Supreme Sports Performance and Training

I wish I had a no nonsense barbell gym like this at home! When I visit my parents in Maryland, this is where I come. I wanted a barbell gym that wasn’t crossfit and a general gym doesn’t have proper squat racks.
Here you can lift amongst respectful lifters and get what you need done with all the necessary and proper tools. Great staff and welcoming vibe.

This is gonna be a long one so grab some popcorn.
So I’d like to say first and foremost i don’t work out. I know absolutely nothing and always wanted to start but didn’t know how. I figured if I wanted to start lifting weights what better place to start than an Olympic weight lifting gym. If anyone knew what I should be doing then they’d be it. I’m tall and skinny (6’5 145−150lbs), always have been and with my african european genes probably always will be. Even at my heaviest (which is 45−50lbs more than I am now) I was more «ballet dancer» muscular instead of «Incredible Hulk» so I definitely am keeping realistic expectations. Found this place from Unilocal and the reviews plus distance from my home I decided to give it a shot.
I walked in and was a bit apprehensive as I really didn’t know what to expect, I was mostly trying not to make a complete fool of myself as I was the spitting image of a tall lanky newbie; but to my relief everyone there was friendly and offered a smile (made things so much less tense for me). Matt came out from his office (introduced himself) and couldn’t have been more kind. I changed and we started with some basic squat movements. He broke it down so simply I understood exactly what needed to happen, yes there are no mirrors but he explained that two people doing the same movement may look vastly different based solely on their body structure so the focus is on allowing your body to adjust naturally and moving in a way that feels most natural in this (weightlifting) the more unnatural of situations.
I ended up squatting like 60 lbs I think and yes, I’m proud of that for my first go around. Lol I even learned proper technique :). Matt always kept it light and very friendly it’s because of all these details that I look forward to training with him a few more sessions to learn the core building movements so I can make my own workout routines. I started because I wanted to build healthy habits but if the effect of that is I look better in my suits and summer clothes I wouldn’t be against that at all. Very much looking forward to my next session.
Lastly, future 1 year from now Kabba, you’re most welcome.

I worked with Manuel to help train me on squats. Super knowledgable and a very patient person. He genuinely seems like he enjoys coaching. He seems happy to work with inexperienced trainees.
5 stars — everybody here is friendly and respectful in-​person and via email. Very professional and pleasant people who really seem to know their stuff.

Let me start out by saying that I am not a competitive body builder or an athlete or even a regular gym goer. I’m just a woman in my early 30s with an average body and a desk job who can’t do a single pull up.
Despite my lame level of fitness, I love SSPT! I tend to like lifting more than running, but most typical gyms have a single squat rack and a Smith machine with which to do barbell squats. I joined SSPT because, even though this gym is pretty compact, it has at least 10 different places to do squats, so I rarely have to wait.
Also, the owners (Matt and Sioux-​z), coaches, and gym patrons are amazingly nice and courteous there – even to total novices like me. That means, the gym is always really pleasant to navigate even at its busiest times. (However, try to avoid walking in front of Olympic lifters when they’re doing their thing with really heavy weights. Been reminded a few times to «walk the perimeter.»)
As another reviewer mentioned, it’s a great idea to get coaching from one of their awesome coaches. I worked with Manuel Buitrago for a couple sessions to learn how to do cleans, squats, deadlifts, and overhead press. He’s a natural at teaching this stuff, and it made a huge difference in my form, as well as helped alleviate one of my recurring lifting injuries.
I highly recommend this gym.

Stopped in a few days before Christmas to get a workout in while i was visiting my fiancees family in Potomac. Read some good reviews and it was cheaper than other gyms in the area for a daypass to boot. I even got my fiancée to come and lift some weights!
This place is awesome — its no nonsense, has only what you need (racks, platforms, bench, one or two cardio machines to warm up on). All high quality equipment, bumper plates, etc.
The owner, Matt, took the time to walk us through the equipment. My fiancée even got to borrow a pair of weightlifting shoes and got a deadlift lesson from Matt, needless to say I was jealous!
Will be back anytime I’m in the area.

A diamond among stones. SSPT is seriously as good as it gets for any powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, anyone just trying to get fit. Basically, unless you’re a competitive body builder who could already be on the cover of Muscle & Fitness, SSPT has got everything you need. I train for Olympic-​style lifting, so I’ll mainly speak for that, but the Olympic bars are absolutely wonderful. The sleeves spin like tires on a Lamborghini Aventador, and the bumper plates don’t dead bounce, they bounce like an infant on a sugar high. They’ve got 2 platforms and about 5 racks, which vary from power racks to these bench press/​squat rack hybrids. They’ve got a giant tire, some cool powerlifting/​strongman equipment, etc.

It’s the ideal environment for strength sports training and general strength conditioning. It’s the best gym I’ve ever been to, by a wide margin.
I started there because I wanted to learn olympic lifting, and coaching I’ve received from Manuel has been excellent. Manuel has a vast understanding of the sport and is unfailingly patient and supportive. The SSPT o-​lifters are a great group of folks.
You can tell immediately that owners Matt and Sioux-​z are the real deal when it comes to powerlifting, but once you understand a bit about powerlifting you realize just how world-​class they are and how lucky our community is to have them here. It’s kind of uncanny that just about anyone can walk in there and get trained by them.
Unless you are an experienced lifter, you should get one of the coaches to train you. It’s not required but you’d be crazy not to do it. If you haven’t already been coached, chances are you have no idea what you need to do to lift correctly and to make progress. And you will get irritated looks from your fellow lifters when you walk in front of the wrong person at the wrong time because no one taught you the etiquette.
When you get coached, it’s also important to be coachable. Your job is to lift, so lift, and lift the way they say to lift. Following this guidance I’ve progressed consistently while training at SSPT for almost two years and am stronger than I ever thought I’d be. I’m sure a plateau’s ahead but it still seems pretty far off.
SSPT is a fantastic gym, and for olympic lifting in particular it’s a tremendously supportive environment.

