The past two episodes of Gyms with Jun have covered the Claremont Colleges’ flagship gyms: Claremont McKenna Colleges’s Roberts Pavilion and Pomona College’s Center for Athletics, Recreation and Wellness (CARW). As the two gyms house Pomona-Pitzer and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps’ athletic facilities, they are naturally the two biggest facilities on campus.
However, the three other schools also boast smaller gyms of their own, and this episode will focus on Pitzer College’s Gold Student Health & Wellness Center, also known as the GSC.
Compared to the stricter securities of the CARW and Roberts, the GSC was quite easy to enter. There was no ID to scan and no line of questioning from the front desk workers; it seemed like the gym was accessible to all 5C students — though policies outline it is only open to Pomona and Pitzer students.
Entering the gym, my first impression was that the gym was certainly a notch down from the other two gyms. The GSC did not boast a trophy case, nor did it have a multi-floor weight facility.
The equipment was visibly older, and it felt packed into a small room. The dumbbells and barbell grips were somewhat rusty, though the ‘Pitzer College’ brand on the dumbbells was a nice touch — I didn’t see anything similar at Pomona or CMC.
Despite the GSC’s older age and more worn-down condition, I was pleasantly surprised to see an impressive variety of equipment and features that I had not previously seen in the other gyms. For example, the facility contains a pendulum squat, a deadlift platform, a smith machine, a hack squat and a weight sled.
I was most excited about the deadlift platform. While the different types of squat machines are valuable, a deadlift platform changes the game for many weightlifters. The platform at the GSC allows people to drop the weights after lifting their max amount, something that isn’t always possible at other gyms.
The second floor of the GSC does not include any other spaces for weightlifting, but students can still access fitness-related activities through the Yoga Room and Pilates Studio. There, Pomona and Pitzer students can sign up for instructor-led classes. Pitzer students can even sign up for a free personal training session.
Additionally, the second floor is decorated with some snapshots of Pomona-Pitzer athletics on the wall. Most of the trophies are housed at Pomona’s CARW, but it was great to see Pitzer still attempting to stay in touch with their varsity athletics.
Despite the GSC’s size, I enjoyed the Pitzer gym. Yes, it may be a downgrade in the quality of equipment from Pomona and CMC’s gyms since the two have been remodeled quite recently. However, this does not mean the equipment is unusable — in fact, it is likely in better condition than that of a local LA Fitness.
A huge upside to the GSC is the amenities that are attached to the gym itself. For instance, the famous GSC Pool is directly next to the gym. While it may seem unfair that I am evaluating the GSC while also including the pool, Pomona’s Pendleton Pool is half a mile away from Pomona and Axelrood Pool at CMC is only open for three hours a day. So, I think Pitzer deserves some credit.
Additionally, the GSC contains the Shakedown Café. As an extension of my remarks above, I would have rated Roberts and the CARW higher if they were attached to The Hub and The Coop.
The Shakedown allows students to grab snacks until 11 p.m. and boasts its famous $2 tacos, arguably one of the best deals among the 5C restaurants.
It was also interesting to see some offices and rooms that one would usually not see at the gym. For example, the Pitzer Student Senate and Campus Life Office is right across from a huge multi-purpose event space with lots of chairs and a projector screen in the front. Downstairs, the first room in the GSC is the Latinx Student Union.
Translated into numerical scores, my review is as follows:
Quality of the facility: 7/10. As mentioned above, the facility is comparatively older than the Roberts Pavilion and the CARW. Lifters will inevitably find rust and aging in some equipment. However, I cannot gloss over some of Pitzer’s machines, including weight sleds and a deadlift platform, which are not offered at the other gyms.
Amenities: 10/10. Shocker — the first gym to receive a 10 in amenities. The selection of classes is limited, but students can still access yoga, pilates and personal training. I simply cannot rate the GSC under a 10 given that there is an entire restaurant and a pool attached to the gym.
Size: 5/10. The actual size of the gym itself is not very spacious. Most machines have little separation between each other, and even the walkways are quite narrow. The building itself, including the second floor, is still a notch down from the other gyms on campus.
Non-exercise-related value: 7.5/10. Realistically, there is not a lot of space to study in either the Shakedown or the gym. However, given that the Student Senate Campus Life Office and the Latinx Student Union are housed there, the facilities will still host various non-fitness-related events and crowds, such as Sunday NFL viewings, as well as a Super Bowl watch-along.
The Gold Student Health & Wellness Center at Pitzer College landed third with an average score of 7.38 out of 10. This was an unfortunate and unfair match-up — to be placed in comparison with the two powerhouses. As I look forward to the two remaining gyms at the 5Cs, I hope Pitzer’s strengths will not be overlooked in the final rankings.
Jun Kwon PO ’28 is glad he started the ‘Gyms with Jun’ series as it keeps him accountable and forces him into a workout for the TSL articles. However, despite pretending to be a fitness and gym enthusiast, it’s really difficult to hide his dislike for the 18-minute walk from Pomona’s south campus to Pitzer’s gym.
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