I’m tired of going to a gym that is 1/4 free weights with everything else machines and treadmills. I have one fuckin’ squat rack, 2 flat benches, 1 incline bench at the current gym.
Any locals have a gym that has powerlifting equipment? like chains and such? even bumper plates that I can use for my power cleans…platform even?
Jeebus, I NEED a LIFTING gym.
I know 4 off of the top of my head.
1: Peak Performance, one of the co-owners (I believe he is a co-owner/trainer) is Caleb Williams. He was a very successful powerlifter, and does OLY lifting now.
2: Coffee’s Gym. Owned by John Coffee, it is primarily an OLY lifting gym, but has equipment for powerlifting/strongman.
3: Quest. Probably your best choice ( I think) because it’s main emphasis is PL.
4: North Georgia Barbell. Again, huge PL emphasis.
There are more, I’m sure. And I don’t know if any of these are private or public.
You could also check powerlifting watch.
If I’m mistaken on any of these, please correct me.
Alders
The answer here depends on your goals. Do you compete or do you want to? There will be a big difference between competition-focused gyms and regular gyms that have some PL equipment.
Out of Alders’ list, Coffee’s and NGBB would be my choices, but both are geared toward competitive lifting, so if that’s not your thing and you just want a place to train hard there are probably better choices. I’m not a big fan of Quest. There is also Body By George in Loganville ran by legendary PL’er George Herring and Iron Beast Barbell in Gainesville. Both of those gyms have lifters competing at the international level and both host meets occasionally. Both of these emphasize competition but are big enough to accommodate other interest too, like bodybuilding, crossfit, etc.
If you are into the non-competitive side of lifting, I won’t be of much use. Hope that helps.
My training center will be open come August. I’ll be OTP on Forsyth/Fulton line. With traffic I know some of these are issues if you have to train late in the day as most of the ones Alders listed close at 8.
[quote]strengthstudent wrote:
I’m not a big fan of Quest. [/quote]
Why aren’t you a fan of Quest?
[quote]JCrisp91 wrote:
[quote]strengthstudent wrote:
I’m not a big fan of Quest. [/quote]
Why aren’t you a fan of Quest?
[/quote]
I’ve been to Quest a few times when I was in ATL for stuff. Gym is decent, no monolift though and all of the guys are USAPL/IPF strictly and there are several who will judge and make catty remarks if you are a multi ply lifter. Not my ballgame.
[quote]Stronghold wrote:
[quote]JCrisp91 wrote:
[quote]strengthstudent wrote:
I’m not a big fan of Quest. [/quote]
Why aren’t you a fan of Quest?
[/quote]
I’ve been to Quest a few times when I was in ATL for stuff. Gym is decent, no monolift though and all of the guys are USAPL/IPF strictly and there are several who will judge and make catty remarks if you are a multi ply lifter. Not my ballgame.[/quote]
Stronghold hit the nail on the head here. No mono and a little shy of the hardcore atmosphere I like. Not ideal for multiply either, as was already mentioned. To me, it feels like a gym that wants to be really badass, but just can’t pull it off because of an element inside that drives hardcore lifters away. Also alot of bashing against drug use. I don’t care whether people use or not and it usually doesn’t bother me when the drug-free zealots say users are cheaters or whatever, but at Quest, there’s just too much of it. I use and am not ashamed or hurt by what people may think of me, but the self-righteous vibe gets old.
[quote]strengthstudent wrote:
[quote]Stronghold wrote:
[quote]JCrisp91 wrote:
[quote]strengthstudent wrote:
I’m not a big fan of Quest. [/quote]
Why aren’t you a fan of Quest?
[/quote]
I’ve been to Quest a few times when I was in ATL for stuff. Gym is decent, no monolift though and all of the guys are USAPL/IPF strictly and there are several who will judge and make catty remarks if you are a multi ply lifter. Not my ballgame.[/quote]
Stronghold hit the nail on the head here. No mono and a little shy of the hardcore atmosphere I like. Not ideal for multiply either, as was already mentioned. To me, it feels like a gym that wants to be really badass, but just can’t pull it off because of an element inside that drives hardcore lifters away. Also alot of bashing against drug use. I don’t care whether people use or not and it usually doesn’t bother me when the drug-free zealots say users are cheaters or whatever, but at Quest, there’s just too much of it. I use and am not ashamed or hurt by what people may think of me, but the self-righteous vibe gets old.[/quote]
I had an issue with the guy there who told me that I was a cheating gear whore for using a 2 ply metal suit and then immediately proceeded to brag about how he got 200 lbs out of his super centurion. Far too much smug for my taste.
[quote]LiquidMercury wrote:
My training center will be open come August. I’ll be OTP on Forsyth/Fulton line. With traffic I know some of these are issues if you have to train late in the day as most of the ones Alders listed close at 8.[/quote]
Bumping this, moving back to Atlanta soon, need a lift-friendly gym. May be interested in formal training for competition. Is Coffees still one of the best options? Will be traveling from Midtown and need a gym with good hours…
LiquidMercury, do you have a training center?
Go to Rock Hard Fitness in Tucker, Ga. I’m a grad student at Emory University (Atlanta area), and I had to go looking for a good gym because Emory’s gym is absolute crap.
It’s extremely powerlifter friendly, and has plenty of bumpers. A few NFL and collegiate athletes train there during the off season. Also, there are plenty of regulars there who are very strong as well. The manager is insanely strong, as are all of the trainers.