Brian Vandemoortele, membership director of the San Diego Athletic Club at 701 B St, says most of the members are within four blocks of the club. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

People who work and live Downtown have many options in gyms, from small centers with individualized attention to large operations with tons of equipment. They include:

• The Burn, at 1014 Fifth Ave., Suite 120, (619) 687-0080.
  
  
• Curves, at 1119 Fifth Ave., (619) 232-1162.
  
  
• 24 Hour Fitness, in the Horton Plaza shopping center, (619) 232-4024.
  
  
• Bodyworks Health & Fitness, at 1130 Seventh Ave., (619) 232-5500.
  
  
• Yoga One, at 1150 Seventh Ave., (619) 294-7461.
  
  
• City Boxing, at 1059 14th St., (619) 233-5444.
  
  
• The Downtown YMCA, at 500 W. Broadway, Unit B, (619) 232-7451.
  
  
• Evolution Fitness, at 526 Market St., (619) 231-9393.
  
  
• San Diego Athletic Club, at 701 B St., Unit 50, (619) 239-3622.
  
  
• Purefitness Westside Athletic Club, 501 West Broadway (Koll Center), (619) 231-8991.

In the Downtown area, stand-alone gyms must compete with an increasingly common amenity in the high-rise condominium projects: in-building gyms, for exclusive use of residents.

Mike Ciampa, a Downtown resident and Realtor with 92101 Residential, says his clients appreciate condo amenities such as workout facilities, but that it’s not a deal-breaker when buying a home. Still, Downtown residents are less inclined to maintain membership at an outside gym if they’re already paying homeowners’ association fees for one in their own building, says Ciampa.

Brian Vandemoortele, membership director for the San Diego Athletic Club, says most of the athletic club’s membership are within three to four blocks. Residents elsewhere Downtown represent just 5 percent to 10 percent of the upscale club’s clientele.

“It’s been difficult to get into that market, and I don’t know why,” says Vandemoortele, noting the condo complex gyms are often very small by comparison. “I don’t know what all their tenants are doing.”

Still, the San Diego Athletic Club attracts executives who may not live Downtown but who work in the same Merrill Lynch building, and those who don’t work or live Downtown but have grown to know the club during its 20-year history.

— Jennifer McEntee