David Lloyd Milton Keynes

Overview

Based in a reasonably accessible part of Milton Keynes which was surprisingly commutable in both directions missing a lot of the heavier traffic is quite a large and impressive facility covering the whole range as far as I could tell of the rich wider variety of activities a David Lloyd would offer.

The facility as far as I explored (pretty sure all of it) is spread out over 1 huge single floor, the gym area itself having quite a large footprint in this.  Coming in as with a few of these David Lloyds through the restaurant to find the gym and changing areas, you are greeted by a long and narrow gym area wall to wall with equipment.

The gym area itself is split into distinct zones, nearer the changing you have a well stocked synergy area and sled, after this to one wall you have the cardio equipment which carries on down the length of the gym area (in front of the squash courts), to the other side you have the cable machines. This was minorly annoying as the weights were at the far end and the "long thin" design meant that when I went to super set a cable machine with a pull-up I was covering a huge distance and looked a bit foolish/like a kit hog (possibly my fault for not changing the routine).

The weights area had 8 free benches and a huge mirrored area which I adored but was sadly a little light on other functional kit, there were 2 flat benches but the plate loading machines and the cable machines were those I would find in most other David Lloyds prior to last years refurbishment and the plate machines were lightly stocked only having the core kit.
That said they do have a new cage/deadlift area but only the one compared to most DL's having two of these which cause a bit of contest and the plates are not quite as numerous as you would hope.
The cable machines were quite numerous but with a couple of cross over machines and missing out on a low row I was a little underwhelmed generally for how I train with the weights setup in general. The dumbell area was really fantastic but for other exercises it felt quiet tired which I didn't expect.

The cardio equipment is supplied in oodles, with a huge number of different generations of treadmills, bikes, elliptical and other cross trainer kits there was more than enough of this to go around spread along the side. Though there were not some of the more exciting water rowers of other DL's the kit was in quite good condition and as always there were TVs and working sound boxes which always makes me happy.

Another let down was that the changing areas had appeared to also miss out on the refurb being tired and a bit worn, clean as ever but looking a bit worst for wear.

The wider facilities here I would guess for most people would be a sell, with multiple squash courts, indoor tennis courts and more there was more than enough to keep you entertained along with a huge café.

All in I was actually underwhelmed from a lifting point of view, the kit was there and usable but compared to other DLs I was surprised to see this as a second class citizen (aside from the 8 free benches this made me a happy man), the refurbishment appears to have occurred here but not touched the things I care about more which was a shame.

How busy?
Given the size this never felt too busy or crowded but even for 6am there was a good queue and by 7am it was pretty busy, I did have to re-order my workout to get on squat or a cable cross over given that I only really found the two.
One of the busier morning David Lloyds I have found.



Equipment
Free weights area
2squat racks (1 with deadlift platforms)
2 flat bench, 1 incline, 1 decline
8 free benches
Dumbells up to 50kg
Set of plate machines including  (older hammer strength machines)
Chest
Row
Shoulder press
Cable machines including
Standard isolation/chest etc
Cable cross over


Facilities

Indoor Tennis courts
Outdoor Tennis courts
Badminton courts
Squash courts
Indoor Pool
Heated Outdoor Pool
Café
Steam room/sauna
Changing/showers
Studios (inc spin)
Free weights area
Weights machines
Cable machines
Cardio area
Synergy 360



Pricing
As ever David Lloyd can vary by location on where your base is, recently talking to a friend they got a starting rate of
£90 for standard
£70 per person for couples
I have as other reviews had between £60-90 as the range and worth a haggle
Remember there is a premium over this for tennis/squash etc

Other bits
The car park is huge and fantastically laid out very happy with this.
Good mirrors all round very happy for training with these

https://www.davidlloyd.co.uk/clubs/milton-keynes