Sports and fitness in Manila
With the hustle and bustle of city life, keeping an active lifestyle becomes more and more tricky. Manila offers a wide selection of sports and adventure activities to choose from.
Basketball in Manila
It is safe to say that the Philippines is obsessed with basketball. Although not the national sport, Filipinos have taken basketball to their hearts, watching, playing, the pageantry pre-game and half time, plus the branding and style associated with basketball.
The same is applicable to Manila. There is a plethora of indoor and outdoor basketball courts throughout the city and surrounding areas. Courts can be rented per hour for an inexpensive amount. Rental for the whole court is approx P1,800/ USD 32 on weekdays, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m P2,000/ USD 35 on weekends, holidays and on weekdays after 6 p.m.
Some of the more salubrious basketball courts (and most expensive) are The Upper Deck Lifestyle Centre, Golden Panda, ASI Sports (Lumera), Prime Mobility Sports and G-Court.
Boxing or Muay Thai in Manila
If you want to integrate boxing workouts into your routine, Elorde is a great place to start. It is a household name in the boxing community, and its trainers actually do compete in professional matches. They offer Muay Thai and group classes too. There are many branches all over the city to try out.
Notably, boxing is quite popular in the Philippines because the country has produced a hall-of-fame boxing champion and national hero, Manny Pacquaio.
Bowling in Manila
Bowling is quite popular in the Philippines, being heavily influenced by American culture. It also helps that the Philippines has produced a six-time world bowling champion, Paeng Nepomuceno. Bowling is so much more than just a leisure and social activity. If you're in the mood for an energetic but low-impact sport, then bowling might be just the right activity for you. Since bowling can also be a competitive sport, you can enjoy this activity with family and friends alike. It offers a perfect opportunity to have some group fun. There are many bowling centers located across Manila, like Playdium Bowling and Billiards in Quezon City which offers 22 “state-of-the-art” bowling lanes. There's also SM Bowling and Leisure Centers in Pasay, Quezon City, Mandaluyong and Las Piñas. They claim that their synthetic lanes can provide the best experience and highest scores for bowlers.
Gyms and yoga studios in Manila
The largest, and arguably the best gym in Manila is Kerry Sports in Bonifacio Global City. A two-story center within Shangri-La The Fort with attractive membership packages and an adventure zone for the kids and a spa when its time to chill out!
If you prefer fitness gyms, it will be hard not to find an Anytime Fitness branch near you. In addition to offering modern gym equipment for workouts, they also offer group classes like yoga, kickboxing, Zumba and piloxing. What makes the membership worth it is that it provides unlimited access to any Anytime Fitness gym, which is open 24/7.
If you're looking specifically for yoga studios in Manila, there's Beyond Yoga with four branches in the metro, including Tomas Morato, San Juan, Makati and Alabang. This is an excellent choice for experienced yogis who want to mix it up by trying different locations and instructors. There's also Bikram Yoga in Makati which is the first yoga studio in the Philippines to offer hot yoga. It would be perfect for yogis who can take on the heat.
Game day at a sports bar in Manila
When you don't really have the energy to move a muscle but the unmatched strength and countless screens to watch the game on still excite you, we know you'd rather head to a sports bar than stay at home. Pair this up with the cheering (or booing) crowd, bar chow like burgers, pizza, wings and beers, and this completes your game night. Makati would be your best bet of finding a sports bar that would fit your liking, and there is no shortage of establishments. There's Heckle and Jeckle, a ten-year-old high-end sports bar with huge projector screens and tasty Western and Asian pup grub. It is the place to be if you're looking for a classy sports bar.
When it comes to major sports tournaments like FIFA World Cup and Ultimate Fighting Championships, or even the niche ones like cricket or rugby, Howzat will be the perfect place to be. They host a Sunday Roast Buffet and a Friday Indian Curry Buffet, which are quite popular too. On top of that, they are open 24 hours a day, including Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
