Prairie Lake Community Center

I go here to run in the Free indoor track. The facilities are consistently clean and the staff is super friendly. It is really cool that they have a filtered water bottle station. They also always have the perfect temperature for indoor running! The best things in life can be free!

Great air conditioned indoor track outdoor track available too! Friendly employees too. Especially Joe D. The gym attendant. He was very helpful and knowledgeable about the facilities at Prairie Lakes.

This review mainly focuses on the gym. I was a member for about a year in high school, took about a 5 year break (lol) and got back into running a few months ago. I have tried out other gyms, such as planet fitness on Golf and Cardinal Fitness on Oakton, but I still prefer this gym.
Pros:
1) No meat heads. Probably my favorite thing about this gym. Mostly older people and just ordinary people from town. Not many younger people. Planet fitness is just packed with them. So it has a very laid-​back vibe, with mostly regulars.
2) Assuming most members are residents of Des Plaines, it is very local. I don’t have to travel far to get here, and actually ride my bike if it is not raining.
3) No contract or sign-​up fees. They offer a monthly gym membership, so you have peace of mind knowing you are not financially committed to going if you can’t/don’t want to. They also offer great 3 month, 6 month, and 1 year memberships for a cheaper price, as well as dual memberships, for people you live with, at a cheaper rate.
4) If you are more of a runner, this gym is great for its outdoor trail when you feel like getting some fresh air and looking at the pretty scenery on your walk/​run, as well as an indoor track upstairs that is free to use. This allows you to change up your running routine to indoor and outdoor.
5) This gym and the locker rooms are very clean. The locker rooms are usually empty so you get lots of privacy.
6) The staff is really friendly. They know me by name and make me feel like a member of a community, instead of a paying customer.
Con’s:
1) As most people are aware, the gym is small. This has never been a problem for me, because I don’t need a diverse amount of machinery, but if you are into weights, you may feel like there are not enough options. There are many people at this gym, however, who do nothing but weights, and they still have many options. I don’t really see the point of have 100+ machines that are barely used as opposed to just the essentials, but I am not into weights, so I am not a good authority on the subject. I will say, though, that there is a GREAT ab machine there that I use every time. You sit and rotate from one side to another, and Cardinal Fitness does not have this machine (not sure about planet fitness) It is really effective. They have a machine for every muscle, just not 100 of them.
2) Because of the size of the gym, I am in a daily battle to get a good treadmill. There are four advanced ones, and I believe 3 lame ones that don’t have a screen. Waiting for one to open is not all that uncommon, which is extremely annoying. Still, eighty percent of the time there is no wait or a very short wait, and it is frustrating, but hasn’t led me to go to another gym. I just force myself to get over it because the positive things about this place make it worth it.
3) The monthly membership fee is a bit pricey. I believe 32 a month for a resident. You can obviously go somewhere like Planet Fitness for half the price, but you get what you pay for. What I love is solitude, and going later in the day guarantees the place is never crowded, so I am willing to pay a little extra.
*I am not sure if this is a common concern, but this gym is NOT a Maine West reunion. I barely see anyone I knew from school. Planet Fitness, on the other hand, is like school all over again. And the majority of people there are not the ones I want to be reunited with. If you are looking for a simple gym that is local and you are not sure if you are willing to commit to a long-​term membership, give this gym a try!

As far as municipal recreation centers go, Prairie Lakes has nearly everything I want. I take my daughter here for park district classes, I’ve used the equipment in the workout room, and I run on the track pretty frequently in the icy winter months when running outside can be dangerous. The track here is free (!!!) for Des Plaines residents, and it’s open until 10:30 four of the seven days a week Prairie Lakes is open. The nice thing about the track here is that it’s above the basketball area rather than around it, like at some other area community centers. You don’t have to worry about dodging people or sports equipment while you’re trying to fall into a good pace. The parking lot here is large enough that you can get a spot easily even during peak hours, and the water fountains have a special device on them to help you fill your water bottle without getting water all over the place. It sounds like a small detail, yes, but in the winter time, it’s nice to not have to worry about getting water on your coat.
They have lockers here, but the locker rooms are a «members only» type deal. If you’re a cheapskate like me and you don’t want to pay to use them, the free hall lockers (bring your own lock) have plenty of room for a reasonable amount of stuff.
I usually find the facility clean and well-​maintained, even on very slushy days, and the staff is friendly and helpful. The only exception to this is that the bathrooms seem to run out of toilet paper more than I would expect.
Bottom line: this place is more economical than a health club membership and less crowded than a health club, too.