The UK’s No 1 fitness industry magazineMarch 2009 No 186 £3

The personaltouch keepscustomersBy Louise Cordell

GYMS that have regular staff to inter-act with their members are most like-ly to keep them for longer, accordingto new research.

The year-long study, whichlaunched this month, will see morethan 3,000 gym members quizzedabout why they stay – or leave – thegym.

Lead researcher Dr Jeremy Adams, asports and exercise psychologist andperformance psychology programmedirector at London MetropolitanUniversity, says early findings showcustomers value the personal touch.

He said: “Many of the people weasked felt motivated when staff at theclubs engaged with them and gavethem regular encouragement andfeedback. Interaction like thisappears to be key, far more so thanother incentives. What people want isexperienced staff on the floor whoknow their programmes and are ableto motivate them – because they arenot getting the level of feedback theywould like.

“Gyms can be intimidating and con-fusing for beginners and, because

they have no way of gauging theirprogress they want definitive guid-ance as well as support.

“Feedback is also essential for themore experienced exerciser, they pre-fer advice from a technical perspec-tive rather than just encouragement,but it is still an ongoing process.”

Dr Adams said that it had previouslybeen assumed that the best way tokeep people interested after the ini-tial novelty stage was to offer incen-tives like pricing plans and marketingoffers. He added: “As a rule, mostgyms assume that keeping peopleinterested is all about pricing struc-tures and equipment, but we foundthat they should be more interestedin people’s experience rather thanhow the place looks.”

The research will be completed nextyear and it is hoped the findings willbe used to help develop a way of pre-dicting whether people are likely toremain as gym members, and createa programme to re-engage those ‘atrisk’ of leaving.� What do you think? Send yourcomments to Nicola Hyde, 47 ChurchStreet, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S702AS or email nl@whpl.net.

Industrycould seeinfluxof staffBy Mary Ferguson

THE fitness industrycould be set to benefitfrom an influx of peoplelooking for a careerchange in 2009.

Research has shown that20 per cent of Brits saidlooking for a new jobwas their new year’s resolution and whenasked about achieving awork and life balance,the survey also revealedthat one in three felt acareer as a personaltrainer or fitness instructor would suitthem best.

Heather Frankham, CEOat training providersLifetime, said: “We spendmost of our waking lives at work, so it is vitalwe should want to getthe most from ourcareers.

“Whether looking for afirst job or changingcareer, working in the fit-ness industry offers fan-tastic opportunities as itprovides a much soughtafter work and life bal-ance.”

Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Cole is amongst a group ofcelebrities that have been training at London inde-pendent gym The Third Space in preparation for acharity mountain climb. The stars have been using theclub’s hypoxic chamber to prepare for the high alti-tudes they will face when they scale Kilimanjaro inaid of Comic Relief.Cheryl will be joined by celebrities including RadioOne DJ Chris Moyles, Take That star Gary Barlow andTV presenter Denise Van Outen for the trek.

01 17/2/09 17:03 Page 1

02 service sport 17/2/09 17:04 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE 3

AdvertisingSales and marketingdirector:Tony Barry

Sales manager:Lucy HillTel: 01226 734615

Sales executives:Daniel LloydTel: 01226 734699

Daniel ParkerTel: 01226 734668

EditorialGroup Editor:Andrew Harrod

Tel: 01226 734639 Fax: 01226 734478Email: ah@whpl.net

News Editor:Nicola HydeTel: 01226 734459Email: nl@whpl.net

Reporters:Lyndsey SmithTel: 01226 734472Email: ls@whpl.net

Christina EcclesTel: 01226 734463Email: ce@whpl.net

Mary FergusonTel: 01226 734712Email: mf@whpl.net

Production

Group Deputy Editor:Judith HalkerstonTel: 01226 734458Email:jhalkerston@whpl.net

WharncliffePublishing Ltd.47 Church Street,Barnsley, SouthYorkshire S70 2AS.

www.workout-uk.co.uk

Ex boxeroffers kidsuse of gymBy Lyndsey Smith

KIDS are being offered the use of agym in a Coventry in a bid to increasetheir confidence and boost their self-esteem.

The Red Corner gym – a fitness,boxing and wrestling facility – wasestablished in 2005 by former boxer,Glenn Smith, and part of their set upincludes boxing and kickboxing class-es for kids, teaching them new skillsin a safe environment.

Glenn believes it is a discipline thatcan be invaluable. He said:“Confidence is one of the main rea-sons I took up boxing.

“Seven is the optimum age for kidsto begin training and we hold severalclasses a week for ages five to 16, withover 200 kids coming through thedoors each week.”

The gym comprises two main areas– a fitness and boxing gym, and agrappling room, which house a fullrange of Life Fitness and Star Traccardiovascular and resistancemachines, and a selection of freeweights, including benches, bars, anda weight bay.

There is also a full size boxing ring,along with punchbags, floor to ceilingand speed balls.

Glenn said: “We provide a largeselection of equipment for each disci-pline in order to provide manyoptions for achieving personal goals

through all round and specifically tai-lored training routines.

“People can come here to learn self-discipline, fitness or improve theirconfidence and self defence skills,and we pride ourselves on support,our own levels of personal fitness andthe qualifications of our instructors.

“We aim to help people enjoy fit-ness in a safe and supportive envi-ronment and our coaching andteaching staff have been together as ateam for a long time now.”

Red Corner have coached manysuccessful professional and amateurboxers and mixed martial artists andthey also have a state registered phys-iotherapist fully qualified in massageand sports injuries based at the site.

Classes are available in boxing tech-nique, women’s keep fit, Muay Thai,and Muay Thai and Mixed MartialArts, with personal trainers availablein boxing, wrestling, weight trainingand nutrition.

Glenn added: “Walking through thedoors of any gym can be a scary andintimidating experience and we wantto try and help people overcome thatfear. People may be looking for some-thing else in their life – it may be con-fidence, self-defence skills, selfawareness, increased ability to han-dle physical and mental pressure orweight loss, and we feel we are in aprime position to help.”

JumpSnap in action

Actress Hilary Swank is said to be a fan

A HI-TECH skipping rope makingwaves in the American fitnessindustry is set to skip its way toUK gyms this year.

JumpSnap is a pair of handleswithout the rope of a skippingrope, contain a computer chipthat tracks skipping time andcalories burnt and emits a snap-ping sound to help the user toskip to a regular beat. Weights canbe added to the handles for aharder workout.

Hollywood actress Hilary Swankis reported to be a fan and inven-tor Brad Le Tour said he is cur-

rently looking for a distributor inthe UK.

He told Workout: “Everyoneknows that jumping rope is a fan-tastic workout but many peopletrip on the rope or can’t find thespace.

“About 500 personal trainershere in the US have signed up forour referral programme and wehave a contract with a big healthclub to deliver ‘JumpSnap Sweat’classes so it’s really taken off. Theidea is that it will do the same inthe UK and I’ve already had inter-est from Virgin Active.”

Hi-tech rope heads for UK

03 17/2/09 17:05 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE4

Gym offeringcredit crunch‘pay and go’ By Lyndsey Smith

AN independent gym owner is offer-ing pay and go memberships for thefirst time to keep people exercisingduring the credit crunch.

Andrew Jackson-Browne, of Aliveand Well, said he realised manypotential members had lost theirconfidence when it comes to spend-ing money – and few were preparedto tie themselves in to long contracts.He is offering a £7 pay-as-you-goprice.

He added: “If people are worriedabout losing their job the last thingon their mind is gym membership –that £30, £40 whatever can gotowards the car, the mortgage orfood.

“If the only thing on the shelf is atwelve month product a lot of peoplewon’t do it simply for the guilt feelingof spending money, so we thoughtflexibility in what we could offerwould be the best way to move for-ward.”

Andrew was a member of his gymbefore buying into it almost two yearsago and says seeing things from aconsumer perspective has helped.

