercise classes are also quite good and diverse, and the instructors are well trained and good with people. The only negative comment I have is the fact that there are no T.V.'s, either on the machines or in the cardio room. read more

I like YMCA in general, and this one in particular. OK, so the parking sucks. It's worth it. The gym is huge and clean. The staff has always been nice to me. The child watch is really great. But most of all, I love the classes, in particular Thu. night kickboxing. If you want to sweat and have fun this is the gym for you. read more

I used to love going to this Y but management changed and I no longer like it. As a matter of fact, I am shopping around to join another fitness facility. The management seems to interested in improving the group exercises. Some of us held many meetings to offer some guidance on how to make things better. I have yet to see any changes. Many of their great instructors have left. read more

I really love this place. Free childcare, family memberships, very family friendly. Equipment is well maintained. Great classes & they are constantly tweaking the schedule based on member input, popularity. They have an excellent Tri-club that my husband is very involved in. They have 2 on staff dieticians who offer regular free lectures & occasional weight loss support groups etc. There seem to be a lot of lectures geared towards active seniors, so this is obviously a big focus. The instructors really seem to care. They obviously are not in it for the money. I lost 40 pounds at this facility through a combination of regular work outs and dietary lifestyle change and the staff was always commenting which really spurred me on. I felt every bit as comfortable coming here as an overweight person as I do now. This is a non pick-up type of place. This is not a serious weight-training or personal trainer type gym. It's more a great all around, family friendly, no frills place. Also -- parking has improved since some of these reviews were posted. There's now a 3 story parking deck right next to the "Y" lot if the "Y" lot is full. read more

I really like this branch of the Y. Though I should go more often to get my money's worth. The equipment is kept up pretty well, and they do make an effort to incrementally update the exercise machines. The computerized tracking of your weight program is a big help to monitor your progress. We originally joined to get swim lessons for our daughter. The group lessons are pretty good, but they are geared more toward getting them comfortable rather than teaching them to actually swim. We have moved onto private lessons for that, and the progress is much more dramatic. Now if only I could get my fat ass in there. read more

Nice family, user friendly gym. You can usually find trial 1 week, 2 week and month free trial passes in the newspaper or mail. Outdoor pool, full basketball courts, large cardio area, nice machine weight room, cardio classes, swim lessons. A lot of students around during the summer when school is out. Open 5:30 am - 10:00 pm M-F read more

(GYM / FREE WEIGHT AREA REVIEW) I've been working out here for around 4 years. The trend on quality and value has been slowly increasing. The staff is not as strict as they used to be in the free weight area, and they have people who really know what they're doing. Great. Free weight area is uncrowded and clean 90% of the time. Awesome. I suggest that if you're into the free weight area, or just want to experience a less crowded scene, the best time is after 7:00pm. Most people leave to eat dinner after this. The YMCA gym may not be as large as 24 but you're getting a more relaxed, clean facility. read more

All they care about is raising prices. I used to pay 120 for four people and now it's 94 for one person. Way too expensive for a YMCA. It's the only nice one. I hate how they raise existing members prices. Most gyms will keep you at your existing rate even if the clubs prices go up. I went to get a new promotion since it's the new year..they are accommodating new members but not members for years. Garbage! read more

