Unirec Gym: A Review

After a summer away, it’s time to get back into shape, right? Thankfully, the university has a gym on-campus. Dan Moskovitz reviews Unirec.

If you read nothing else in this article, know this; the Kelburn gym has several floors. The ground floor is an excellent space to work out. I took months to realize there was a whole other space I wasn’t utilizing. 

With that PSA out of the way, let’s have an overview of the gym proper. The top floor is a useful stretching and core area, the second floor has most of the traditional machines and weights, and on the ground floor there’s an open space alongside bench and squat racks.

All in all, the space is utilized well and there’s something for everyone.

This is all the Kelburn gym however. As for Unirec’s Pipitea gym, my advice is one word; don’t. 

Found in the basement of Rutherford House, Pipitea’s gym is cramped. It’s got less equipment, its vibe is depressing, and it’s just not a fun place to workout. 

Admittedly, I’ve only gone there once when the kelburn gym closed due to maintenance work. Still once was enough to convince me to get a hold on my membership the next time maintenance work closed Kelburn’s gym.

Price wise, as a student, you can get a year for $209. Divided by the 52 weeks in a year, and you’re paying $4.02 per week at the gym. If you can find a cheaper price in Wellington, I’d love to hear about it. 

Though if you’ll be elsewhere in Aotearoa during the uni breaks, you might be better off getting Unirec’s $199 orientation deal, which gives access until the end of trimester two. However, it comes up to $5.10 per week. 

Note the above offer expires on 10 March, so get it while you can. 

I’m also yet to hear a bad word said about any of the personal trainers, or any of the staff, for that matter. I’ve needed to get targeted advice on countering muscle imbalances and dealing with back issues a couple of times, and both times the personal trainers at Unirec have been superb. 

An hour-long session costs only $35 and you can get five of them for $160, charging you $32 per session. Again, I’d be surprised to find cheaper in Wellington, and there’s an even cheaper program for gym newbies. 

There are a couple of pieces of equipment I wish Unirec had - an assisted pull up machine and a genuine leg press would round it out well, but ultimately the gym’s equipment does a solid job, regardless of how or what you wish to train.

Ultimately, if you're on the fence about Unirec; go for it. As long as you’re using the Kelburn gym.