Single ladies and gentlemen, these are the best Charlotte Meet Markets

So you want to meet the love of your life but you’re burned out on the online dating game. What’s a single Charlottean to do? Try some of these things.

Fitness

STAX Boot Camp – This is a massive co-ed class of anywhere from 100 to up to 400 people. It’s not uncommon to get paired up for partner exercises or lumped into small groups of four. If you go alone (or at least avoid clinging to your friends if you’re here with a crew), you have an excellent chance of meeting someone new. I carried a man I’ve never met on my back across a field. Talk about an ice breaker. Introduce yourself, get their name and cheer them on. Details: Monday and Wednesday from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. at the Rugby Athletic Center next to STAX. Your line: Want to be my partner?

OMB Yoga on Tap – Again, a massive class with hundreds of people. Surely there is someone in there you should know. Obviously, there won’t be any chatting during the 60-minute class, but the social slant of doing yoga at a brewery is more likely to encourage you to linger before and/or afterwards than a traditional studio class would. So grab a beer to retox after your detox and get to know the person on the mat next to you. Details: Every Thursday from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. Your line: Want to grab a beer when we’re done?

NoDa Run Club – According to Elle Woods, it’s scientific fact that running boosts endorphins and endorphins make you happy and happy people just don’t turn down friendly chatter from fellow singles. Something like that, anyway. Get there early to mingle as the crowd forms and then wager a friendly bet for a post-race beverage. Competition is fun. Details: Every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at the original 2229 N. Davidson Street location. Your line: Race you for a beer.

Amateur Rec Sports – There are tons of co-ed rec leagues in Charlotte, and SportsLink and Nakid are two good multi-sport leagues to get you started. Buzz City Beach Soccer, a co-ed rec league at VBGB also recently launched. Stonewall Sports offers LGBTQ-friendly programming. (Read our Stonewall Kickball story here.) Your line: [insert friendly but competitive trash talking here].

Food

Food Truck Friday – I feel like three categories of people frequent this event: couples on dates, families with kids and groups of single friends in co-ed packs. So round up your crew and see who you can strategically bump into. A friendly start is to offer to share coveted blanket or chair space with another group. The more, the merrier. Plus, now you can partner up to divide and conquer the long lines. Offer to hop in a dessert line while someone else waits on entrees. Details: Closed for the season but returning April 1, 2016 with two new locations at Sycamore Brewing in South End and The Light Factory in Plaza Midwood. Your line: If I give you cash, will you grab an extra grilled cheese? I’ll go get us cupcakes. (This is basically a marriage proposal for me. Yes, I thee wed.)

Chef Alyssa’s Speed Dating – If you roll into a cooking class alone, you’re almost guaranteed to be the third wheel on about a dozen other committed couples’ date nights. That is, of course, unless you go to a speed dating cooking class designed exclusively for single third wheels like you. Learning a new skill while meeting new people is the perfect way to break the ice and probably mess up your meal. But that’s ok because you can make up for your lack of chef skills with a follow up restaurant dinner date. Details: Keep an eye on her class schedule. Your line: Maybe we should leave this to the professionals. Want to grab dinner next week?

Etc.

Apartment pools – Charlotte’s severe lack of swanky public pool options means that all those big box apartments with pools become summer hangout spots. Since most places allow guest passes for residents (and most residents break the two-friend rule anyway), you can still get in if you don’t live there but only if you know someone. When I lived in Wesley Village the pool was like one big frat party all summer – beer pong, flip cup, music, the whole deal. I’m not saying I spent time there but I am saying lots of other people did. Your line: Want to be my beer pong partner?

Plaza Midwood Tuesday Night Ride – This is a weekly cycling meetup where anywhere from a few dozen to a couple hundred people gather for a 10-ish mile ride around town with a pit stop at a different bar or restaurant each time. I’ve found that when I go by myself people tend to roll up next to me and strike up conversation. So if you meet someone interesting on the ride, you can extend the conversation over dinner and/or drinks at the final stop. Details: Every Tuesday from 8 – 10:30 p.m. Helmets and lights required. Read their FAQ for more information. Your line: Are you hanging out at the end of the ride? Drinks on me.

Religious groups – I don’t go to church but most of my friends do so I know there are lots of church-related social functions and even singles groups. A quick Google search pulled up singles groups at Grace Covenant, The Charlotte Church, Forest Hill, Myers Park United Methodist, Calvary and Northside Church of Christ. NextGen Charlotte and Temple Beth El both have programming for Jewish singles.

Anything dog related – Dogs are human magnets and excellent ice breakers. I’m not saying you should go out and impulsively adopt a dog for the purpose of meeting someone (this would be irresponsible) but if you’ve already got one in your life, get out and get social with your four-legged friend. I find that people stop me on the street just to talk to my dog but if you’re looking for something a little more exciting, check out Dogphrendly, a local startup, for reviews of places to eat, play and stay with your dog.

I wanted to lead this list with some non-traditional activities that aren’t just showing up at a bar and hoping for the best. But if that’s what you prefer to do, an informal survey of my social circle revealed that most people defer to breweries as the best social drinking spots for meeting singles. You can find our list of all Charlotte breweries here.