But, he admits, short term contractssuch as the three months they willnow offer are a risky move as the gymrelies on long-term contracts forguaranteed income.

He added: “Customer retention isparamount if you are dealing withshort term memberships as you can’thide behind a 12-month contract. Itis all about net gain – it is no goodgaining 35 new members a month ifyou are losing 40, it’s illogical.

“However we feel we offer goodfacilties and services and can certain-ly keep the majority of our 1200members and maybe attract a fewmore with a short term deal.”� How is your gym dealing with thecredit crunch? Send your thoughts toNicola Hyde, 47 Church Street,Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS oremail nl@whpl.net.

Stepping and climbing kit the Versaclimberhas gained a new fan at the White House –America’s new First Lady. Michelle Obamahas now incorporated the kit into her gymsessions alongside a treadmill, weights andspinning classes. Neil Kelford, managingdirector of Versaclimber UK, said:

“Someone like Michelle Obama using theVersaclimber demonstrates that sticking toa fitness programme can be achieved nomatter how busy you feel your life may be.Hopefully she will be a valuable role modelfor fitness enthusiasts who may need thatextra push to get them to the gym.”

League organiser makes it freeTHE founder of a cross trainingleague that encourages gyms tocompete against each other hasdropped the charge to attract moreto take part.

Sean Blyth, founder of World GymChallenge, has been fighting forinterest in gym-based cross trainingcompetitions for years and has nowmade it free for operators to join. Hesaid: “The primary goal of the serv-

ice is to promote gym challengeswithin gyms and have a searchabledatabase for results. Operators cannow receive free access to the WorldGym Challenge database as long asthey don’t charge members to enterevents. The challenges act as a veryuseful retention tool as it givesmembers a goal to train towardsand recognises those who haveachieved a good level of fitness.”

04 17/2/09 17:06 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE 5

By Christina Eccles

A GYM owner has sent a mailshotto every school in her area invitinggirls to use her fitness studio toentice them to get fit.

Sandra McGugan, owner ofladies-only gym Ladybird Fitness inWigan, said more gyms should takethe initiative when it comes to forg-ing links with schools.

Two schools have already takenher up on the offer and the stu-dents come in every Friday, paying£2 each for the session.

She said: “We wrote to the schoolsand said we didn’t have classes onthat day and could take 20 girls. Wealso do a mailshot a couple of timesper year to the local schools.

“Their PE teacher comes in withthem and they go upstairs in thestudio to do classes – the teachersays they love it.”

Sandra believes that as well as giv-ing the girls the chance to feelgrown up and try exercise classes –which they may not have been ableto access themselves – letting themuse the facilities can also benefitthe gym.

She added: “One of the other rea-

sons why we are doing this is sothat the girls could tell their fami-lies and raise awareness of the clubbut I’m not sure yet if this has had aknock on effect.”

The gym has recently celebratedits second birthday and has about330 members – with Sandra hopingto increase this to 400 this year.

She also revealed how the gym isdealing with the credit crunch andsaid that offering extras which add

value to memberships has keptmembers happy and coming backthrough the doors.

She added: “We started off wellbut the last few months have beena bit tougher because of the reces-sion. Retention is the hardest thing.Gym membership is one of the firstthings that goes in a recession.Having classes definitely helps asdoes offering personal eating plansand weekly weigh in classes.”

Ladies-only gym invitespupils to use studio

Ladybird Fitness in Wigan

Bid to boostsecondaryspend ...A PERSONAL training zone has beeninstalled at North Herts LeisureCentre to increase secondary spend.

The gym has already trained andrecruited internally and created anew training area with new kit. Six ofthe original fitness instructors arenow level three accredited personaltrainers, with plans to develop more.

Mark Jennings, fitness manager,said: “It is important that we continu-ally develop the team and managethe personal trainers ourselves, thisallows us to control service deliveryand continuity within our centre. Italso enables us to offer our membersan affordable service. A dedicatedpersonal training service outside ofthe gym environment felt like a logi-cal step and one that we knew wouldbe popular with members.”

In a spinA DISUSED bar area has been con-verted to a gym at the Palmer ParkSports Stadium in Reading.

The site has also opened an indoorcycling centre, at a cost of £380,000,kitted out by Matrix.

Spencer Fanstone, operations man-ager for Reading Sport and Leisure,said: “The Indoor Cycling Centre willprovide an alternative way in which tokeep fit.”

05 17/2/09 17:06 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE6

THE Fitness Mill has completed therevamp in order to provide morespace and equipment for what wasalready the largest dedicated freeweight training facility in the area.

Mark Hocking, manager, said:“We have a very large following forBetter Bodies and I would certainlysay we are the number one freeweights section in the area.”

The section has two full sets ofdumbbells, a full set of barbells,along with a large selection ofbenches, training racks and attach-ments.

They also offer sports specificconditioning programmes alongwith a wide range of sports supple-ments and accessories.

Mark added: “We only have asmall team but they are extremelyknowledgeable and we have a lot ofsuccess with our personal trainingprogrammes. We sit down and runthrough what is required and find aprogramme suitable for each indi-vidual. We can offer supplementand nutritional advice and a freefitness induction before anyonehas to make a decision regardingmembership.”

The Fitness Mill has other train-ing zones including a cardiovascu-lar room, kitted out by Life Fitnessand Powerjog, a core and stretcharea, a studio offering five classes aday, and a resistance and toningarea kitted out by Technogym.

A range of beauty treatments isavailable along with sports mas-sage, and a reflexology zone is toopen soon.

The gym has nearly 800 membersbut a capacity for a 1,000, andMark said they are trying differentways to get numbers up.

“We offered express membershipfor previous gym-goers who don’twant the induction process or a tai-lored programme. They get thehealth and safety induction, and abasic health test, and they are fit togo on and train. This helped – wehad 50 new members within a fewweeks.”

Leigh Alliss, a former boxer, trainsand teaches at the club and DanRobinson, Commonwealth andOlympic medallist, and BarneyFranklin who won the PolarChallenge last year, also train there.

Mark added: “There is no dividehere. Leigh and Dan are happy tohelp other members with theirtraining and are always there tooffer advice.

“There is a local authority centreand a bigger chain gym, but I don’tthink either can compete with us interms of knowledge and personalservice.

“We cater for 85 to 16-year-oldsand are not a hard sell gym – weare just trying to help people get fitand healthy.”

Better Bodies – a free weights specific area in a Stroud gym – has extended due to ever increasingpopularity. Lyndsey Smith found out more.

Free weights area goesfrom strength to strength

Mark Hocking and boxer Lee Alliss

Richard tackles Grim Challenge for charityA PERSONAL trainer has com-pleted a gruelling fitness chal-lenge to inspire his clients andraise money for charity.

Richard Jones – who works atthe Pulse 8 gym withinNirvana Spa in Berkshire –took part in the GrimChallenge, an eight mile off-road run on land used for test-ing army vehicles.

He raised £500 for theMultiple Sclerosis ResourceCentre, after his girlfriend wasdiagnosed with the disease.

He said: “Over half of mysponsorship came from mypersonal training clients andit was good for them to see metaking part in something.

“One client actually doubledhis sponsorship after I com-pleted the event, saying it wasworth it to see me doing somehard work instead of him.”

Richard is now encouragingall his clients to enter a physi-cal challenge to give them agoal to work towards – andhas promised to complete itwith them. Richard Jones at the event

Devon gymin free offerfor charity AN independent gym in Devon isoffering free memberships to people who raise at least £100 in asponsored weight loss challenge forcharity.

The Cranford Club is raising moneyfor local charity Dream-A-Way, whichsends people with a mental or physi-cal disability on holidays and daytrips.

People who sign up with the charityto lose at least ten per cent of theirbody weight are then entitled to usethe club’s facilities for free, until theyachieve their goal.

Tim Caudrelier, general manager ofThe Cranford Club, told Workout:“The charity approached us to offerthis last year too and it was a greatsuccess.

