Aspen Athletic Clubs is a pretty cool place. It is relatively small (compare it to say an Xsport or…read moreLA Fitness), but it has everything I need, including an area where I can do deadlifting without anyone frowning at me, as they have a good section dedicated to powerlifts and crossfit. This gym has a decent amount of cardio machines, along with several squat racks (three of em) and a couple of pulley machines. For bench pressing, there's no conventional bench presses, rather, they have racks, where you can place barbell holders at and move over a bench so you have an impromptu bench press. They also have a decent amount of dumbbells. I really liked the crossfit area as they got racks to perform them silly kip pullups along with medicine balls and Olympic plates. They also have a decent padded section where you can do stretches. BATHROOM REVIEW: This is more about the locker room. Pretty decent, with no naked old men walking around air-drying their nether regions. That's great in my book. Sit or squat? Squat.... it's still a locker room :-P

I have been a member since it opened its doors, I find the staff there to be very friendly and I am…read morealways welcomed by name most times when I walk in. It's a atmosphere that welcomes all levels of fitness types from serious body builders to the treadmill book readers. Since no place is perfect though, I would like to say it would be nice if some new equipment were being cycled in soon, it keeps the vibe higher if customers see improvement and change for the better since isnt that the whole reason most people go to the gym is to improve and change for the better....

Why this is 5 stars is because I wanted to sign my child up for tennis so we called the tennis club…read moreand the employee was being very nice.

The machines and workout space is nice and accommodating to all. The reason why I put 3 stars is…read morebecause I feel like the sauna and the showers do not get maintained and cleaned enough and the manager there is very stand-off and does not care about you. I actually went to the North Ames location to sign on with the manager there, she was much more approachable and helpful, I'd recommend signing up with her and not this South Ames guy, there's just something off with this guy. And the showers would have the same dirt from a week prior, same with the sauna. I recently had to cancel my membership and he said maybe ten words in all to me and did not care about the cancellation. From my previous experiences with gyms I've never dealt with such a manager. All are usually very kind and helpful and want to know how they can improve the gym and how my experience was. Not sure I'll be back. The rest of the employees there are wonderful however!

Looking for the best massage ever? We recomment Colette Friest at AFC South. She is amazing. The…read moremassage room is very comfortable. She does a great job of making her clients feel comfortable with a massage. I promise you will leave feeling so much better than when you came in.

This is a fun park on the NW side of town. The park is fun because it has a ropes area to climb…read morein. The park also has a play area for kids that attaches to the ropes area. The park features two tennis courts, a picnic area with bbq pits, and a sports field that is set up for baseball or softball. This park connects to the High Trestle bike trail. There is a bridge that connects the park to the trail and a pond on the opposite side of the trail that is good for walking around.

I can't say enough great things about this location. The staff there is amazing, they keep it very…read moreclean and well kept, and always fun walking in. The personal trainers (KeShawn and AJ) are great. They've helped me so much with my training routine, showing me how to get the results I'm looking for. Highly recommend this club.

Besides not having updated equipment or enough equipment to be used by everyone, they send out a…read moresurvey asking for opinions and suggestions and when you give an honest answer back you get an email basically telling you that you are negative and defending every suggestion you made as to why it is not needed. Why bother to ask then??

Inis Grove Park is an all-inclusive, sprawling, castle and nature-themed playground in Ames, Iowa…read more It is vast and covers a wide age group. There is a space for infant, toddlers, and preschoolers with a rubbery ground, bridge, dome, and playhouse. Nearby is a play area with spinners, rotating climbers, see-saw, swings, and musical instruments. Furthermore to the side is a larger space for children aged 5 and beyond. There are climbing apparatus, slides of varying lengths and heights, ropes, and a scavenger hunt game that encourages children to seek out the various animals, insects, and foot tracks painted throughout the playground. On the other side of the playground is a baseball field and several tennis courts. We were visiting from out of town but otherwise, we could've easily spent two hours here so that our girls could spend time in the playground and the tennis courts.

This is mainly a review of the Miracle Park playground:…read more What is the Miracle? Well, let me tell you. Every time I come here with my toddler he cries and yells at me every time we have to leave. It is the playground equivalent of a womb, I suppose. The real Miracle, though, is what it does to his digestive system. I don't know how this works, but every. single. time. we're here he goes #2 and needs a new diaper. I know that's not where you were expecting this review to go, but parents: if you're little one is maybe Not as Productive as he/she/they should be, then this is the spot (apparently). Oh and it's also a really beautiful playground! The music play equipment is sounds wonderful. The big multi-level play area is awesome. We have tons of fun here every time. Also: DID YOU KNOW there is a "secret" playground just around the bushes? This was a bizarre discovery, especially since that other playground is a little wild and kinda unfinished and maybe a bit dangerous but It's Also OK because with supervision you can have a lot of fun over there, too.

Green space on a bluff with dramatic downtown views perfect for chilling with a picnic or if you…read morewant some nature and privacy that Grey's Lake can't provide. It has tennis courts, it has a pond & a playground. You are very close to multiple breweries, if you want to make this a bike ride desticnation or just want to go read a book with lots of shade on a nice day! You bring the blanket, I'll bring the food and brews!

It's a large and open space, separate spaces for large dogs and small dogs, but wow there's no…read morepolicing of the 'pick up your dog's crap' rule. For an expensive town and a park that requires a membership fee.....whew....

This regularly-tended dog park offers a place for Ames residents to let their dogs run and play…read moreoff-leash. There is a 2-acre fenced area for small dogs and an 8-acre fenced area for large dogs, so if you have a puppy or a small breed, you don't have to worry about your little guy getting trampled or roughed up by rambunctious big dogs (and if you have a big dog, you don't have to follow her around and constantly stop her from pinning that beagle/shih tzu/etc). There are multiple water fountains (near the entrance, further out into the large dog area) and always a fresh supply of mutt mitts. There are disposal units for full mutt mitts at various spots in the park, though the ones further from the entrance tend to fill up pretty quickly. There is a paved loop in the larger section for walking around the park while your dog plays, with multiple benches along the route. If you don't bring a toy with you, you'll probably be able to find old tennis balls or a frisbee lying around. This place has a friendly community vibe, complete with regulars (both dog and human), like the man and his developmentally-disabled son who come out on hot afternoons with big buckets that they fill with fresh water for the dogs. We've met lots of nice dog-people during our time at this park, though to be honest we usually know their dogs' names long before we learn the humans' names!