Around Deep Creek, the lake and the mountain do a lot of the work in summer and ski season. But when it's sleeting in November or the trails are mud in March, you want somewhere warm to train. Here are ten places to get your sweat on, whether you live here year-round or you're up for the season.
Schedules and memberships change, so check each listing before you go.
Gyms and the Pool
• Deep Creek Fitness
Two gyms on one membership: a McHenry club in Market Square next to Shop 'n Save, and a larger Oakland gym behind Simon Pearce with more than 4,000 square feet of training space. Qualifying memberships include 24-hour access, and day passes are welcome at both, which makes it easy to keep your routine on a lake vacation.
• WildWood Athletic Club
A two-level membership gym in Oakland's former Beachy Lumber building, open since 2007. Upstairs are cardio machines by big windows, weight machines and a group fitness room; downstairs is a free-weight floor with dumbbells up to 100 pounds. Group classes, including a low-impact LITE class and yoga, are included with membership with no sign-up needed.
• The CARC
The George C. Edwards Community Aquatic & Recreation Complex on the Garrett College campus has a six-lane competition pool for laps and a warm-water pool near 90 degrees, plus a fitness center, a gym and classes like yoga and cycling. It's also where every Garrett County kindergartner learns to swim through the I Can Swim! program.
Classes and Small Groups
• Fit With Jen
Jen Sober's studio in Dry Dock Plaza runs all-levels group classes (Body Sculpt, spinning, kickboxing and yoga) where you set your own intensity. She also offers personal training and running and triathlon coaching, and in spring and fall some sessions move outdoors to Deep Creek Lake State Park.
• Jazzercise Oakland
Dance cardio mixed with strength, sculpt and HIIT, inside the Simon Pearce building on Glass Drive. Instructors show higher- and lower-impact options as they go, so newcomers and regulars can share the room.
• Greater Connections Yoga
Tina Cimino Dick's beginner-friendly "Yoga for Everybody" class meets at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Oakland and streams online for snowy days. She also brings private yoga and reflexology to rentals, retreats and group getaways around the lake.
Pilates and Movement Therapy
• The Pilates Clinic
Carolyn Sheaffer, a retired family nurse practitioner, teaches private, duo and trio Pilates in McHenry on the reformer, tower and chair, with programs for golfers, seniors, back pain and recovery from injury.
• The Balanced Body Studio
Pilates, corrective exercise and manual therapy in the same McHenry building, led by Master Pilates Instructor Jennifer Christophel Fischetti. Group fitness and personal training draw on barre, TRX and functional aging work, alongside therapies like Muscle Activation Techniques.
Martial Arts
• Nomad Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu & MMA
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts for adults, with youth Jiu-Jitsu too. You can book a trial class online before committing.
• Oakland Martial Arts Academy
A nonprofit Taekwondo school in Brodak's Plaza that has taught Garrett County kids and families for twenty years. Students can come to as many weekday classes as they like, and the academy runs an after-school program and summer camps.