“At least 50 per cent of people who used our facilities for the challenge last year became payingmembers.”

06 17/2/09 17:08 Page 1

07 activio 17/2/09 17:09 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE8

THE idea for The Gym UK was born half way upa mountain, when Scott and Kev Smith met on aclimbing expedition.

Both wanted to leave the services – Scott wasan RAF corporal and Kev an Army captain – andhad always been interested in working in the fit-ness industry.

Scott said: “After finding a premises to open weput the transformation into operation and hadten weeks to build changing rooms, a studio, dothe flooring and get all the equipment in. Wefinished the painting just before midnight on aFriday and opened at 8am the next morning.”

The gym has now been operating since May2006 and has been so successful, the pair havechosen 2009 to launch franchise opportunities.

“The dynamics of the gym have changed a lotsince we opened as back then we were unsureabout things such as the popularity of classes, aswell as staffing issues such as the levels of quali-fications we wanted our staff to have.

“We decided we would only employ personaltrainers with REPs level three and now run avery popular class programme, including a vir-tual reality Trixter X-bike studio.”

The gym also employs three sports masseursand nutritionists and currently has 1200 mem-bers with an attrition rate of around eight percent.

A pre-launch campaign by Creative FitnessMarketing generated 800 members before the

doors opened and Scott said membership hasbeen ongoing since then. We do monthly leafletdrops delivering 10,000 to all the local housingestates in Chippenham, each with a differentoffer or deal. Marketing ideas are always at thetop of our board meetings.”

Members range from 14 to 86 but around 60per cent are women in the 30 to 45 bracket,many of whom are new to exercise.

And by the end of 2009, Scott and Kev hope tohave six franchises in operation and are plan-ning to open another of their own.

Scott added: “2008 was a year of consolidationfor us and we are coming to the end of all ourlease agreements for the equipment – meaningthis year we can move forward and expand. Wecan see how huge this could potentially go andare very excited by the prospect.”

After nearly threeyears inoperation, anindependent gymin Chippenhamhas launched afranchise packageto expand thebrand. MaryFerguson caughtup with co-ownerScott Mackay tofind out more. Scott Mackay The Gym UK in Chippenham

Chippenham gym ownersroll out franchise package

The premises were transformed in ten weeks.

08 17/2/09 17:10 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE 9A new piece of fitness equipment that works thebody on all fours has been launched – designedto benefit the spine through imitating the walk-ing and running motions of animals.SpineX, invented by a Russian businessman,encourages the spine to move in a way that bal-ances spinal muscles and increases the strengthand flexibility of your back.It is intended to be used in clubs, gyms and ther-apeutic centres to support people’s sport, exer-cise and rehabilitation.

The equipment is being promoted by personal trainer Kristoph Thompson,

who has begun using itwith his clients.

He told Workout: “I primarily use it to helpclients warm up or cooldown as it’s a good wayof bridging the gapbetween rest and exercise.“It works really well in agym environment butinstructors need to makesure they ask if a clienthas back problems beforeusing it, as it could exacerbate an existingcondition.”

Loyalty pointsfor keeping fitin ManchesterBy Nicola Hyde

A SCHEME which will give peopleloyalty points for keeping fit is to belaunched in Manchester under a£4.6m scheme.

Points4Life – developed by NHSManchester and the city council – willoffer people incentives to live morehealthily by working like rewardscards in supermarkets.

Participants can earn points everytime they exercise or buy fruit andvegetables, and the points will beredeemable against healthy servicesthat range from buying sportsequipment to discounts off healthyfood.

Laura Roberts, chief executive ofNHS Manchester, said:“Unfortunately people in Manchesterhave among the poorest health in thecountry.

“There are lots of reasons but thesimple everyday decisions we allmake about food and exercise con-tribute hugely to our biggest healthproblems, including heart diseaseand cancer.

“Points4Life is based on tried and

tested techniques from some of theworld’s most successful companies,the difference being that we’re notlooking for customers to be loyal to aparticular store, but to help peoplemake healthier choices.”

The scheme was launched after sta-tistics showed obesity costsManchester NHS more than £166m-a-year.

Coun Basil Curley, executive mem-ber for health, said: “Manchester hassome of the poorest health in thecountry, and while the statistics havebeen improving significantly overrecent years, we've still got a long wayto go if we're going to meet our aspiration of everyone in the cityleading longer, healthier and happierlives.”

Dr Sally Bradley, director of publichealth at NHS Manchester, added:“Eating healthily and exercising areoften seen as being tougher choicesthan the less healthy alternatives.

“Points4Life will play a big part inchanging that perception and useproven methods to really improve thelives of those who choose to use thecard.”

New gym finds a homein shopping centre ...A NEW Gold’s Gym has been openedat a shopping centre by six times Mr.Olympia Dorian Yates and formerGladiator ‘Falcon’ BernieRichardson.

The pair are both members of thegym – sited at The Atrium mall –which has been kitted out by StarTrac and has one of the largest freeweight areas in the South.

Nigel Snart, co owner, said: “Wewanted to build a gym that was suitable for commuters,professionals and all local residents.

“We had to choose equipment thatprovided something for everybodyand that included cardio equipmentto body building machines and freeweights.”

09 17/2/09 17:10 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE10

By Mary Ferguson

TEENAGE boys have changed theirperception of the ideal body and aretrying to pump up to look good,according to an expert.

Peter Muir, editor of Men’s Fitnessmagazine, commissioned a surveyinto exercise amongst its readers,which found 87 per cent of respon-dents want to become more muscu-lar.

He also told Workout the magazineis receiving an increasing number ofletters from teenagers concernedabout their body shape.

Peter, who believes the male per-

ception of the ‘ideal body shape’ haschanged, said: “A couple of years agoeveryone wanted to look like DavidBeckham but since Daniel Craigplayed James Bond it’s all changed.

“Bulking up has become a lot morepopular whereas before it was allabout slimming down - but no-onewants the ‘heroin chic’ look anymore.And we are getting a lot more lettersfrom teenage boys wanting advice onbecoming more muscular.”

According to Peter, many of theseyoungsters are turning to supple-mentation as well as the gym toachieve their desired body shape.

“Supplements are becoming more

mainstream whereas before theywere associated purely with profes-sional bodybuilders.

“But manufacturers have done agood job of educating the mass mar-ket and now the ‘average Joes’ at thegym are realising they can help.”

“Some gyms will always have aproblem with steroids but the trendamongst young men is to look mus-cly to be attractive, not to compete,so losing their hair and getting acnefrom steroid use doesn’t appeal.”

He added: “Different body shapescome in and out of fashion and at themoment it is definitely Daniel Craigthat men are trying to emulate.”

Teens pump up to look good

Daniel CraigPicture:Getty Images

Earl openscomplexA FITNESS complex in SouthYorkshire has been opened by the Earlof Wessex.

During his visit to RotherhamLeisure Complex, Prince Edward metmembers of the centre’s team, saw thevariety of sports taking place in thebuilding and had an opportunity totalk to some of the local residentsusing the facility.

The new complex is operated by DCLeisure on behalf of RotherhamMetropolitan Borough Council andfeatures a 25m swimming pool, learn-er pool, leisure waters and flumetower, 90-station fitness suite, studio,six-court sports hall, climbing wall,four squash courts, café and meetingroom.

Active breaksOVER half of British people do moreexercise on a week’s holiday thanthroughout the rest of the year,according to a survey.

Of those questioned, 61 per cent saidthey do more physical activity on holi-day, blaming the cold weather, lowself-confidence and busy schedule fortheir lack of exercising at home.

The survey by online travel agentwww.sunshine.co.uk revealed that 59per cent spend at least an hour and ahalf exercising every day whilst onholiday, compared to just 11 per centwho exercise for the same amount oftime every day at home.

10 17/2/09 17:11 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE 11

By Mary Ferguson

A GYM set up as a ‘working showcase’for an equipment supplier says it ison track to hitting its target member-ship.

