Swinney Recreation Center

Swinney Rec is right in the heart of UMKC campus, and for me it’s the closest available gym that’ll have me.
I’ve only been going here for a month or two but I love the proximity. It allows me to, well, actually go to the gym where my previous spot was a trek to get to.
There are loads of various cardio machines, and the majority have these «course» settings that let you run or ride through cool settings like Colorado, New Zealand, France, etc. In the dead of winter in KC, it’s a welcome relief instead of slogging through cardio.
The weights area and machines have pretty much what you need, although another couple free weight squat racks are needed. The weights are pretty old school but not too shabby.
Parking (with a purchased pass) is pretty good seeing as how this is right in the middle of campus. It’s occasionally a bit of a hike when the weather is 10 degrees, but it toughens me up… at least that’s what I’m telling myself!
Friendly staff and convenient lockers right near the workout area too. All in all, I’m a fan.

The rec center is where the Seattle university women’s basketball team played against UMKC. It is a large multipurpose arena and makes a good use of its space with four courts in their primary gym and a practice court. In some ways thought it was doing too much as it was so open to the general population we were unable to hold a closed practice or shoot around during our visit. The home UMKC team was walking through our game day shoot around as their film and weight lifting room was only accessible through the gym we had been placed in. Other than this issue the facilities seemed to meet the needs of the student body and was able to effectively house both recreation and athletics staff and offices without too much trouble.

It’s clean. There are private showers with free locker, lock, and towel service. It’s never too packed with people and I never feel judged by the serious fitness folks that make up most of the crowd here. There’s enough equipment to go around and then some. There’s an indoor pool, track, several basketball courts. 20 dollars a month for UMKC employees/​students/​affiliates.
It’s really hard to beat this place if you have access to it. Swinney’s high quality and low cost are probably the best employee perk of working for the University, especially during these winter months when being active outside becomes one of my least favorite things to do.
All this, and they’re helping escape fatty status. Awwww yisss.

The Swinney rec complex at UMKC is a great place for students to work out. Right on campus, the Swinney rec complex offers broad hours and a wide array of facilities for students. There is a cardio room, a weight room, numerous basketball gyms and clean and new locker rooms. The complex also boasts a state of the art «bod pod» for measuring body composition.