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Gyms in Plymouth

A 50 m pool in Central Park, an Art Deco lido below the Hoe and Dartmoor on the doorstep. Here's where to train in Plymouth, and who to train with.

Gyms and venues
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Training in Plymouth

A 50 m pool, two seawater pools and the moor on the city's edge.

Plymouth is home to around 264,700 people (Census 2021), up 3.2% since 2011, with a median age of 39, a year younger than England's. In Sport England's Active Lives survey for Nov 2024–25, 69.0% of adults here did at least 150 minutes of activity a week, against 64.6% for England.

The city's public pools are run by Plymouth Active Leisure, a company owned by Plymouth City Council. Its biggest site is the Plymouth Life Centre in Central Park, with a 10-lane 50 m pool, an Olympic-standard diving pool, climbing walls up to 16 m and a 150-station gym. It also runs Plympton Swimming Pool and Gym, and two seawater pools for the summer: Tinside Lido below the Hoe and the free Mount Wise pools in Devonport.

Beyond them are the Hoe, Plymouth Sound, the Devon Coast to Coast cycle route and Dartmoor to the north. Whatever you train for, it's easier with someone who trains when you do. Gymist is how you find them.

Where to train in Plymouth

The city's public pools first, then the summer seawater pools, the gyms and the fight gyms.

Public pools and leisure centres (Plymouth Active Leisure)

Seawater pools

Gyms and health clubs

Fight gyms and snowsports

Find a training buddy in Plymouth

A lane partner for the 50 m pool at the Life Centre, someone to swim Tinside with on a summer morning, a sparring partner in Coxside: find people near you who train when you do.

Find a buddy

Start a Plymouth training group

A summer swim group at Mount Wise, an evening run along the Hoe, a weekend ride out on the Devon Coast to Coast route: set it up in minutes and we'll help people nearby find it.

Start a group

Train outdoors

Free places to train in Plymouth.

  • Plymouth Hoean open public space above the limestone cliffs of the seafront, with a long promenade, Smeaton's Tower and views across Plymouth Sound.
  • Central Park68 hectares, the city's largest park, with football, rugby and cricket pitches, home to the Life Centre and Home Park.
  • Devon Coast to CoastNational Cycle Route 27 runs 99 miles from Ilfracombe to Plymouth, mostly traffic-free on old railway lines.
  • Dartmoorthe granite moor rises to the north and north-east of the city, and Burrator Reservoir is about 5 miles to the north.
  • Mount Wisefree entry to the outdoor seawater pools in Devonport through the summer season.

Getting around

Bus, rail and bike routes to Plymouth's gyms.

Bus

  • Plymouth Citybus and Stagecoach South West run most of the city's buses
  • Park and Ride sites at Milehouse, Coypool (Plympton) and George Junction

Rail

  • Plymouth station is managed by Great Western Railway, with CrossCountry trains to the Midlands, the North East and Scotland
  • the Tamar Valley Line runs to Gunnislake, and the Cornish Main Line crosses the Royal Albert Bridge into Cornwall

Cycle

  • Plymouth is the southern end of the Devon Coast to Coast route, National Cycle Route 27

Who trains here

What the census and Sport England say about the people you'll train alongside.

  • 39Median ageA year younger than England's 40, and well below the South West's 44.Census 2021
  • 69.0%Adults active 150+ min a weekAbove England's 64.6%, with 22.2% doing less than 30 minutes a week.Sport England Active Lives, Nov 2024–25
  • 19.0%Aged 50 to 64Up from 17.7% in 2011: the age when a regular training partner helps keep a routine going.Census 2021

Plymouth gym questions

What people ask before they train here.

How many gyms are there in Plymouth?

Gymist lists 32 gyms, leisure centres, pools, studios and sports venues in Plymouth, from the Life Centre and the city's lidos to chain gyms, health clubs and MMA and jiu-jitsu gyms.

Which leisure centres are in Plymouth, and who runs them?

Plymouth Active Leisure, a company wholly owned by Plymouth City Council, runs the Plymouth Life Centre, Plympton Swimming Pool and Gym, Tinside Lido and Mount Wise Swimming Pools. Marjon Sports Centre at Plymouth Marjon University has a gym, sports hall and pool, with memberships open to the wider community.

Where can I swim in Plymouth?

The Plymouth Life Centre has a 10-lane 50 m pool, a diving pool and a family pool with waterslides. Plympton Swimming Pool and Gym has a 25 m pool and a learner pool. In summer, Tinside Lido, a 1935 semicircular seawater pool, opens below the Hoe from May to September, and Mount Wise in Devonport has a free, unheated 25 m seawater pool.

Where can I train outdoors for free in Plymouth?

The Hoe is an open public space above the seafront with views across Plymouth Sound. Central Park covers 68 hectares and is the city's largest park. Plymouth is the southern end of the 99-mile Devon Coast to Coast cycle route (National Cycle Route 27), and Dartmoor lies to the north and north-east of the city.

How do I get to gyms in Plymouth without a car?

Plymouth Citybus and Stagecoach South West run most of the city's buses, and there are Park and Ride sites at Milehouse, Coypool in Plympton and George Junction. Great Western Railway and CrossCountry serve Plymouth station, and the Tamar Valley Line runs to Gunnislake.

How do I find a gym buddy in Plymouth?

Join Gymist free, add the gyms you use and when you train, and browse members near you. If there isn't a group for your kind of training yet, you can start one.

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