The Gym At Amazon operates nextdoor to the Amazon Leisure head-quarters in Norfolk and is designed todisplay their refurbished equipmentin a working setting.

It has been open since Septemberand recently signed up its 300thmember – putting it on track to hit-ting 500 by the summer.

Owner Paul Sandford, who runs the

club in partnership with Amazon,said: “We are in a very rural area sothat’s a good number and we are verypleased with how things are going.

“I’ve known the owner of Amazonsince I first entered the gym industry23 years ago so was delighted whenthey asked me to get on board.”

The gym has 170 pieces of equip-ment, with additions on a weeklybasis. As soon as they arrive atAmazon, they go straight next door tothe gym.

Business from GP referrals and cor-porate contracts have boosted mem-bership recently, and Paul said they

are starting to win members from thechains in nearby towns.

The addition of 6am boot campclasses is attracting membershipfrom the commuters who pass thegym on their way to work.

Paul, who also operates two othergyms in the area, added: “We haveprospective Amazon clients lookinground on a daily basis but they don’tdistract our members, they don’teven notice they are there.

“And it’s great for them to be able tosee the equipment in action andexperience how it fits into a gymenvironment.”

Showcase gym attracting membersPaul Sandford The Gym At Amazon

Supplier windistributioncontractKIT supplier PTE has won the contractto distribute Schelde Sports equip-ment to the UK market.

The deal with the Dutch-based com-pany will enable the group to offer itsrange of equipment to elite athletictraining venues and sporting arenasaround the country, including newbuild facilities in line for the 2012Olympics.

Ron Brooks, general manager at PTEsaid: “The Schelde product is one ofthe most respected within its field andis designed to maximise performanceand results.

“This exclusive contract will enablePTE to supply equipment from pri-mary school level right through touniversities and high performancecentres.”

Gym revampA GYM in Bedfordshire has beenrefurbished and a new zone layoutsystem installed.

The £487,000 project at WybostonHealth and Fitness has seen newequipment from Technogym, StarTrac, NXT spin bikes installed and aboxing fitness zone created. It is splitinto zones including spin, CV, person-al training, cable and entertainment.

Steve Banbury, business manager forHarpers, said: “The investment hasmade a great difference to the club.”

11 17/2/09 17:12 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE12

Gyms offering more than just a place to work out can keep members happy bydelivering something different which at the same time raises extra funds.Christina Eccles spoke to one leisure centre achieving great success – utilising itsextra space by moving into the events market.

THE Metrodome in Barnsley is anexample of a leisure centre which isusing all available space as effec-tively as possible.

Its sports hall is usually used in amore traditional role where it canbe hired out for local people toenjoy playing sports such as bad-minton.

But a recent venture into theevents market has seen the halltransformed into something com-pletely different – with featuresincluding an indoor marquee,stage, seating and a bar all offeringthe ultimate event experience.

With successful events rangingfrom a 10 pin bowling champi-onship, corporate Christmas partiesand a traditional family pan-tomime, the venue is offeringsomething for the whole communi-ty – and is encouraging other gymowners to do the same.

According to trading operationsmanager Michael Hirst and eventsmanager Richard Bailey, the key tomaking the most of your extraspace is to strike a balance betweenwhat members want from theirleisure centre facilities and the ben-efits which events can bring to boththe gym and surrounding area.

Michael said: “One of our biggestproblems has been changing theperception of the venue as it hasalways been known as a leisurecentre and swimming pool and theMetrodome brand is so strong.

“It is not easy. There is more andmore pressure on leisure centres todiversify. But one of the lessons wehave learned is that you cannotexpect the same people who runyour leisure centre and pool to runyour events.

“We have realised the potential ofhaving this big space and have nowbrought people in with events

experience to take it to the nextstage and change those percep-tions.”

Over the years, one thing whichthe Metrodome has learned is thatgood communication is key tokeeping members happy.

Letting them know when thesports hall is out of use and offeringthem an alternative place to playsports at one of Barnsley PremierLeisure’s other sites ensures it doesnot alienate its core business.

Richard added: “We keep mem-bers updated with monthly flyers atreception to let them know whatevents are happening. We have gotto have events to help with ourincome to run the building but wealso need to build relationshipswith members and customers.”

But according to Michael, thebenefits have been huge and theyare hoping this is a market that willcontinue to grow.

He added: “It is a difficult balancebut the money we make goes backinto making our facilities better andwe try to give discounts and offersto members when we have events.

“The events side has seen anincredible growth and it hasenabled us to maintain cash flowand help to keep some of our otherleisure centres open.

“We have had a competitor gymopen nearby and it is tough to getthat money back if you lose mem-bers so you have got to find alter-native income streams.

“Leisure centres in general are notparticularly risky managers andthat culture is all about reducingrisk. Working in events is a risk butonce you get past that thresholdyou can start making money.

“We have invested in Richard asevents manager who has the timeto run them properly.”

Leisure centre movesinto events market

£1.7m revampcompleted atCamberleyA £1.7m refurbishment has beencompleted at the Arena LeisureCentre in Camberley.

The Kinetika gym has been extend-ed and modernised with flat screentelevisions and a wireless music sys-tem installed, as well as the numberof exercise machines being increasedfrom 86 to 120.

The aerobics studio has also beenre-vamped and extended by 50 percent in size, with new flooring andequipment, and a dedicated cyclingstudio has been built complete with20 bikes.

Centre manager Daniel Walker said: “There’s a completely differentfeel about the centre and it’s great to see so many customers re-energised and excited with theresults.

“We are confident that visitors tothe Arena are exercising in first classfacilities and receiving excellentvalue for money.”

‘Car washingburns thecalories ...’ WOMEN can burn more calorieswashing the car than working out at the gym, it has been claimed.

A study by MORE TH>N Woman’s carinsurance and personal trainerGraeme Marsh says that washing thecar for 90 minutes can burn up to 500calories – more than a 45-minute cir-cuit training sessions.

Graeme said: “The extraordinarilyhigh ‘car wash calorie-burn’ rate isexplained by the fact that a number ofthe key movements involved in washing a car incorporate all of themajor joints in the body, from theankles right up to the shoulders, anduse a number of different core muscles.

“A lot of people might not think itbut the car wash offers the type of allround body workout difficult to recre-ate using gym equipment.”

12 17/2/09 17:13 Page 1

13 Nautilus 17/2/09 17:14 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE14

By Mary Ferguson

AN INDEPENDENT gym in Yorkshiresays it is crunching the competitionby catering for the older market.

David Dowling, who has ownedSheffield-based In-Trim for six years,claims targeting the over 30s helpswith retention and creates a moreloyal membership base.

He said: “We don’t have to chasethese members for fees and they aremore receptive to the advice we givethem, whereas most young peopletend to think they know best and theyare a more transient market.

“There are a couple of big chainsnearby and their class timetables andbright lights attract the youngsters,but we are holding our own with ourmembership.”

Out of the 800 members at In-Trim,many are over 60 and at least 50 havebeen training there for over 20 years.

The gym is split across two floors,with a totally separate space forweights, and the top floor dedicatedto a fitness area.

David said this works by helping theolder clients feel comfortable, bytraining away from young men.

Because the club doesn’t offer aclass timetable, once a week mem-

bers get an hour of group personaltraining with up to five other people.

“We had to hire a personal trainer todeliver these sessions which is expen-sive, but worth it for the member sat-isfaction and the reputation it givesus.

“We can be training a 70-year-oldalongside a 20-year-old but becausethey are getting individual attention itdoesn’t matter and because peoplecome at a regular slot, it becomes areal social occasion for them too.”

80 per cent of the club’s membersare new to exercise and David claimsthat their success in recruiting newclients is down to their sales model.

Before being shown round the gym,prospective sales are taken into aconsultation room, asked about theirgoals and motivations and shown aportfolio of case studies of membersuccess stories. Most then sign upwithout even seeing the facilities.

