Bells and Whistles at Bally’s Hollywood

Beware. The Gym Rat is snooping around Southern California, looking at the best and worst in health clubs. Jim isn’t just any rat. He’s been teaching for four years at various clubs in the area. He is a member of the International Dance Exercise Assn. and is certified by the Aerobics and Fitness Assn. of America.

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Before I even pulled into the parking lot at Bally’s Total Fitness in Hollywood, I was stopped by a large, ominous sign: “Attention, club members: The indoor pool and sauna are closed until Jan. 2.”

Oh, great. What else isn’t going to be working? Are there going to be 20 treadmills down for the count? Are the weight benches going to be full of rips and tears? Will the machines have signs on them that say “Under Repair”?

Was I ever wrong. What I walked into was a shiny, gleaming, glistening 70,000-square-foot gym. I was impressed. There were four weight areas, a huge cardiovascular area, the under-repair 25-meter pool and an 8 1/2-lap track on the upper level.

Bally’s offers 84 aerobics classes a week, including basic step, aqua aerobics, stretch, yoga, hip-hop, boxing and power flex. The club also offers 12 Spinning classes, and depending on the type of membership you have, you will pay either $1 or $5 a class. The aerobics room is well-ventilated and has a nice hardwood floor and a good sound system. I really enjoyed the 8:30 a.m. Monday step class I took with Eva. Her cuing was good and her routines were easy to follow, but the workout was a toughy.

The weight area has undergone a $750,000 renovation and in what is a really nice touch, most of the old equipment has been donated to Los Angeles Unified School District schools, according to corporate spokesman Dave Southern. The names of the new equipment are familiar to gym rats: Hammer Strength, Maxicam, Ivanko, Magnum, LifeFitness, Icarian and Nautilus.

And there are 18 television sets to distract you in the cardiovascular room (but don’t forget headphones and portable radios to listen to the audio) as you work out on 29 LifeCycle recumbent bicycles, six LifeCycles, four StairMasters, five StarTrac steppers, 17 Precor elliptical trainers, eight LifeFitness ellipticals and 47 LifeFitness treadmills.

Bally’s opened this location in 1987 and is in the middle of remodeling--not only the weight rooms, but also the pool. The pool is being replastered and the filter system is getting an upgrade. New cedar wood will grace the co-ed sauna room.

Only one thing left me a bit uncomfortable. The men’s locker room featured something I haven’t seen anywhere else: security personnel. Martin Montero, the club’s general manager, said security was in the locker room as preventive maintenance, to give people a feeling their belongings would be safe. The security was not there because of fights breaking out, he said. But when asked whether there was security in the women’s locker room, the answer was no.

I guess it’s just a sign of the times.

If you have a gym or health club you think the Gym Rat should scope out, fax to (213) 237-4712 or e-mail health@latimes.com.

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The Rat Trap

On a rating of one to four RATS, four being best, here is how the Gym Rat rates Bally’s Total Fitness in Hollywood:

* Parking: There are two parking lots, one outdoors, and it will cost you all of two bits. ****

* Locker rooms: The day I was there, somebody was either cleaning a mirror or a sink or wiping a floor. Cleanliness is emphasized here. Don’t expect great water pressure out of the showers, but at least soap is provided. There are men’s and women’s steam rooms. ***

* Juice bar: Grade A! At least that’s what the sign said. Take your pick of nonfat frozen yogurt, salads, smoothies, sandwiches and soups. ****

Bally’s Total Fitness, 1628 N. El Centro Ave., Hollywood; (213) 461-0227. Your first visit is free. The membership package this club is currently pushing is $19 down and $19 a month, but that is a limited membership and is good only at the Hollywood location and only three days a week. Other membership packages are available. Club hours are 5 a.m.-midnight Monday-Thursday; 5 a.m.-10 p.m. on Friday and 6 a.m.-8 p.m. on Saturday-Sunday.