When you're deciding where in London to live, you'll want your new neighbourhood to fit your lifestyle. If you're a fitness fanatic, or you just want the opportunity to go more often, try these areas with workout space close to home, where it'll be easier to match your goals to your schedule.
The first week of January, we’re champing at the bit to achieve our fitness resolutions. But as life in the Big Smoke creeps in, we're commuting in late winter’s chill and dark, picking up all those new years projects, putting our homes back in order after the holidays… it’s hard to fit our fitness routines around London living. If you're looking for a new home in a fitness-friendly community, here are a few of our top picks:
State-of-the-art facilities | The best kind of home gym | A community of gym buddies | Variety in your routine | Historic location for motivation
Best area for state-of-the-art facilities
Dreaming of Olympic fame? Living in Stratford means you're surrounded by facilities built to host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. You can learn and train in the same pools where Olympic swimmers earned their medals. Refine your technique at hockey pitches, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, and stadium running tracks. The Copper Box Arena, where events like the pentathlon and fencing took place, hosts basketball, voleyball, fencing, gymnastics, heavyweight boxing and so much more.
Property to buy and to rent in Stratford.
Feature property: See beautifully designed apartments, with access to a residents' gym, in Coppermaker Square in Stratford. You can also read more about the remarkable range of amenities in our recent Winter Warmers article.
Cardio without the commute
Two areas along the river, Canary Wharf to the North East and Battersea to the South West, have new developments to rent or buy in cropping up all the time, designed with careful attention to their residents' experiences. Concierge, building management and residents' amenities free up residents' days by convenient maintenance, security and access without all the travel. So, if you can't get to the gym because it doesn't fit into your commute, a home with a gym, fitness classes and built-in commmunity (for gym buddies nearby) ought to help keep you on track.
Property to rent in Battersea and in Canary Wharf
See New Build homes for sale and property for sale in Battersea and Canary Wharf, like our feature new build home: Wardian Canary Wharf. These apartments come with access to a well-equipped gym and a heated, athletic-standard outdoor pool on-site.
A sporting community
Fulham boasts an active and energetic community that makes the most of its beautiful and plentiful parks, state-of-the-art gyms and tons of sport. We describe the outdoorsy, energetic culture in Spotlight on Fulham, "There are two big members tennis clubs – one of which, Queens Club, hosts the warm-up tournament before Wimbledon. Fulham FC is the oldest football club in London. Stamford Bridge is nearby (that’s why you’ll see plenty of Chelsea Football Club flags about) and the renowned annual Oxford vs Cambridge boat race starts in Fulham."
See more property to rent and to buy in Fulham.
Feature property: an impressive 3-bed apartment in Fulham which boasts views over the river from its private balcony and access to a well-equipped gym within the building.
A runner's paradise
If you're a runner, the best kind of local park to live by is one with plenty of variety. Hampstead Heath's nearly 800 acres of land includes formal running tracks and scenic routes through ancient woodlands, short circulars and long stretches, shaded paths, open planes and plenty of hills for endless variations to your routine. Hampstead Heath's Parliament Hill is one of the highest points in London, with a remarkable view out over the city. Hikers, bicyclists, walkers, swimmers and tennis players flock to the Heath, not to mention the artists, botanists, historians and families!
Feature property: this is a cosy and immaculate 1-bed flat in the charming heart of Hampstead village, just a 5 minutes' warm-up jog from the Heath.
Historic venues to keep you goal-oriented
East London has a slew of exceptional boxing clubs, but if you want to train with the pros, Bethnal Green has quite possibly the oldest boxing gym in Britain, the highly-regarded Repton Boxing Club. World Champions and Olympic medallists have trained here, and its old-school interiors have also been included in multiple Guy Ritchie films. It isn’t easy to get a spot in this historic club, but Bethnal Green is packed with top-quality gyms to perfect your technique while you wait. For instance, York Hall Leisure Centre has a fantastic gym, all kinds of fitness classes, a swimming pool, spa experience and a multi-purpose arena that is also fundamental to the history of British Boxing.
Our local experts can help you find your new home with workout space nearby. Register on My Foxtons to get started.