David added: “People don’t listenproperly when they are being shownaround the club and you can’t sellstanding up.

“And because so many are first-timegym users, looking at a high-techtreadmill wouldn’t mean anything tothem – it would probably just scarethem.”

David Dowling, back, second from right, with some of the club’s oldest members

Older clientskeep faithwith gym

Former Spice Girl Mel Bwas the face ofNational Fitness Week,run by Fitness First atthe beginning ofFebruary.The chain put ondifferent events,campaigns andpromotions in theirclubs around thecountry, designed torun alongside otherdrives to get the nationactive.John Gamble, UKmanaging director ofFitness First said: “Ouraim for the week wasto complement thework being done withingovernment initiatives– like Change4Life –encouraging morepeople to take a look attheir lifestyle and try tomake positive changes.This is not only aboutgetting people to join agym.”Mel – whose ownexercise DVD hasbecome a bestseller –added: “NationalFitness Week is a greatidea – I’m all foranything which getseverybody fitter andtaking care of theirbodies. I was so excitedto be involved, I wantto encourage everyoneto become totally fit.’’

New club makes energyefficiency a priority ...CHAIN group Fitness First is openinga gym on Wembley High Street inApril.

The 13,000 sq ft club will have acardio area, ladies only section, twoexercise studios – one for group exer-cising and one for spinning classes –sauna and steam rooms.

A spokesman said: “Fitness Firsthas also ensured that the club is asenergy efficient and as green as pos-

sible with a building managementcontrol system to ensure that energyis not wasted on unnecessary heat-ing or air conditioning.

“There is energy-saving lightingthroughout the club and a heat-recovery system that can reuse the heat generated from theshowers.

“The club has been built using onlysustainable timber.”

14 17/2/09 17:14 Page 1

15 CFM 17/2/09 17:15 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE16

Gyms offercommunityfit clubsBy Louise Cordell

TWO Anglesey gyms are helping localresidents get healthy with their owncommunity fit clubs.

Holyhead and Beaumaris leisurecentres have been running the weeklysessions all year – for £5-a-week par-ticipants receive a weigh-in and edu-cational workshops, together withtwo free vouchers which can be usedto attend a fitness class or gym ses-sion at the club.

Karen Owen, manager of BeaumarisLeisure Centre, said: “Anyone can joinup – it is advertised locally so thatpeople can come along and somepeople have also been referred to usby their GPs.

“It is a six week programme andthen hopefully people will carry oncoming along to classes or join up forgym membership.

“It has been very good for the club,we have been getting a lot more peo-ple into the gym and have found thatabout 80 per cent of people who takepart carry on with a fitness pro-gramme of some form or other oncethe six weeks has finished.”

The clubs were set up thanks to£1,000 of lottery funding through theSports Council for Wales’ Community

Chest initiative. This investment paid for the initial

training and supplies, but since thenthey have been self supporting, mak-ing them a very sustainable optionfor smaller clubs wanting to con-tribute to community health.

The Beaumaris club has attracted 29members, who have attended 156sessions over 18 weeks, with a com-bined weight loss of five stones andseven pounds.

Karen added: “I think the schemehas been so successful because itgives people the support and incen-tive that they have not had before –even if they had been thinking aboutgetting involved.

“This way they have an instructoron hand for advice and encourage-ment and once they have receivedtheir vouchers they don’t want towaste them.

“It also helps them get into the rou-tine of coming to the gym and oncethey start seeing the positive effectsthen they are keen to keep it up.

“It works really well as a steppingstone for people who lack confidenceand aren’t really sure if they will enjoythe activities and is also a goodsocialising tool and is great for bring-ing the community together.”

SIX times Mr Olympia Dorian Yatesgave a free seminar on bodybuildingand weight training to celebrate a£50,000 refit of a freeweights gym.

Kelsey Kerridge Sports Centre, inCambridge, installed 30 stations ofCybex plate loaded and freeweightequipment to encourage training inits 200 members.

Deputy manager Liane Shadracksaid: "Whilst competition for generalfitness gyms has grown massively in

Cambridge over the last three years,there is still little focus onfreeweights. By keeping our fitnessgym and freeweights gym separatewe can cater for a wide range ofusers from deconditioned to eliteathletes and body builders.

“The freeweights room offers everytraining option for members who areserious about their training, includ-ing power and strength training viafixed resistance machines, Olympicbars, discs and dumbbells.”

Dorian Yates and Liane Shadrack

Dorian helps refit celebration

A London gym operator is swappingdumbbells for bodies and offering‘human weights’ for members wantingto shake up their workout routine.Gymbox has introduced the concept tomotivate gym-goers by allowing themto visualise what they are lifting andthe five new employees – who range inweight from 30kg to 155kg – come withan optional 'motivation feature', wherethey will shout words of encourage-ment. The concept has been launched atthe operator’s Bank site, where instruc-tors will be on hand to compare the per-formance of members on the humanweights machine measured againstmore conventional weight lifting equip-ment.

16 17/2/09 17:16 Page 1

17 leisure finance 17/2/09 17:15 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE18

THERE are some key elements toproducing a successful group exer-cise programme. Simplicity, variety,but most importantly the effective-ness of the sessions is what deter-mines long-term success.

Participants want to feel good aboutattending the session and then actu-ally being able to last the distance inthe lesson itself. Improving their fit-ness and maybe losing a few poundsin the process are side-effects of awell-taught session. It’s very impor-tant that leisure facilities ensure theyrun programmes that are going toproduce a result.

Throughout 2008 we saw a growthin group exercise programmes thattarget the general population.Sessions such as circuits, spinning,Body Pump and meaningful condi-tioning sessions have all seen growth.

We have also seen a huge rise in thepopularity of sessions like Boot

Camp. In part this can be attributedto the amount of media attentionthat these classes have received andthe element of surprise delivered byinstructors week on week. Many cen-tres have now linked into this trendand are offering sessions bothindoors and out, making the mostuse of the local facilities available tothem.

2009 will continue to see the rise ofresults driven group exercise sessionswith spinning remaining one of thetop performers. I expect to see acrossover of personal training equip-ment like the kettle bell and powerplate into group exercise sessions.These types of classes will give thetime spent at leisure facilities agreater sense of purpose.

After all, at its most basic level,group exercise is the cheapest formof personal training we offer with thepotential to be fun rather than simply

gruelling.In order to capitalise on the group

exercise phenomenon gyms need tothink about making the best use ofspace. If your gym prevents you frombeing able to run spinning sessionsthen think about running smallerclasses with less bulky equipmentsuch as Swiss Ball or boxercise.

Also think about the profile of yourmembers.

Don’t offer boot camp sessions ifthe majority of your members areover 50 – think about pilates andyoga based classes to improve flexi-bility and core strength. If you have alot of junior members then it’s newtrends such as cheerdance and hula.

Group exercise is a fantastic way tokeep members motivated and inter-ested in the services that you offer.But like anything else, if you fail tokeep it fresh and challenging mem-bers will move on.

Group exercise has boomedin the last decade with theintroduction of new classesand the shortening of manyto under one hour. MichelleBletso, group exercisemanager at Sports andLeisure Management,considers what 2009 couldbring.

Why programmesmust produce a result ...

A LONDON-BASED per-sonal trainer is inspiringher clients after qualifyingfor the finals of aEuropean body-sculptingcontest.

Kristelle Sammons, whoworks and trains at FlexLifestyles in Uxbridge, hasbeen competing for twoyears and in June will takepart in the Europeanchampionships for theInternational Union forNatural Bodybuilding,held in Belgium.

She said: “Clients cansee that I follow my ownadvice and I think thetitles I have won inspirethemselves, and their con-fidence in me as a trainer.It enables me to be awalking advert for my per-sonal training business.

“Also, through trainingmyself I have learned a lotmore about conditioningand nutrition, which I can

pass on to my clients.”Kristelle began compet-

ing for the first time in2007, winning her debutcompetition and qualify-ing for the British andEuropeanChampionships.

