Gyms with pools in Atlanta area

There are WAY better options then a gym pool in Atlanta, especially better then an LA Fitness. There are good masters programs at Emory University, Dynamo, Westminster (Killer Whales), Swim Atlanta, and more. If you live in Cobb County there is also the Central Aquatic Center, West Cobb Aquatic Center, and Mountain View Aquatic Center. Sorry, I just find gym pools lousy places to train seriously, especially when there are so many better options in Atlanta. My experience with the YMCA pools that I've swam in is they keep the water way too warm to do a hard interval workout without cooking. Here are some listings from USMS: http://www.usms.org/placswim/placswimform.php?LMSCID=45 If you are in Buckhead then you might want to check out the masters at Westminster or Dynamo - both would be fairly convenient. Dynamo also has lap swim times.

The YMCA on the westside of Buckhead is definitely worth checking out. My impression is that it's very family friendly and not that far from Chastain.

http://www.ymcaatlanta.org/sby/

Do any of the LTF pools have the outdoor pool open year round? Or just over the summer?

I belong to the Buckhead YMCA & do all my swims there. They have a 5 lane 25 yard pool. The typical setup is 4 lanes for lap swimming & one lane for aqua joggers/aerobics, etc. I have had to circle swim in a lane once in the last year there. Sharing a lane with one other person is not uncommon. Most of the time, I have a lane all to myself. Sometimes I have the entire pool all to myself. Of course, that all depends on what time you show up. Get there at 6:00 in the morning, at lunchtime, or at 5PM, and you will have a crowded pool. Get there at 10AM or 2PM and you may be the only one in the water.

In the summer it's great because the pool is dedicated to lap swimming only when the outside pool is open (sans the occasional lane for swim lessons). Right now it can suck because they will eat up lanes for swim lessons & swim team at the same time sometimes leaving only one or two lanes open for lap swimming. They have a schedule though telling you when lanes will be closed for those activities, so just plan accordingly.

My coach keeps trying to get me to join the masters at Westminster, but I can't commit to that right now because of my schedule and two kids. Until then, I will keep doing the workouts he sends me on my own.

Thanks everyone. Just did my first(!) swim session last night (I have a long way to go...). I ended-up joining LA Fitness on a month-to-month deal...the LAF at the perimeter is definitely old and busted, but it's really close to my temporary corporate apartment, and given traffic around Atlanta, especially up here at the Perimeter, LAF seems like a logical choice.

And just to let you all know, they're going to be renovating the LAF at the perimeter in early April, so hopefully the old and busted facility will be better on the other side.

In any case, enjoy today's fog and let's hope spring gets here soon.

btw, is anybody training for IM Cozumel later this year? I soft circled that on my race calendar.

Hi! Just want to know how's the LAF at this time since you've mentioned that they're going to be renovating the LAF at the perimeter in the past few years. Just curios

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