25 yards in my experience but not sure if that is universal.

Swim the first length from a push. Count your strokes or get a time. Or, you can do your normal number of strokes and see where you end up.

my 24 hour fitness has the length (25 yds) posted on the wall. I'd guess most of them have it posted somewhere, probably many people needing to know.

This^^^^ If you count your strokes much at all, you should have a good idea of how many per 25 yd. If the pool happens to be 25 m, which is rare in the U.S. but they do exist, then you'll be taking about 2 strokes per length (spl) more typically, since the meter pool is about 10% longer and your typical tri swimmer takes 20-ish spl. Pretty easy to tell if a pool is yards or meters.

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"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

I have been in one 25m pool at 24hr. All others were 25yd. only one posted the length, which is annoying.

Thanks everybody. My "home" 24 is tell me that the pool is 25 M so I'll have to test it out using some of the techniques suggested (or get a measuring tape out I suppose).

I did a google search and a read of a few forum post hits seems to suggest that it is NOT universal, and asking won't get you a correct answer. Lots of posts from folks who asked, and were told "Olympic" or a length in meters when a tape measure revealed 75 feet. But, other locations actually being measured as 25m, when the location was built by some other entity and then taken over by 24hr. But, pretty universally the staff had no clue---and the 24hr fitness website doesn't appear to be any help either.

I have found that most of the pools in the Bay Area are 25 yards, but I did stumble upon one that was 20 yards. If I’m going to a new club, I check the 24Hour app and look at the picture of the pool to count how many color dividers there are on the lane lines. If there are 15 white and blue dividers on the lane lines, then the pool will most likely be 25 yards.

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KJ
Swim and Triathlon Coach
AllTerrainEndurance.com
KJ@allterrainendurance.com

I've swum at probably a dozen 24 hour fitness locations. Most are 25y but a few are 25m. I shop around on the website to try to figure out if a pool is going to be shorter than that, as I will look for another option when faced with a 20y pool. It seems like, almost always, if they're going to have a pool with lane lines, it'll be a reasonable distance.
Usually if you're looking at the pace clock, you can tell if it's yards or meters after a couple send-offs.
Don't ask the front desk--they have zero idea. Waste of time IME.

Or you can be an idiot like me.....haha. I'm an adult onset swimmer who had only ever swam in 25 yard pools. First time at the one 24 hour fitness I stop at that is 25m I didn't notice for quite a while. Most of their pools are just 3 lanes. This one was much bigger. so just in general, it threw off my perspective on the length. I'm trying to figure out the whole time what the hell is wrong with me. I feel great and am having one of my worst days in the pool, haha.

I rely on this site.. http://www.swimmersguide.com/Default.aspx

it's more reliable than the people who work at those bigger gyms in my experience.

it's also great to find pools if there isn't a 24 Hour Fitness near where you are.

Thanks for the website link. Sure enough the site lists the length at 25 Y (not M).

I wouldn't place a ton of credence to what the website posts either. In my case, the pools at my place of employment were incorrectly stated. I brought a tape measure to work just to be sure and updated accordingly.

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DFL > DNF > DNS

If you consistently flipturn a yard shy of the wall because of muscle memory, you're probably in a 25m pool.

Well closer to 2.5 years shirt but whose counting.

If the 24 hour in question was a Q back in the day (typically a greenish glass exterior) it is going to be 25m pool.

If you go to a Lifetime fitness with an outdoor lap only pool it is... 26 yards. Annoying as heck.

Just for my education, which LTF do you use? My experience with every club I’ve been to is with outdoor 25 meter pools. However, I have only been employed in newly-built clubs.

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DFL > DNF > DNS

I wouldn't trust what they tell you. I have been in one that advertised a 25m pool and I assumed it was based on my flip turns feeling off (I usually swim in a 25yd pool). However one day I actually counted strokes -- it is definitely shorter than 25yards - Short of getting out a tape measure I am guessing its a 20meter pool. The staff there are clueless about the pool size.

Citicentre Houston /