Last year she stepped onstage five times, compet-ed with three differentbodybuilding federationsand qualified for each oftheir respective BritishChampionships.

In October she becamethe Natural PhysiqueAssociation ‘trained figure’British champion, beatingten other women.

She added: “I train six toseven days a week and fol-low an extremely strictdiet regime. It requires alot of sacrifice and dedica-tion, but is 110 per centworth it when you eventu-ally step on stage and takea title.” Kristelle Sammons

Body-sculptingsuccess inspiresKristelle’s clients

Hydraulic workoutgym has no mirrorsA WOMEN-ONLY gymthat uses hydraulicequipment for a 30-minute workout hasopened inHertfordshire.

Hydrashape-me isbased in WelwynGarden City and oper-ated by Julia Cocklin, aformer council workerwho opened the clubafter training to be afranchisee.

Julia said she hasalways had an interestin health and fitnessand saw the chance toown her own gym asopportunity to dosomething new.

She said: “I used towork out myself at aHydrashape-me club nearby so saw the benefits first-hand.

“The hardest thingabout opening myown gym is that I’ve

never done anythinglike this in my life soit’s a huge learningcurve – but I’m reallyenjoying it.”

The gym is aimed atwomen but a mixedsession is held at theend of each day, whichattracts couples whowant to work outtogether.

The club has beendesigned to attractwomen of all ages andJulia made a deliber-ate decision not toinstall any mirrors in abid to ensure usersfeel comfortable.

She added: “Peoplewho are not used togoing to a gym don’twant to see them-selves while they areexercising.”

The club was official-ly opened by thetown’s deputy Mayor,Kim Morris.

18 17/2/09 17:15 Page 1

19 peak body 19/2/09 11:03 Page 1

20 badgemaster 17/2/09 17:18 Page 1

WOMEN 21

STYLE and Tone is Birmingham’s firstladies-only fitness, image and beauty stu-dio – incorporating everything from thegym and beauty treatments to style coach-ing and personal shopping.

The business prides itself on helpingmembers achieve results with workoutsand treatments that are effective yet nottime-consuming for busy women.

Studio owner Julie Baldwin said part ofStyle and Tone’s popularity is that every-thing is both quick to use and under oneroof – providing local women with a one-stop shop for beauty and fitness.

Instead of spending long periods of timeon the fitness equipment, members do acircuit – spending just 30 seconds on eachpiece before moving on to complete thecircuit three times.

The gym has also had great success withPower Plate and after opening with one,has recently gained two more.

Since the studio opened, Julie has foundone successful way to keep membershappy is to give them the opportunity togive feedback on what they think is work-ing well and what could be improved. Thisinformation is then used to make changeswhere possible to make the experience ofcoming to Style and Tone even better.

She said: “Asking for regular feedback hasbeen successful and very helpful. From thefeedback we have had, the ladies love it.The studio is more intimate and personaland we want our members to get results.

“In the larger gyms it is a volume game –they just want to get members through thedoors. But we are a bit smaller and focuson results.

“Some of our members have also saidthey have previously found the gym envi-ronment intimidating and a place full of‘sweaty men’ working out. They like thewomen only environment much better. Wealso offer the personal side which can belacking in some of the bigger gyms.”

Julie’s background is in corporate salesbut losing weight for her wedding encour-aged her to train as an image consultant.She decided the best way to fit all of herexpertise together was to open the studioand has never looked back.

Her background has also helped withcreating Style and Tone’s website whichshe sees as a good tool in getting the mes-sage of the gym out there to potentialmembers.

Julie added: “My sales and marketingbackground did help with the website aswe did not want a corporate websitebecause that is not what we are about. Weprovide a warm, supportive and friendlyatmosphere and wanted the website toreflect this. We want to provide support forwomen and I see us as being like an oxy-gen mask on a plane – we want to be thatfor them. We tell the women that if youdon’t look after yourselves, you can’t lookafter others and find this is somethingthey are able to relate to.”

EVEN though Style andTone has been open lessthan a year, Julie alreadyhas ambitious plans toexpand the business.

She said that part of itssuccess is due to the loca-tion so this is something shewill be looking closely atwhen choosing a new site.She added: “We have got agreat location and the stu-dio has a nice feel to it. It isa one stop shop and busyladies love that. In 12months’ time I want to opena second studio inBirmingham city centre andin total plan to open 10.

“When thinking about thecity centre location, it wouldhave to be somewhere withlots of office workers. Theycould come here, ordertheir lunch and go on thePower Plate – it would beconvenient. AlsoBirmingham has a hugeMuslim community whoneed to work out in a ladiesonly environment. It isimportant to play to yourstrengths and what the areais looking for.”

Gym givesmembersexercisingconfidenceAN independent gym ownerfrom Cheltenham hasrevealed how her ladies-onlygym has given members theconfidence to start exercisingat any age.

Sandy Carter – owner ofLadytone – said the non-intimidating atmosphere ofthe gym has encouragedsome of its older members toenjoy their workouts andachieve results.

The gym – which has beenopen since 2005 and has over100 members – prides itselfon good customer care andattention and being able toeducate women on the bene-fits of exercise and healthyliving.

Sandy said: “I saw a need fora fitness club in Cheltenhamthat is non intimidating forthose new to exercise, yetmore than a plain circuit.

“There is a different atmos-phere about a ladies onlygym. It is less competitiveand there is less emphasis onheavy weights and moreemphasis on all over fitnessand wellness. Members saythey feel more confident withno men around.”

Sandy also said that one ofthe biggest issues in women’sfitness is getting women tosee what exercise can do forthem and that you can startworking out at any age.

She added: “Rather thanapplying potions and creams,educate women to the factthat fitness is the best way toyouthful appearance andweight loss and the 'feelgood' factor. Life is not overat 50. We have members whohave started to exercise forthe first time in their eight-ies.”

Sandy is planning to intro-duce new exercise pro-grammes and equipment.

Birmingham based Style and Tone opened last March with the aim of offering a one-stop shop for busy women who want to look and feel good without it taking hoursout of their day. Christina Eccles found out more.

Co owners Simon Baldwin and JulieBaldwin and image coach Susan Allen

Julie keento expandbusiness

A one-stop shop forbeauty and fitness

21 17/2/09 17:19 Page 1

REHABILITATION/IFI22

SEATED exercise sessions are beingoffered to residents in Wales toencourage them to work out.

The scheme – run by Kinmel Bay FitClub – will see people offered 12weeks of chair exercise taster ses-sions. They will also be given vouch-ers which can give them access toline dancing, badminton and gymsessions for just £2 per week.

Jacqui Richmond, coordinator, said:“The initial idea came about becausewe have several elderly members andalso a few who are in wheelchairs orare post-operative, who can strugglewith the more traditional exercises.

“We were concerned that thismeant they weren’t able to take fulladvantage of the voucher scheme sowe wanted to introduce somethingthat would be suitable for everyone.”

Chair based exercise works by sta-

bilising the lower spine and providessupport, giving a greater range ofmovement and also reduces balanceproblems in those with particularlypoor mobility or arthritic pain.

The classes are run by an instructorfrom a local gym, The Bay Health andFitness Suite, which is also involvedin providing a range of other sessionsfor the voucher scheme.

Jacqui added: “There have onlybeen three sessions so far but theyhave gone down tremendously well.

“I am pretty confident that they willcontinue beyond the initial threemonths because the have been verypopular and the majority of ourmembers have been taking part.

“The classes are great becauseeveryone can go at their own paceand they can also complete the rou-tines at home.

“One of our members, who is in awheelchair, has lost one and a halfstone in four months of membership,so it is clear that people are gainingmassive benefits.

“It is also great for members tomeet up with other people from theircommunity who are in the same situ-ation to exchange tips and encourageeach other to keep getting results.”

