 Overview A few years ago now I stopped off in the David Lloyd in Hatfield weekly to train, at the time the gym was pretty well equipped and it even had a synergy before most others did. As a result while travelling there this weekend I had set my expectations for a low investment during the refurbs if any at all. I was very wrong. Set in the old Hatfield hanger, an impressive building is the DL, split over 2 floors with the gym, studios and squash courts occupying the first floor the ground floor boasts a massive range of other facilities given the size of the building including a load of tennis courts and pool facilities. The gym itself is set up on the first floor, it has what I could only describe as an.. Open plan kind of feel to it, the cardio equipment is split into a few pockets around the gym but the main focus of the area is to weights and functional training. This is probably the first David Lloyd I have found where this really appears to be the case which was an amazing find and great to see the approach they had taken. The equipment is split out with cable equipment around the far side, a large open area dotted with cable cross over machines and then a free weights area with plate machines, over 6 free benches and 2 flat barbell benches! Though there is only one plate load machine for each body part the volume of cable equipment really bolsters this with 2 chest fly machines, a range of various cable cross over machines and other kit all around there is a lot going on here. The rest of free weights area is a space for dumbell exercises with 2 of most of the dumbells and again this weird not a smith -smith machine which is quite interesting. The equipment itself is almost entirely new from a refurbishment as far as my old visits went, the plate loading machines have all been replaced and the cable kit is all new as far as I can see and all as ever clean and functional with this being a David Lloyd. They really have got all of this equipment into one place in this gym and the plate loading kit all together, I was not walking huge distances to super set and the range of equipment meant this wasn’t an issue at all! The only minor niggle if you look for one is that there are so many cable cross over machines that finding a rope for tricep push downs or similar took a fair bit of looking "oh no there is too much choice I have to look" a pretty poor complaint I would say! To the other end you have some other kit that I am starting to see which is the semi functional like a standing cable squat machine, the bench which moves the supports forward for you to unrack and then pings back. This is joined by the synergy along with the full range of accessories and a weighted sled which I always love to find! A really great setup for functional training for a David Lloyd. Around the edges and ends of this you have a wider range of cardio equipment with the weirder selection again being catered for with water rowers, ski walking treadmill things with individual moving sides and spin bikes hooked up to larger digital screens again this was a great setup for these and in good volume as well! The changing rooms have also managed to pickup the refurbishment and look stunning for it some fantastic mirror angles and lighting in here for checking out the progress! The rest of the gym offers a huge range of facilities with the big screen spin room, squash courts and the range of other facilities including being one of the David Lloyds which has the full spa for the more pricey end of membership options! This is a fantastic David Lloyd as a health club and it also manages to be a fantastic gym for those who want to lift weights which is no easy thing to do. I was astounded at the transformation, I loved this gym before and I love it just as much now. How busy? It was reasonably busy first thing on a Saturday but given the space and range of equipment I felt well left alone. I don’t think this could get to a point of feeling too over crowded due to the space available which is fantastic. Equipment Free weights area 2 squat racks (2 with deadlift platforms) 2 flat bench, 1 incline, 1 decline 6 free benches Dumbells up to 50kg X2 Set of plate machines including Chest Row Shoulder press Cable machines including - there is a lot of this stuff guys!! Low row X2 Cable cross over X6 Facilities Indoor Tennis courts Outdoor Tennis courts Badminton courts Squash courts Indoor Pool Café Steam room/sauna Changing/showers Studios (inc spin) Free weights area Weights machines Cable machines Cardio area Synergy 360 Celciuis Spa 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 and an even bigger one for the Celcius spa! Other bits As ever there is free wifi, plenty of parking! There is an in house physio and a running clothes shop on site which is very cool The restaurant here is huge and runs a lot of community things which is fantastic for those who want to make this a hub There is a lot going on here for other facilities outside the weights, if that is your focus then I would check in there in person! https://www.davidlloyd.co.uk/clubs/hatfield https://www.facebook.com/David-Lloyd-Clubs-161451543868968/
