The best value gym i have ever found. I paid for my membership up front when i first got to…read moreBristol, spending the £300 was one of the best decisions i have ever made, although it may seem expensive you will be saving money, no matter how you look at it. The gym is big. It is spread across three rooms; the main room has all the cardiovascular machines and a few weights machines. The next largest room has a large area for stretching etc. Finally the smallest of the three is a free weights room. The machines are not looked after especially well however this does not matter much as there are so many of them. So many in fact that you can literally feel the floor pulse the the steps of the running machines.

If you're brave enough to enter the different dimension known as the gym, then Pulse will have you…read morefit as a fiddle in no time. Open to student and non-students alike, the annual price is very reasonable. Parking may be difficult for those who live further afield but I guess the walking will do you good as a warm-up! There is a separate weights room for the hunky men who spend hours pouting at themselves in the ceiling-size mirrors and a fitness suite full to the brim with cardio machines. A quieter, more welcoming weight room is round the corner for those not quite ready to join the Hercules wannabes. Trainers are on-hand to assist you and also make good eye-candy whilst you're sweating it out on the treadmill.

I have walked passed Bubalu so many time but for some reason never given it a second thought…read more Health food and non alcoholic drinks weren't really my thing until recently. But last week I read some Yelp reviews and decided to give it a go, and I am so glad I did. Now, I want to give Bubalu five stars, but I haven't used the gym or fitness facilities, so It wouldn't be right. But, based on the food and drinks, I will definitely be going back. And when I'm full of January fat blues and post Christmas over indulgence, I'll definitely be back to check out some classes. I ordered the B-Boost Smoothy which had Coffee, Banana, Honey, cinnamon and ice in it. It was by far the best smoothy I've ever had. The coffee had a real punch and all the other flavours stuck to the pallet. I never wanted it to end. When I first arrived there was nobody else there, but within half an hour it was half full with a really nice buzz and atmosphere. The food being served looked great and I really wanted to some, but I couldn't unfortunately. Gloucester Road is always full of surprises, but this has been one of my recent favorites - event though I've known about it for several years! That's the beauty with yelp, I suppose!

I've known Mike for years and was so pleased to see how the place turned out for him…read more Great coffee, good smoothies!

This excellent council run state of the art leisure centre boasts one (sorry, two!) of the best…read morepools in the city. The main pool boasts six lanes and is even overseen by a spectator gallery which is used during competitions. There is also a smaller learner pool complete with a flume which snakes down into it (alas I've never worked up the bottle to ask to have a go!). One word of warning, on two occasions I've turned up only to be refused entry due to the timetable being changed without any warning (there was no apology either - they just seemed to think I was a bit weird for reading the timetable online and assuming it was correct!). Elsewhere there's a gym and fitness classes (I've not used either though have heard good things about the circuit training class), and a decent sized hall which you can hire by the hour for badminton and 5-a-side. There's also ample parking outside, much of it CCTV monitored.

Run and funded by the council, Easton Leisure Centre is a good, well-kept and clean space with…read moreplenty of activities on offer. The swimming pool is large and as good as you'll get for a swim. It doesn't cost much either. There's also gym facilities and a range of fitness classes. Make sure you check times (even phoning if necessary - although my one major complaint would revolve around the fact that I have tried to phone and find out about swim times only for my calls to remain unanswered). Regrettably the website isn't very regularly updated so it's a good idea to check. The Easton location isn't exactly wildly accessible for a lot of people. If you're a cardriver there's a large amount of parking outside but for those of us who aren't, the nearest reliable transport service is Lawrence Hill train station although even then you have to snake under the quite circuitous underpass in order to get to the other side. Overall it's a good leisure centre, I just wish it wasn't so heartbreaking to be turned away when I've travelled for miles because the staff don't answer the phone and the website is out of date!

