XXXL - Die Schmiede

Be really careful with these guys, although they have a very nice gym they are dodgy. I had a family grievance and had to leave Berlin to go take care of my family so they agreed to cancel my membership in August when I spoke with them face to face, by phone and email UNTIL I actually left Berlin... They've been charging me every month for about 5 months but now they completely ignore my emails and facebook messages...I even made a desperate attempt to write on their wall about my terrible issue with them which they actually had the audacity to just delete! To repeat, they do have a nice gym but their attitude and support is just disgraceful.

Top hardcore gym in Berlin. More machines than standards gyms. Clean and spacious. The team is friendly but barely speaks English. One day pass and protein bar.

Great old-school "east-German" bodybuilding gym way out in Weissensee, not far from Prenzlberg. I think the only other real "bodybuilding" gym in Berlin is Powerhouse in Charlottenberg (also supposed to be good, I haven't tried them). Staff and patrons are great. Everyone knows what they're doing here, no gym newbies. 2 squat racks. Kitschy 80s decor. Clean locker/shower area. I believe it had a mini-sauna, but can't recall. A number of the patrons are competitive bodybuilders. Equipment is excellent and in perfect repair, with a very complete array of dumbbells and free-weights. It is not an "olympic"-style gym, no bumper plates or anything. Not much cardio, what they have is used mostly for warm-ups/cool-downs for the weights. They offer very reasonably priced one-month pay-in-cash no-contract memberships in addition to longer/standard terms (whenever I'm in Berlin for more than a few days I get a 1 month membership, it pays for itself quickly). Noone speaks English, but it's not necessary if you're paying one month or one day at a time (I wouldn't sign contracts if you can't read, understand & discuss the terms, but that goes for anywhere). Only down-sides are the short hours and how far out from the center it is - but while you're out here, head out to the Weissensee park & lake for a picnic or a walk, it's beautiful.