Get Your Swell On: House Gyms Part 3

It's that time again: Flyby has gone in search of the best House gyms. Those mysterious and dungeon like havens of good health protect upperclassmen from the freshmen masses or the judgmental gaze of law school students. For a refresher on where we've been before, here are the first two house gym posts: Adams/Lowell/Quincy and Eliot/Kirkland/Winthrop.

Today we set our sights on the Leverett/Dunster/Mather neighborhood. Clearly Flyby is doing everything it can to avoid making the unbearably long trek to the Quad.

As usual Houses will be receiving between one and five stars. SPOILER ALERT: Dumbledore dies. Just kidding. A House gym will actually get a five today. Follow the jump to see which one.

Leverett House Gym (**)

The Leverett House gym resides in a strange, U-shaped room under A entryway in Old Lev. Be prepared ye interhouse: it requires key access.

Though not as offensive as Adam's House, there are visible pipes. And to add to the Rocky Balboa aesthetic, there is also a folded up treadmill and a punching bag laying on the floor.

The gym has three treadmills, one elliptical/cross-trainer, and one bike. It has an array of free-weights and some weight lifting machines  and the abdominal weight lifting machine is a nice additional touch.

The gym is altogether unexciting and does not feel particularly spacious or neat.

Dunster House Gym (*****)

Well, this was a big surprise. Despite the House's reputation for being one of the worst Houses (this blog ranked it as junk last year), the gym is actually quite legit. The Dunster House gym consists of three separate squash courts: one is populated with a fleet of six ergs, another is a cardio room, and the third is a weightlifting room. So what Lowell House tries to do in one squash court, Dunster does in three. The rooms are also clearly labeled.

All three are near each other in the Houses basement—no key necessary. There are two treadmills, three elliptical/cross-trainers, one stair machine, and three bikes in the cardio room. All three rooms are nicely organized. Both the cardio room and the weight room have modern looking flat panel televisions. The weight room even has a picture of the Dunster House mascot (a moose) on the wall.

Mather House Gym (***)

While Mather doesn't have the most cardio equipment in the world, it has some nice touches that put it in the middle of the pack. The gym has a standard two treadmills, two elliptical machines and a wide array of free-weights.

But the room itself has a nice feel to it, including a small cove for a well-worn punching bag. Fully equipped with a sound system, a flat screen tv and two fans, Mather gym is ready to make up in technology for what it lacks in gym equipment.

And forr those of you who need a little more help, a bulletin board with exercise advice and some magazines are there to help.