When I first moved to Bristol, Horfield was all I knew. I shopped at this end of town, went out…read morehere and relaxed here. When there was relaxing to be done it was done here, on The Ardagh - Horfield Common. Many people come here on the weekend for the little known views that sweep right across the city, whist maintaining some sort of privacy. It's quiet here, with big London Plane trees marking the border to the road and a small pond for wildlife interest and somewhere for the kids. There's also a decent sized play area for the nippers and at the other end of the age spectrum, a bowling green. Mostly though, there's just grass. A big expanse of green. And sometimes, that's all you want.

Phenomenal gym that is always looking at ways to improve. The rooms were redesigned some time ago…read morealong with the implementation of a new 'High performance zone'. They have recently installed a new 'Functional zone' that now caters for every part of my training. The individual areas are spacious and make you feel like you are training in your own personal space. BS7 Gym is the best kept secret in Bristol.

This is a pretty average gym, it's basically made up of 4 rooms 2 with cardio machines and 2 for…read moreweights. There's also a class studio and squash court. They do offer a pretty good class timetable with all the usual classes such circuits, boxercise and yoga, which are all included in your membership. Squash is also included although you need to pay to hire rackets and balls. The gym is looking pretty tired and good do with a bit of TLC and a tidy up, maybe an upgrade of machines and certainly needs the air con sorted out. Membership is £34 a month for individual or £54 for joint. You are primarily a member of the county cricket ground which is home to Gloucestershire cricket club. Your membership gets you into the home games for free and although I'm not a cricket fan there is possibly nothing better than soaking up the rays and atmosphere whilst enjoying a glass of something fruity on a summers evening!

The Mighty Bris are having a pretty good season at the moment. As I write this the first team are…read morecurrently 1st in the table, a game in hand and 3 points clear (granted not much but if they can post an impressive result in the game in hand then they'll be sitting pretty at the top) I have a problem this weekend as Bristol are playing my town of Birth Coventry in the British and Irish cup. I think I should have more alliegences with Coventry... but I dont... Come on Bristol! With a good batch of youth and academy players Bristol are high achievers and can expect a bright future for at least the next few years. Big Vunipola is going to squash Cov on saturday!

Coombe Dingle is a gem in Bristol's sporting crown. The sports complex is the base for most of…read moreBristol Uni's sports teams. It has 8 pitches, a large AstroTurf pitch, a conditioning and weights room, medical centre, a netball court and indoor and outdoor tennis courts. Open to the public, the Dingle, is a good sporting site to the Bristol public. The pitches are normally in pretty good nick, they do however give priority to the university teams , understandably.

This is everything you would expect from a lawn tennis club in a nice area. Polite receptionist,…read moretidy changing room and in immaculately kept tennis court are all par for the course at somewhere like this. Only a little bit stuffy and located in a very pretty corner of Bristol. As well as three lawn tennish courts they've got squash courts, a hockey pitch and a gym, so plenty to keep you busy then. It's only members so you'll either have to join (which is quite pricey) or do what I do and find a friend to get you in. The facilities are all very well kept up - the tennis courts look like you could eat off them. There's coaching on offer, which is friendly and from people that know what they're talking about. They've got a room for functions and it's a good place to book for a thoroughly English wedding. Not sure if I'd want the sound of someone playing tennis in the background though. Bristol Lawn Tennis Club is sedate and well kept up, a lovely place for an afternoon of tennis.

The woman on reception this morning greeted us with hostility. I don't know her name but she was…read moreprobably late 50's early 60's, medium height on the weighty side and heavily made up. My husband and I went to enquire about tennis court hire and pricing etc. We are amateur tennis players at best, new to the area and looking for a nice, local club to play at and improve our game. She was unnecessarily condescending and rude in her manner, particularly to me it seemed. She clearly had no time for us and was very cold and abrupt during our exchange as a result. We were not made to feel welcome, she was horribly stuck up. it was a very unpleasant experience and we certainly won't be returning. On the whole it seemed rather cliquey and middle class, the kind of place where you get stares if you're a stranger, no thanks.

One of the only truly mixed team sports in the world, definitely worth a try to keep fit and meet…read morenew people!