Seatedexercisesessions”

Put your feet up – and exercise

Stroke patients start theirown exercise sessionsBy Louise Cordell

A GROUP of people who are recover-ing from strokes have started theirown weekly exercise sessions to try toimprove their health and mobility.

Butterflies After Stroke Club inBuckley attracts over 35 patients andcarers every week who take part in anhour-long fitness session, followed bylifestyle advice and activities.

The workout is run by fitnessinstructors from Extend, who areREPS level three qualified and arespecially trained to work with strokesufferers.

Club secretary, Brenda Smith, said:“We are just starting out as an inde-pendent group after the Stroke

Association Day Service we wereattending failed to secure funding tocontinue.

“We have all benefited so muchfrom the exercise programme that weare trying to continue ourselves.

“We didn’t want to let it go becausefor many people it was their only dayout of the house and their onlychance to talk to others in the samesituation.”

The group has been so popular, ithas recently had to move to largerpremises because of its policy tonever turn a member away.

It costs about £5,000-a-year to keepthe club running and, as well as con-tributions from charities and organi-sation like the Sports Council for

Wales, each member pays £1.50 perweek into a club raffle and takes partin a range of fundraising activities.

Brenda added: “It is very importantfor stroke victims to take regularexercise.

“The problem is that after a stroke,people are provided with a few weeksof hospital physiotherapy and thenare left to fend from themselves – butthey have nowhere else to go.

“They really should continue tohave the proper treatment, but that isnot provided, so anything we can dois better than nothing.

“Everyone that comes along hasreported real benefits, so it is veryimportant that we can keep runningfor as long as possible.”

Exercise onprescriptionboosts activityA NEW study has revealed that exer-cise on prescription increases physi-cal activity and should be used more,according to experts.

Researcher Dr Beverley Lawton,from New Zealand, studied exerciseon prescription in more than 1,000women who did not do more than150 minutes of moderate physicalexercise a week.

The programme included an initialcounselling session of motivatingtechniques to increase physical activi-ty and telephone support over ninemonths to help with choice of activity,goal setting and general support.

At the start of the programme justten per cent of the participants didmore than 150 minutes of moderateexercise a week – after two years thatraised to almost 40 per cent.

By Nicola Hyde

A PIONEERING parish council inFawley now runs the first site inHampshire with stage two IFI accred-ited equipment.

Gang Warily Recreation Centre hascreated a 2,000sq ft gym and a studioarea under a £140,000 project which

allowed an activity room and bar tobe renovated.

Centre manager Kevin Lobley said:“Inclusive fitness may appear to be aniche market but it is huge. 27 percent of users are now deemed to bedeconditioned.

“When I began to plan the refur-bishment I knew that, to be truly

inclusive, we not only needed toappeal to a broad market but alsooffer tangible benefits.

“Our old equipment simply wasn’tappropriate for this range of users.”

So far, the gym – which uses Cybexkit – has more than doubled its mem-bership.

THE gym at Hamilton AcademicalFootball Club is to spend £70,000 onaccredited IFI equipment.

Core Fitness – which has 500 mem-bers – will use 15 pieces of equip-ment from Pulse as part of the refit.

It will also be used by the teammembers and, under the deal, Pulsecan also use some space at theground for advertising.

Gym manager Darren Cross said:“Our gym is very well used by theplayers for rehabilitation work afterinjury and so it is important that theequipment we use is accredited bythe IFI.

“Many of the players also use thegym for general fitness levels so wewere looking for equipment thatoffered state of the art capabilities aswell as ensuring that our injuredplayers and sports therapy clientscould use it for rehab.”

Gym ready tospend £70kPioneering

council inHampshireIFI first

22 17/2/09 17:20 Page 1

REHABILITATION/IFI 23

A FITNESS consultant fromSheffield has been celebrated for her efforts to encourage suffer-ers of coronary heart disease toincrease their physical activity lev-els.

Lynn Hird, a personal trainer atHillsborough Leisure Centre,picked up a certificate in Activity Sheffield's recent ActiveChallenge.

She joined forces with LauraWilliams from Activity Sheffield to

form ‘Lynn and Laura's Barmy Army’ to promote theimportance of cardiac rehabilita-tion after a heart attack or heartsurgery.

The team ran a series of PhaseFour cardiac rehabilitation classesat Hillsborough Leisure Centre toassist people who had beenreferred from hospital and requiredan increase in activity to improvetheir physical well-being and quali-ty of life.

Lynn (far right) and Laura (far left) with somemembers of the cardio class

Fitness consultant Lynn rewarded for efforts

MARK is a sports rehabilitator whospecialises in strength and condition-ing and functional training and hebelieves this is the way forward for alot of gyms.

Lecturing to students who wantcareers in the fitness industry or to besports injury specialists, Markemphasises this fact to up-and-com-ing fitness professionals.

Integrating functional training intohis own gym has been at the forefrontof Mark’s plans and he said: “We runtwo types of functional training class-es working with balls, bands anddumbbells.

“FitMoves is functional circuit train-ing and Fun Legs and Tums is an all-over body conditioning class incor-porating full body movements.”

Functional training is also a greatwarm up according to Mark and onthe practical side can help ease con-gestion.

“You tend to find when you go to agym the personal trainer will say goon the bike for five minutes, or thetreadmill, and everyone does.

“Other than warming the legs itdoesn’t really make a huge amount ofdifference – the total calorific count isabout 50.

“Give them a medicine ball andthey get a toenail to fingernail work-out and a great warm up. It increases

the volume of the training and mas-sively increases calorific output andon the practical side it frees upmachines and you have less conges-tion.”

Alive and Well also offers an eight-week nutrition programme and Markbelieves this is the missing link formany gyms.

“I would like to see this offered in allgyms as I think it’s the last piece ofthe jigsaw puzzle – it can make yourgym a one-stop shop.

“We offer weekly seminars on por-tion control and food labelling, andwe educate about different foodgroups – this coupled with a moni-tored fitness programme is the wayforward.”

A nutritionist and herbalist practiseat Alive and Well along with graduatesports rehabilitators and charteredphysiotherapists.

Sports rehabilitation at the gymconsists of practical advice on theprevention, assessment, diagnosisand management of musculoskeletalconditions, and Mark said: “We usevarious techniques involved in themanagement of injuries includingmanual therapy, electrotherapy andexercise prescription, all comple-mented by various sports scienceissues such as exercise physiology,strength and conditioning training

techniques, sports nutrition andsports psychology.

“We utilise a multi-dimensionalapproach, considering all aspects ofthe patient's injury and treatmentand rehabilitation sessions incorpo-rate manual therapy techniques,massage, posture correction, corestability and functional exercise pro-grammes.”

Alive and Well also offers Iridologysessions whereby the colour andmarkings of the iris show potentialweakness in the organs.

The sessions determine whichorgans need support, any nutritionaldeficiencies, foods suitable for you,root cause of symptoms and familytraits whilst offering practical adviceon which foods to avoid and whichherbs would best strengthen the con-stitution.

Exercise programmes are accessedby Technogym key and there are car-dio, resistance and spinning areasincorporating the Inbody 720 andAsics equipment.

A relaxation area, beauty room, aer-obics studio with full class programand boxing facilities are also presentalong with a running club and Markadded: “We are a very diverse opera-tion and we aim to offer memberseverything they need under oneroof.”

Mark Airey, aformer PTinstructor in thearmy, now lecturesin applied sportsscience and sportsrehabilitation atSalford University.He also owns theAlive and Wellgym inWarrington.Lyndsey Smithspoke with himabout how hisfacility became aone-stop shop.

Nutrition programme is ‘lastpiece of the jigsaw puzzle’

Mark Airey and, inset, the Alive and Well gym in Warrington.

23 17/2/09 17:20 Page 1

SUNBEDS AND TANNING24

By Mary Ferguson

CLAIMS that sunbeds increase therisk of skin cancer by 75 per centhave been rejected as ‘spurious andmisleading’.