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 Overview Just outside the centre of Cambridge in one of the many science parks, connected by various pathways filled with the ever present Cambridge cyclists is the city's only David Lloyd, we went along to this medium sized complex to see what they had on offer! The facilities are split across 2 floors, with a huge range of other "health club" features at this gym with a vast number of tennis courts and indoor/outdoor pool facilities, the resulting gym areas are all pushed up onto the first floor. The changing rooms are as ever on the ground floor again through the café (another gripe here about lack of signs in these clubs to direct you!) The gym area itself is a slightly odd layout, with the weights section spread as a U shape around the stairs, there is then a main cardio area which takes up the bulk of space, with a synergy on one side, another light free weights area another, the cable machines to another and some cable cross over in the middle… This gym layout is possibly the strangest I have found in a David Lloyd yet. If you want to do any sort of super set or move between free weights to cable you are going to have to pass through quite an area and not trip over the tiny step up on the cardio equipment platform like I did.. The weights are consists of the pretty standard re-furbished David Lloyd setup (for those who have read other reviews!), with 2 lifting platforms with cages for doing squat/deadlift, a good standard set of plate loading machines including incline chest press here (not sure why some have incline and some decline!). A calf raise is present which is always nice and the smith machine here is one of the free floating bar ones which was a little irksome. The free weights go up to 50kg and there is one set of each and the mirrors are plentiful in the weights area, which is nice as there are also a reasonable number of windows round here leaving it quite fresh. The cable machines around the other side again include one of each item you would expect, again this is great but it is worth nothing a little under stocked in variety compared to almost every other David Lloyd I have been to which tend to have at least a few duplicates of this equipment. The cardio equipment on the other hand is another set of varied and complicated pieces of modern technology, from water rowers to bikes hooked up to a competitive TV application you really could spend your time really being specific about how you wanted to train here with your cardio. The rest of the gym area included I think3 studios with one of the fully immersive bike studios with the HUGE screen in for spin sessions, there is a reasonably large stretching area hidden round a corner and with the second free weights area this is where some cable cross over and free weights including the fixed weight barbells lurked. It must be said all the equipment is very new here and the changing rooms are phenomenal, they along with the studios are clearly where the last refurb money went into this place. Other points to note here are that as ever wifi is present, parking is ample out the front and the range of other facilities here is quite extensive as this is a fully kitted out David Lloyd from the wider facilities point of view. All in this is a clean and tidy gym, but while in there looking around it did feel like the gym was really not the focus at this facility and the wider health club features where what people were looking for. The gym certainly serves its purpose and was busy enough when I went, but with only one of each piece of kit, limited ability to easily move between plate and cable this didn't feel like it invited a weight lifter to work through their routine. In summary a great gym for those who want more of a health club set of features and experience, for those who want to move metal it will do the job but don't expect a setup which lends itself to a weight lifting culture, even with your own little corner. How busy? I trained first thing as ever, there were quite a few people in using kit and generally they were all in the weights area. So I would check for later in the day as this could become even busier. Not as bad as I have seen though so pretty good for the all up ability to get done what I needed. Equipment Free weights area 2 squat racks (2 with deadlift platforms) 1 flat bench, 1 incline, 1 decline 3 free benches Dumbells up to 50kg Set of plate machines including Chest Row Shoulder press Cable machines including Low row Cable cross over Facilities Indoor Tennis courts Outdoor Tennis courts Badminton courts Squash courts Indoor Pool 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 parking has a gate but then you can just drive down the next row anyway.. I was very confused. The café was huge and lovely here almost got me to stay Very accessible by road or from the city on foot and close r to the centre than almost any other DL I have been to in any city https://www.davidlloyd.co.uk/clubs/cambridge https://www.facebook.com/DavidLloydCambridge/
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