Around September of last year, I decided that I wanted to be physically stronger than I’d ever been before. I’d been on a general exercise-​for-​greater-​well-​being kick since June, and after a solid 12 weeks or so of everything from Bosu balls to boxing, I was on a roll.
Yet, something was missing.
Even after all of the pounds shed, I felt no stronger than I did prior to starting down the path of muscle aches and sore joints (to be fair, better-​fitting clothing, too), and this concerned me. I didn’t want to be weak as I grew older, I wanted to be strong. In my lofty quest to learn all things health-​and-​fitness related, if there was one distinct idea that I’d stumbled upon that was NOT open to debate, it was this: Be strong, or suffer as you age. I still have yet to read anything by a medical practitioner, personal trainer, or any person whose field of practice is in any way related to the human body that states that physical weakness is a positive attribute.
Anyway, I could easily write a few pages about the search that brought me to SSPT, but I’ll spare you the humdrum details (unless you’re truly curious, in which case feel free to send me a message) of the countless hours I devoted to finding the place where I would begin my quest for Herculean strength (read: to be stronger than my high school and college buddies).
SSPT is a well-​organized facility. It’s obvious that the owners (a husband and wife team) put considerable thought into the design and purpose of the gym, and it’s evident that they take great pride in running their business. There’s a familial feel amongst members, and certainly a shared respect of each person’s time and personal space (and more broadly, goals). While SSPT won’t be right for you if you like gawking at hotties who rock yoga pants, it’s also free of meatheads who won’t let you by to the dumbbell rack because they’re too busy trying to find a clean injection site for their synthol.
A quick breakdown…
The good:
1) Equipment — Top of the line stuff. If you recognize the names Eleiko, ER Equipment, Rogue, or Werksan, you’ll probably feel at home here.
2) Members — I didn’t know how I’d fit in (it’s a bit of an intimate setting) when I’d signed on the dotted line, but I didn’t really care because I wasn’t joining to make friends. So the fact that almost everyone I’ve spoken to at SSPT has pretty much been an agreeable combination of friendly and helpful is a nice bonus.
3) Free chalk — It’s not that it’s free that matters, it’s that they actually let you (encourage you to, even) use it.
4) Shower facilities — Two showers, and they’re always clean.
5) Parking — Never had any issue parking close to the gym.
The bad:
1) Amidst motivational quotes, inspiring photography, and event posters (some of which could appropriately be described as art), there’s a Steelers banner on one of the walls.

I went to this gym for some strength training coaching. The value I got out of my visit was immense. Nothing beats having a professional, competitive powerlifter critique your form and give you cues to work with live and in person. I suspect I’ll be back again to work on some other lifts. I’d highly recommend a visit for any novice lifters who want to progress in their lifts from a strong baseline. The space in the gym itself is used very efficiently and the equipment is top notch.

This gym caters to the serious strength athlete with special attention to powerlifting, Olympic weighting, and strongman. If you prefer a gym that doesn’t have plush carpet, no wall to wall mirrors, and actually encourages the use of chalk, then this is the gym for you. Top grade EliteFTS squat racks, competition bench presses, competition bars and plates (pounds and kilos). The real difference though is with the extremely knowledge staff. If you are a veteran lifter looking for advise on improving your technique or if you are just starting out with strength training, the staff is welcoming, encouraging, and again very experienced and knowledgeable.

This is the gym of my dreams and is a perfect gym for any strength-​oriented athlete.
Most outstanding things:
(1) The super-​knowledgeable staff and owners, including co-​owner, world-​record holder Sioux-​Z Hartwig-​Gary.
(2) Superb selection of equipment, including the hard-​to-​find reverse-​hyper and glute-​ham machines, and plenty of specialty barbells.
(3) Equipment is always easy to find and use. Unlike any other gym I’ve been to, _​all_​the weights are in the right place _​all_​the time. They also have a large selection of microplates.
I finally know what it’s like to train in the presence of world-​class strength athletes, on world-​class equipment.
Even though Rockville is a 25 – 40 minute drive for me, I go here 3 days/​week. It’s that good.

Anyone who knows me well knows that I frequently make big sacrifices in the name of physique enhancement and athletic performance. I recently moved from College Park to Rockville for the sole purpose of living within walking distance of this gym. The patrons are primarily powerlifters and olympic weightlifters, but any serious athlete can benefit from the environment provided at SSPT. It’s a small facility with a limited number of members who are all very knowledgeable about all facets of training and nutrition (as well as the interplay between the two). Many of the patrons (if not most) hold at least an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology/​Exercise Science.
I personally train at SSPT because of the equipment that they have. I love to do strongman-​style conditioning and the prowler, sled, wheelbarrow, tire and sledgehammer at the gym allow me to do that. They have olympic bumper plates suitable for dropping on the floor when deadlifting or performing an olympic lift. I also like the fact that they have plyometric boxes ranging in height from 12″-30″. The specialty bars that they have (safety bar, giant cambered bar, trap bar, etc.) allow for both working around an injury/​ache and for overcoming poor leverages.
At 75 bucks a month, they’re definitely more pricey than a large commercial gym, but it’s FAR easier to get a productive workout in here with nearly no distractions. I’ll admit that novice gym-​goers should probably hire one of the owners (Matt Gary and Sioux-​z Hartwig Gary) as a trainer for a while. They each charge 75 bucks an hour. Additionally, Sioux-​z is a licensed massage therapist (in addition to a world-​record holding powerlifter) and provides message therapy at the facility.