Ozark Iron Gym - Fayetteville, Arkansas

Christen Malone

I bought a week pass to continue strength training while traveling for the holidays. Normally, I work out in my home gym and I hadn’t been in a commercial gym for years due to bad experiences in gyms when I was younger. One of the reasons I felt comfortable enough to visit was the third gym rule they have on their website: “Don’t be a creepy weirdo pervert. She’s here to lift. She’s not here for you.” And, no one was a creepy weirdo pervert to me (or any of the other women I saw at the gym.)

While some of the pads on the machines were wearing down (like the preacher curl machine), most everything was in great condition. The number of power cages, deadlift platforms, and benches meant I never had to wait to do compound work. And while I had to wait for a lat machine to free up once, I didn’t have to wait for most machines because they had duplicates or functionally similar machines (e.g., standing calf raise machine vs seated calf raise machine).

Whenever I’m back in the area, I’ll definitely come back ?

Amber Vicente

Joining this gym has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

When I first visited, I felt really intimidated. Everyone seemed so focused and serious about their workouts, and I was worried I wouldn’t fit in. For years, I had been a member of a large chain gym where people came inconsistently and rarely saw any real progress. This place felt completely different.

Initially, this made me feel self-conscious—especially since I was overweight and unsure of what I was doing. I was convinced that people would think I looked out of place or didn’t belong.

But I was pleasantly surprised to find that the community here is genuinely supportive and welcoming. Once I dropped my insecurities and started focusing on my own progress, I realized that no one judged me based on my size or how much weight I could lift. Mainly because they were focusing on their own progress too.

The gym itself is always well-maintained, and the owner really listens to the community’s feedback. There’s a constant flow of new equipment, and it’s clear there’s a genuine commitment to providing the best possible environment and equipment for members.

Whether you’re just starting your fitness journey or looking to level up, this is the perfect place to train—especially for women! They don’t tolerate creepy behavior at all and will genuinely kick anyone out who makes others uncomfortable. (I’ve never met someone who has been kicked out without deserving it.)

The atmosphere is motivating, and now I see that the dedication of everyone around me isn’t intimidating, but rather motivating. It’s inspiring to be surrounded by people who are not only serious about their goals but also know how to enjoy the process. Since joining, I’ve lost 35 pounds and I am back at a healthy weight for my size.

I highly recommend this gym to anyone looking for a motivating place to make real progress with people who are genuinely cheering you on.

Dane Shields

Best equipment, staff, owner, and community. Join the atmosphere that pushes you to build strength, honor, courage, perseverance and confidence. Leave your ego at the door, work hard and you’ll make friends here and become a better you both inside and outside of the gym.

Matthew Carr

Been going here for a year, really awesome gym. Owner clearly cares about members and wants to improve in areas when needed, i.e. recent additions to legs equipment. Only gripe I have is the increased day pass rate and the removal of free friend passes on Fridays, doesn't really affect me but I do like bringing my buds on Fridays for a good way to end the week.

Kaitlyn Smith

I was a member of this gym for four years. Early on in my time at the gym I saw an awesome strength sport community (powerlifting, strongman, weightlifting) and I wanted to be part of it and develop as an athlete.

However, over the past two years, I’ve watched as the gym has slowly mistreated and displaced the larger strength community. There were instances of significant amounts of strength sport-specific training equipment removed, refusing to hold meets/competitions that the owner was previously in support of, cancelling peoples membership without proper notice, unwillingness to directly communicate with members, and hostility towards members who had inquiries of the direction the gym was going. I was generally not treated respectfully as a long-time patron or human by the owner or employees.

If you train for general fitness or bodybuilding, this gym is still ideal for you. There is a wide variety of equipment on that front. However, if you are looking to become a strong athlete and find a supportive gym community that stands out in Northwest Arkansas, I’m very sorry to say that this is not your spot anymore.

Edit: In response to the owner. It is very disappointing to be reminded that when women are direct and confrontational that we are then perceived as “threatening”, having an “attitude”, or “entitled rotten egg”. If someone had informed me that my inquires on equipment had been hurtful to them I would have welcomed the opportunity to apologize and talk it through. Your adamancy of your willingness to talk to members about gym decisions and rectifying behavior is not truthful, as I never received direct correspondence from you or staff about my communication.

Jacob Prince

Very happy with this gym, all the equipment you'll ever need without the fluff and there's hardly ever a wait for machines or weights. I'd say my only complaint is there is no grace period if your payment does not go through for the month for whatever reason and the billing company tacks on a $15 late charge regardless of the time, so it's more like a bounce fee/nsf charge than a late fee. Other than that, great gym, always clean and updating their equipment with nothing broken.

Matthew Hessing

I’ve been visiting NW Arkansas since late March ‘24. I wanted a no-nonsense local gym where I could continue to work on my goals. I found this spot on Google Maps and stopped by to check it out. Coming from LA, I was blown away by how much equipment and space there was at OIG. I never had to wait for a station because there’s just so many available. I hit new PRs on a couple exercises during my few months here, in part because I never had to change my plan due to unavailable equipment.

The staff were great - particularly Jacob, who was always available to answer questions about my membership, or to help me learn about different equipment or exercises. And they play solid music, which is a bonus.

If you’re looking for a no-nonsense gym where you can just work out and get back to whatever’s going on in your life - this is the place. Highly recommend.

Ryan Sullivan

$20 for a day pass is bananas.

Edit to respond: I did use the gym. The day pass price toward membership thing was explained to me. Regardless, the day pass price tag is still too high. About 100% too high, 10$ is reasonable. The equipment as in desperate need of a refresh. Gym is organized but does not feel especially clean. No one wipes equipment. Atmosphere? Meat Heads R Us. Lots of shirtless bros. Not that I mind that part too much. Gym is 3.5 stars, asinine day pass price brought it down to two.