I really want to love this place. But after five months of membership here my feelings are lukewarm at best. THE GOOD: It's well stocked with cardio machines (treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, etc.), if you're into that sort of thing. I'm not. Group exercise classes seem to be pretty active. Again not something I'm into but I know a lot of folks are. They do a lot of work with seniors and people going through physical rehab, and seem to have good expertise in those areas. The facilities are kept clean. Equipment is always in good repair. It's a safe, family-friendly environment. It's open and bright, with lots of natural sunlight and views of Cuesta Park from the giant picture windows on two sides of the main workout area. THE BAD: The staff seems really complacent, not at all outgoing or encouraging. Like a few other folks in the reviews below I was never offered a tour when I first signed up. Now after five months of membership I'm never offered any sort of help or encouragement. One fit coach named Robert was pretty cool and would talk to me when I saw him, ask me how things were going, and offer me helpful advice, but he is no longer there. Go figure. I'm not someone that needs constant pep talks and a'ta boys, but not feeling like I'm the freakin' invisible man every time I go in would be nice. It's not an environment for serious weight training. Strength exercises are very much geared toward Cybex machines and Body Pump classes. The training staff has a "squats are dangerous, just use the leg press machine" attitude. I completely disagree with this philosophy and feel it holds people back. Of course squats without proper coaching on form and technique are dangerous, but that is where good training and knowledge sharing come in. The Fitlinxx system is really clunky. I think it's great that the Y provides a system for tracking your workouts and measuring your progress against yourself and your peers. I just think they made a poor choice with Fitlinxx. It's an old system, with a terrible interface, clunky database design, and constant performance issues. SUMMARY: If you live in the neighborhood and are looking for a place to go take some group ex classes, run on a treadmill, or use some cybex machines, you could do a lot worse. If you are looking for a place to be pushed, encouraged, and schooled in serious weight lifting and functional strength training keep looking. I know I am. read more

I loovvee my gym. There are tons of classes with great instructors, nice people, lots of diverse equipment, and this is a beautiful facility. Also, because the Y is a non-profit, they offer financial assistance. read more

Nice facility with activities galore: basketball, weights (free weights & machines), lots of exercycles and stair machines, a pool, and tons of classes ranging from Zumba to crossfit to tai chi. Kind of family-oriented, but it's not overrun with kids. If you are looking for a club with a wide range of activities, this is the place. The combination weight and exercycle / stair machine room is especially nice with big windows that look out on a park. Sometimes the pool can be crowded, particularly on Saturday and Sunday, so I avoid it on weekends. As for the rest of the facility I have never found it to be super-crowded, but I usually go after 7:00 PM. The location is a bit off the beaten path, but it's less than 5 minutes to El Camino and 85. Overall it works for me and IMO it has more to offer than 24 Hr Fitness and Gold's, but I'm not into a lot of pumping iron. read more

Wow. I can't believe there are only two reviews of this place! It is a great gym and a TON of people go there, but maybe they're not a particularly Yelp-savvy demographic. Anyway, I'll admit that at first I hesitated to join the Y. Shoot--I didn't even want to visit it. I just had this pre-conceived notion about the whole Y chain of fitness facilities. I imagined them to be old and dingy and dark and sweaty. I don't know why. Maybe because they've been around so long. Either way, I didn't want to go, but I had just moved to Mountain View and lived within walking distance of it, so I figured I at least had to pop in and check it out. I'm so glad I gave it a chance. I have belonged to some swanky fitness facilities in my day, and this is one of the swankiest. It's got oodles of cardio equipment--ellipticals, treadmills, and Stairmasters up the wazoo, and they're always clean and (this is important) always working. (It seems to me that the policy at most gyms is to let the cardio machines deteriorate as far as possible before they fix them. They can be creaking, squeaking, and grinding, but as long as they're still moving they seem to qualify as "in working order.") I'm not sure if the Y has got a mechanic on the scene full time or if they've got a secret stash of backup machines that they rotate in when one breaks down or what, but I swear, I never get stuck with a bad one when I'm there. On top of that, they've got good weight machines and a small, but clean free weight section. And that's just the gym area where I hang out. They've also got a six-lane pool, tons of aerobics and spinning classes, a basketball court, and free daycare for the kiddies (yeah!). Don't be freaked out by the clientele if you visit. It's not your normal gym crowd, but they're OK. There are loads of seniors (due to the fact that it's next to a rehab center), there are high school kids, and then there are the athletes and middle aged folks that you typically see at gyms. No big ol' sweaty meatheads, very few bimbos. Overall it's a refreshing mix, and everyone seems to get along nicely. (Note: If you're a senior, go during the day. You guys pretty much own the joint on weekdays, and most of you seem to know each other. There's a very chatty, friendly vibe among the older folks I see there--they're having a lot more fun than most people who go to the gym.) That's all I can think of for now! Go. Try it. You'll like it. If it was a little cheaper I'd give it five stars, but if cash isn't an issue for you, consider it a five-star facility. read more