Alan Kim | Roanoke Times

Representing the gyms that came out on top are Kurt Weidner, a trainer at the Weight Club, and New Town Fitness member and Virginia Tech graduate student Ashley Dorough.

Call it the Great Weight Debate.

When asked to elect the Best Place to Work Out in the New River Valley, Roanoke Times readers were deadlocked between Blacksburg’s two largest private fitness facilities, the Weight Club on University City Boulevard and New Town Fitness on Turner Street and Prices Fork Road.

Both the Weight Club and New Town have large sets of loyal members, and since every fitness enthusiast seems to value different things in his or her workout experience, it’s nearly impossible to objectively declare which gym is the best in town.

So we’ll let you weigh the tale of the tape and ultimately decide which facility you want to have shape you up.

The Weight Club, which originally was built in the University Mall in 1990, boasts 2,900 members and a behemoth 37,000 square feet of workout space on two levels — the result of a 23,000-square-foot expansion in 2000.

The first floor contains dozens of machines and pieces of weight and resistance training equipment; a group of cardiovascular machines; group fitness studios for aerobics, martial arts and cycling and men’s and women’s locker rooms.

The second, partial level includes a cardio theater with 40 various treadmills, bikes, elliptical machines and televisions and is ringed by a 1/9 mile running track — one of the most popular features at the gym.

“It’s wide open,” Weight Club member Drew Sehen, 26, said. “It’s usually not too crowded except right before spring break when people are in here trying to get in shape real fast. You can get on just about any machine you ever want without having to wait.”

Indeed, the sheer amount of space and equipment at the Weight Club — more than double those at New Town — seem to be its biggest advantage. Even during its busiest hours, there are ample cardio machines and weight equipment to accommodate its members. The Weight Club also offers 52 group fitness classes compared to 44 at New Town.

“It’s got everything,” said Jason Martinko, a Toronto, Canada, native who’s been using the gym during a monthlong stay in Blacksburg for job training. “It’s got all the heavy-lifting section you could want. I enjoy the martial-arts classes, and it’s nice to have a track.”

In sharp contrast to the sweeping windows of New Town Fitness, the Weight Club is completely enclosed without natural light within the University Mall. But the gym’s environs are still popular with its members.

Last year, the walls of the Weight Club were repainted bright orange, replacing the drab gray walls that had been there for years.

Arthur Ball, a Weight Club member, said the new-look orange is probably his favorite thing about the place.

“I like the color scheme,” he said. “It’s just a lot more inviting.”

An individual yearlong membership at the Weight Club costs $350, or $29 a month, which is $5 a month cheaper than New Town.

A Weight Club membership also comes with the benefit of access to a much smaller branch facility at the Corporate Research Center on the opposite end of Blacksburg. The branch, which has 700 members of its own, is relocating to a new, larger facility at the CRC in about a year, said Weight Club general manager Christie Heslip.

New Town, at 16,000 square feet and 1,700 members, cannot begin to challenge the Weight Club in physical size, but it claims to offer a more intimate, closer knit relationship with its members.

Still very new-looking six years after it opened, New Town contains many of the same types of cardio and weight equipment as the Weight Club spread across its two levels.

But the gym prides itself more on its group fitness programs. The majority of its members are regularly involved in classes and are familiar with their instructors.

“Our goal is to get people off of the machines and into classes,” New Town group fitness director Arlene Harris said. “When you make a New Year’s resolution and just go get on a treadmill, you might not stick with it. If you get connected to a class and an instructor, you’ll come back every day.”

Harris said New Town has especially become a comfortable and accommodating gym for women, who value the nationally branded BodyPump classes that are taught there.

She said BodyPump classes, mixed routines of aerobic and resistance training, bring in members by the dozens — particularly women. Harris said New Town has become a popular destination for sorority sisters from Virginia Tech.

“Our club has become a little more geared to the woman,” Harris said. “If you’re a power lifter, you probably don’t want to come to New Town. That’s just not really our theme here. Although that’s not to say we don’t have a lot of guys who work out here, too.”

New Town has also come up with the smart idea of offering women-only group classes three times a week — a move that has given several local Muslim women the opportunity to work out privately without violating the dress rules of their faith.

There is also a small workout room at New Town exclusively for women — an amenity the Weight Club also plans to install soon — and New Town has set child-care hours, whereas child care is available only by appointment at the Weight Club.

“As a parent, I’m 100 percent confident in my staff,” said New Town child-care manager Marjie Rosandich, who often brings her infant daughter to work with her. “My daughter is my judge of standards. It’s really convenient that you don’t have to call ahead here.”

Weight Club:

Square feet: 37,000

Members: 2,900

Cardiovascular machines: 60

Walking track: yes

Resistance and weight apparatuses: 104

Group fitness classes: 52/week

Group cycling room: 33 bikes, 17 classes/week

Child care: by appointment, one-time $5 fee

Price: individual, $350/year ($29/month); married couple $498 ($42)

*Upon request, Weight Club members can also work out free of charge at a smaller branch facility located at the Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg. The CRC has 700 additional members.

Matt Gentry | Roanoke Times

Susan Shaw (in blue) leads a BodyPump class at New Town Fitness.

New Town Fitness:

Square feet: 16,000

Members: 1,700

Cardiovascular machines: 33

Walking track: no

Resistance and weight apparatuses: 50

Group fitness classes: 43/week

Group cycling room: 12 bikes, 17 classes/week

Child care: set daily hours, $5/month

Price: individual, $408/year ($34/month); married couple $576 ($48)