Portland, Maine · Est. 2017
Halyard is a coached gym, not a room full of machines. Every session is programmed, capped at twelve, and run by a coach who knows your name and your last set.
Today on the board
Thu 24 Jul
Board is updated each morning.
The whole week →
How it works
Pick a time that fits your actual life — 05:30 before work, 12:00 at lunch, 18:30 after. Tell us it's your first one and a coach will be watching for you at the door.
Nobody gets handed a barbell and a workout. Your first session starts early with a coach walking you through the lifts, the scaling options, and where the bathrooms are. Bring whatever shoes you own.
Seven days, unlimited classes, no card on file and no one calling you. At the end of it, either you're in or you're not — both are fine, and we'll tell you honestly if another gym in town suits you better.
What we run
Everything on the board is written by the same coaching team on an eight-week cycle, so strength work and conditioning don't fight each other. Pick the lane that suits the day — most members mix all three.
Lane 01
Squat, press, deadlift, and the accessory work that keeps them moving. Sets and loads are written for you against your last recorded lift, so week two is not a guess. If you've never touched a barbell, this is still the right room — that's what the coach is for.
What a session looks like →
Lane 02
Conditioning that builds a base instead of just making you tired. Rowing, bike, carries and intervals, scaled to the person — the 62-year-old and the ex-college athlete work the same clock at different numbers, and both leave having done the right session.
What a session looks like →
Lane 03
The room, the racks and a coach on deck — no class, no clock. Run your own programme, finish yesterday's session, or ask for eyes on a lift. Included with Full Access and Coaching+.
Not sure where to start?
If it's been a while, the conditioning class is the gentler front door — nothing overhead, nothing heavy, and it scales all the way down without anyone announcing it. Most people move into Barbell Strength in week two.
The crew
Nobody at Halyard coaches part-time between other jobs. These three write the programme, run the sessions, and are the people you'll actually train with.
Head coach · founder
Opened Halyard in 2017 after eight years coaching in Boston. Writes the strength cycle. Will absolutely make you slow down your first rep.
Strength · 05:30 crew
Runs the early sessions and most of the barbell work. Twenty-two years in the trades before coaching, which shows in how he teaches a deadlift.
Engine · new-member intake
Writes the conditioning cycle and takes almost every first session in the building. If you emailed us, you've already met Jess.
Membership
Every plan is month to month and cancels with thirty days' notice. Prices are what you pay — there is no initiation charge, no annual fee, and no equipment surcharge hiding at the bottom of a form.
| Plan | Open Floor$89per month | Full Access$139per month · most members | Coaching+$229per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open-floor access | Included | Included | Included |
| Coached classes | — | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Written programme | Team cycle | Team cycle | Written for you, updated monthly |
| 1-to-1 coaching | — | $70 per session | 2 sessions a month included |
| Guest passes | — | 1 a month | 2 a month |
| Pause your membership | Up to 2 months a year | Up to 2 months a year | Up to 2 months a year |
| Try free first | Try free first | How it works |
Drop-in for visitors is $22 a session. Students, teachers, nurses, and Portland Fire and Police take $20 off any plan — just say so when you join, no paperwork.
Members
★★★★★
“I'd been paying a big-box gym for four years to walk on a treadmill. Six months here and I deadlift more than I weigh. The difference is somebody telling me what to do.”
★★★★★
“I'm 58 and came in expecting to be the oldest person by twenty years. There were three people older than me in my first class. Nobody cared what I lifted.”
★★★★★
“The 05:30 crew is a genuinely strange and wonderful group of people. Ray plays terrible music. I've not missed a Monday in a year.”
Straight answers
Everyone says this, and it is almost never true. Every session scales — the bar comes down to an empty 15 kg, the rower goes to two minutes instead of ten, and the coach adjusts it without announcing it to the room. The people who need coaching most are the ones who think they need to get fit first.
No. Open Floor exists exactly for people who want the room and the racks and would rather run their own programme. A coach is still on the floor if you want eyes on something.
Whatever athletic shoes you own, a water bottle, and a towel. That's the whole list. Don't buy lifting shoes, belts or straps before you start — we'll tell you if and when any of it is actually worth your money.
No to both. Month to month, cancel with thirty days' notice by email or by telling a coach. If you need to pause for travel, surgery or a rough month, we'll hold your spot for up to two months a year at no charge.
Tell us before your first session and we'll put you with Jess, who takes most of the return-to-training intakes. We work alongside your physio, not instead of them — if you're still in active treatment, bring us their guidance and we'll programme inside it.
Two showers, changing rooms, and a free lot with fourteen spaces behind the building on Anderson. Street parking on Fox is usually open before 07:00 and after 18:00.
First week free
Book any class on the board and tell us it's your first. A coach takes you through the movements fifteen minutes before it starts. If it isn't your gym, no one will chase you.