One of my goals during my stay in Korea is to exercise regularly in addition to maintaining a healthy diet. I joined ZZang Fitness, a fitness center near my apartment.  Gyms in Korea are different in a number of ways from fitness centers in the US -

-they all have sauna’s, people actually take naps on the floor in the saunas. People die every year from being overheated or heart attacks while in the sauna, but this doesn’t seem to phaze their popularity

-if you pay cash, you get a 15% discount in your monthly membership fee. If you pay for 3 months ahead of time, you get a bigger discount

-you need to have separate shoes for the gym. You cannot wear athletic shoes that you’ve worn outside in the gym. Many patrons wear athletic shoes to the gym and change into their indoor gym shoes

-everyone must wear the provided uniforms. The gym washes both top and bottom of your outfit after every use. Very convenient since you don’t ever need to worry about bringing gym clothes.  Can be a problem if you have a phobia of wearing clothes previously worn by someone else

-all the weights are in kilograms!

Other than that, the gym is very similar to that of any other in America.

Zzang fitness is located on the 8th floor of a commercial building. Great views of the city. The staff is really, really, nice and friendly. 

Here’s a few pictures……

Here’s a nice picture of me and Jee Hay, a fitness instructor at Zzang Fitness.