New York City's Best Gyms and Studios for Personal Training

If you have already signed up for a new gym membership this year but aren't what to do beyond hitting the elliptical machine, investing in a short-term personal training program can help you not only achieve results but also do it efficiently and cost-effectively. Sure, having the privilege for someone to sculpt your sweat sessions doesn't come cheap, but the money that you might spend tapping it back two or three times a week at fancy fitness studios could go towards personalized workouts that you can replicate on your own in the future.

Below, we've highlighted eight fitness facilities that are known for their top-notch personal training options, as well as the pricing breakdown for each.

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Body Space Fitness

The Union Square location offers a three-month package of personalized sessions based on the results you're looking for with several scheduling options. If you want to go once per week (for a total of 13 workouts), each will come out to $121. If you're upping that to twice per week, then each one is just $116. If you're looking for just a single session, that'll set you back $126.

47 West 14th Street; Body Space Fitness

BFX Studio/Facebook

BFX Studio

To experience expert personal training in either Chelsea or the Financial District, you don't have to pay a cent — your first session is free. If you're hooked after that, there's a few options you can choose from: A single private session for $149, while four per month is $516, eight per month is $872, and 12 per month is $1,188. Those last two option also gets you a complimentary heart rate monitor and unlimited group classes, with everything from Spinning to yoga-Pilates mashups on offer.

555 Sixth Avenue and 30 Broad Street; BFX Studio

Culture Fitness

Underneath the High Line lies this one-room gym that's solely reserved for personal training. It's stocked with not-so-typical equipment ranging from rings hanging from the ceiling to a Jacob's Ladder cardio machine. A customized plan from head trainer Larry Twohig maps out twice- or thrice-weekly workouts that start at your current fitness level and progressively get harder as you get stronger. Contact the gym for rates.

520 West 21st Street; Culture Fitness

Nimble Fitness

There are locations just outside of Union Square and on St. Marks Place, but you can also opt for in-home sessions using an integrated, holistic approach that begins with a free assessment in the studio. From there, the price ranges from $105 to $165 for each 60-minute session. You can select a package that begins at five sessions, or go all the way to up to 50 workouts — as usual, the bigger the package, the lower the price per session.

42 East 12th Street and 6 St. Marks Place; Nimble Fitness

Uplift Studios

This women-only studio in Flatiron has so many specialized personal training options at the ready, including programs for wedding prep, pregnant moms-to be, teens and tweens, and women over fifty. Single sessions will run you $115, but the price dips to $85 if you're able to train between 9am and 4pm on weekdays. Uplift also offers an introductory studio package with three private sessions, one group class, and one athletic training session for $350. Buying in bulk lowers the price per personal training session — packages of 12 and 24 sessions are available — and when you purchase of any of the personal training packages, you'll also receive 10% off an athletic training session.

24 West 23rd Street; Uplift Studios

Just Train by Joel Thomas/Facebook

Just Train by Joel Thomas

Located in the Financial District, this training facility offers both private and semi-private sessions, the latter of which seriously drive down the price. Semi-private sessions go for about $29 apiece, or you can grab 12 for $321.53 — that's a bit less than $27 per session. If you prefer to have one-on-one time, an initial consultation is $90, a single session is about $120, six sessions are $689, and 12 is just over $1,300.

6 Maiden Lane; Just Train by Joel Thomas

Work, Train, Fight

Your personal training can be very of-the-moment when you throw boxing into the mix — that's the focus at this no-membership-needed gym in Noho. Sessions available as low as $47 per workout if you sign up for 16 semi-private classes with up to three other participants. One-on-one sessions, naturally, are little more pricey: A single session is $110, five sessions are $525 (or $105 each), 10 sessions are $1,000, and 40 sessions are $3,600, bringing the price down to $90 per workout. Work Train Fight typically has promos at the ready, so be sure to contact the gym before signing up.

636 Broadway #204; Work Train Fight

Definitions Private Training Gyms

Definitions has several locations through the city, offering sessions for as low as $102 during off-peak hours. As for the rest of the day, the more sessions you purchase, the cheaper the breakdown: one session is $150, 12 sessions are $1,464 (or $122 each), 25 sessions are $2,895 (or $116 each), and 40 sessions are $4,450, breaking down to $111.

19 Union Square West, 133 East 58th Street, and 39 East 78th Street; Definitions