PRO Gym Chiang Rai
San Khok Chang Road, Amphoe Mueang Chiang Rai, 57000.
Opening Times: 8:00 – 23:00, 7 days a week.
Cost: 50 baht per day or 800 baht per month – bargain!
Location
PRO Gym Chiang Rai is well-located close to the centre, just a 10 minute walk from the main bus station, 800m southeast of it. It’s very easy to spot from the road, being a standalone building. No hunting around shopping malls for it!
Facilities
This club is my top choice for those on a budget and the best value I found in Chiang Rai. It’s a pretty big open-plan gym on ground floor level. So even though there’s no aircon, there’s plenty of fresh air from open windows (unless you’re here in the middle of the forest fire pollution like I am!) and light, making it an attractive choice. Despite the absence of aircon, the gym was a comfortable temperature at 930am when I got there. There are many fans to assist this.
There is a superb range and amount of equipment, from cardio to weight and functional training equipment to floor space.
Why is PRO Gym Chiang Rai so cheap? Probably as most of the equipment is pretty old – this is certainly a no frills gym, but everything I used worked. There are toilets and showers – think basic but clean.
Cardio
You’ll find a good number of treadmills, upright bikes and crosstrainers, all of which were fairly modern and operational. Additionally there was one step climber, although I couldn’t get it to work when I attended.
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Weights
There is a huge amount of both free weights and resistance machines here, which should cater for all levels. Dumbbells go up to 125lbs and there’s plenty of them – one main rack on one side of the room with a smaller rack on the other side. However, be warned the weights area is a bit of a mess; the smaller rack was half empty of its dumbbells even though there was no-one obviously using them nearby. Dumbbells and indeed kettlebells were in random places around the gym (never did quite work out where the kettlebells were meant to live!), but the dumbbells were generally in pairs at least!
Although most of the resistance machines were ageing somewhat, they appeared to work.
What’s missing is fixed weight barbells; despite doing a thorough hunt I couldn’t see any. However, you will find a Smith machine, a squat rack and a couple of adjustable barbells on the gym floor. There are also numerous benches (flat and inclined) with adjustable bars you could potentially use for whatever you wish.
In fact there are numerous benches generally – for hip extensions, inclined abs work, by the Smith machine and squat rack and in the free weights area. Bench heaven!
Functional Equipment
The club has a good amount of functional training equipment as well as floor space to do your own thing. There are plenty of yoga mats too, and the large open rectangular room makes for a good space to do those walking lunges. You’ll find Swiss balls, a TRX, plyo boxes, step-boards, ab rollers, and kettlebells (albeit in random places around the gym!). Parts of the gym are turfed over for comfort and/or aesthetics.
Summary
Superb value for those on a budget. Great opening times unless you’re an early riser too. This gym caters well for everyone in terms of its facilities, but if you prefer newer equipment in a more upmarket gym, check out my review of The Exclusive Fitness in the centre of town, which also has a couple of classes most nights.
PRO Gym Chiang Rai has small lockers which are operated by keys. I didn’t use one but imagine you’d need to ask at reception. Take your own towel.
The club was well attended when I trained at 9:30am – busy enough for an atmosphere but not unpleasantly so. Great time to train to beat the heat too.
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Want an Overview of Gyms in Chiang Rai?
I went to several different gyms here and I’ve summarised, compared and recommended my favourites for each budget level. Check out Gyms in Chiang Rai.
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