The International Agency forResearch on Cancer (IARC) publisheda report that claimed using a sunbedunder the age of 35 will massivelyincrease the risk of developingmelanoma – but this has been rub-bished by the Sunlight ResearchForum (SRF).

They consulted a number of scien-tists specialising in the effect of UVexposure on human health, who theysay, have confirmed the claim as mis-leading.

Ad Brand, head of SRF said: “It isclear there is a stark division of opinion between IARC and othersenior members of the scientificcommunity identifying the relation-ship between sunbed exposure andmelanoma risk.

“Public health campaigns and poli-cies can be determined on the con-

clusions of this type of report andtherefore, we believe it is very impor-tant the information is correctly pre-sented and communicated by all theagencies involved.“

Dr. Frank de Gruijl from theDepartment of Dermatology at theLeiden University Medical Center inthe Netherlands, added: “It isextremely difficult, if not impossible,to separate the risks and melanomaincidences resulting from outdoorsunbathing and sunbed use.

“To separate the risks would

demand at least a symmetrical wayof looking at both factors.

“However, it is impossible to quan-tify sun exposure in daily life with therequired certainty.“

Ad added: “We do know that unlikesunbathing, sunbeds keep UV expo-sure within one minimal erythemaldose.

“Sunbed use might contribute tomelanoma risk but sun exposure isexpected by far to be the greatest riskfactor.”

Sunbed skin cancer claims‘spurious and misleading’

The report’s findingshave been rubbished bythe Sunlight ResearchForum (SRF)

24 17/2/09 17:18 Page 1

SUNBEDS AND TANNING 25

DESPITE all the hype and uncertaintyregarding the change to Standard EN60335-2-27 that requires sunbedmanufacturers to meet the new irra-diance level of 0.3W/m2, on allequipment sold after April 1, thechange will not be as drastic as firstthought.

Advice from the HSE’s ProductSafety Section is that the standardwill only affect new equipment. Andthere will be no requirement to retro-fit existing equipment to meet thenew standard.

Therefore, it is unlikely that aninspector would interpret this tomean that a second-hand sunbedwould have to meet the new standard

either, as the equipment, thoughbeing resold, would not be new.

Therefore, it would be misleadingfor anyone to suggest that inspectorswould be enforcing against the newstandard for equipment made priorto April 1.

If and when these new standardsare to be applied to existing equip-ment is still to be decided, but mostbeds would still pass the new regula-tions with a simple tube change forcompliant lamps.

If you would like more help or adviceplease call Sun and Health International’smanaging director Garry Allbutt on 01527821 076 and he will be glad to help.

Advertiser’s announcement

Newsunbedregulations apply from April 1

25 17/2/09 17:20 Page 1

SUNBEDS AND TANNING26

A TANNING hormone sold in somegyms is still causing controversy overits safety – and selling it could landoperators in jail for two years.

Melanotan, which is injected intothe stomach, has been linked withmaking moles and freckles darker andcausing new skin blemishes to form.There have even been claims it cancause skin cancer, despite many userschoosing it as a ‘safer’ alternative tosunbeds.

The Medicines and Healthcareproducts Regulatory Agency (MHRA)issued a warning to people not to use

the drug, claiming it is being adver-tised and sold illegally on the internetand in some body building gyms andtanning salons.

Workout spoke to the MHRA, whosaid that if a gym was found to beselling Melanotan, they would becontacted and ordered to stop sellingor promoting it immediately.

A spokesman added: “Every oppor-tunity is given to comply however ifthey don’t comply with the request,enforcement action down the linecould lead to two years’ imprison-ment and/or an unlimited fine.”

Tanning hormone insafety controversy

The hormone is injected into the stomach

Safety adviceis boostingtan businessBy Mary Ferguson

AN independent gym claiming tohave the cheapest sunbed prices inCheltenham says it is boosting itstanning business by providing com-prehensive safety advice.

Sport Connection has been operat-ing a stand up tanning unit for fouryears, after members complainedthat the lay-down units took toomuch time out of their day.

Manager Alex Sansone toldWorkout: “Sunbeds are not everyone’scup of tea and people are more con-cerned about safety risks than theyused to be but they will always havetheir place in gyms.

“We make sure that safety leafletsare always available and no-one isallowed to use the unit without aconsultation first.

“Over the years things have changedand more people use fake tan butmodern sunbed technology is reallyadvanced – and people will alwaysprefer to look at a tanned body than apale one.”

Users are asked to fill out a formand staff recommend tanning timeaccording to their skin tone. If some-

one is very fair or has a lot of promi-nent moles they are told to consulttheir doctor.

A five minute session costs £3 andblock bookings of six are sold at theprice for five, which Alex claimsmakes them the cheapest prices inthe area.

“At one stage we decided to get ridof sunbeds altogether because no-one wanted to lay down for 28 min-utes at a time as they just didn’t havethe time. Since we changed to a standup unit though it’s got more use andwe can fit more sessions in to theday.”

Andree Deane, director of the FIA,said the as long as operators followthe correct health and safety guide-lines, there is no reason why sunbedscan’t work well for them.

She added: “There is no strong evi-dence to show that sunbeds usedunder health and safety guidelinesare any more dangerous than sun-bathing under the sun.

“A lot of our members tell us theymake a lot of money from them andas long as they operate the bedsproperly, who’s to stop them?”

IN CREDIT crunch Britain,it’s nice to know there areone or two alternatives tobuying a new sunbed at theconsequent high cost.

A couple of companiesactually specialise in com-pletely refurbishing top cali-bre sunbeds to very highstandards.

None more so thanSunbed and Leisure SystemsLtd, who over the years havebuilt themselves an impres-sive reputation dealing withErgoline products.

Their modern warehousefacility beside the M1Motorway in NorthDerbyshire is set up to han-dle most makes, and theyemploy only factory trainedengineers to maintain theirhigh standards.

Therefore, you can havethat necessary upgrade inboth size and quality tokeep your business ahead inthe tanning game, withoutworrying about spendingtoo much.

Leasing facilities are avail-able, even on the recondi-tioned stock, to allow you topay for your new equipmentas it earns revenue for you. For information call 08452414555 or visit www.sunbedandleisure.co.uk

Advertiser’s announcement

Top alternative to buying new

26 17/2/09 17:21 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE 27

International supplier of name badgesBadgemaster has invited buyers to cut costs whileimproving quality and service.By taking the Badgemaster price challenge, anyname badge buyer can challenge Badgemaster tobeat the current price they are paying. It takesless than a minute to do the challenge and obtaina fixed price per badge quotation. It is completelyfree, confidential and without obligation.Badgemaster’s John Bancroft said: “Lower cost fora better product is what our price challenge is allabout. We’re so confident that we offer unbeat-able prices, product quality and delivery time, thatcustomers transferring their supply to us will havenothing to pay if they don’t agree.”

A NEW way to motivate group exer-cise classes has been launched tohealth clubs and leisure centres inthe UK.

The Activio Fitness System is theworld’s first management solutionfor group training, with visual tech-nology that uses the members’heart rate data to create a fun, effec-tive and motivating concept.

Activio is suitable for all levels ofability and fitness and uses the lat-est digital technology to transmitheart rate data from a chest belt to acentral unit and then project thisinformation via a personal trainingmeter onto a screen.

Before a class begins, each mem-ber logs on to a touch screen systemto register their belt and inputs orcalculates their individual maxi-mum heart rate. The heart rateactivity is then wirelessly transmit-ted onto a large screen that providesvaluable guidance for both theinstructor and the member.

The data is displayed anonymous-ly, so only the member will knowwhich intensity meter is showingtheir data. Activio has been installedin over 250 clubs throughoutEurope and they have now openeda UK office to directly support andbuild their presence in the country.

Fitness system launched

By Louise Cordell

INTERACTIVE technology can pro-vide a great way for gyms to connectwith their members, but gettinginvolved is harder than it looksaccording to industry expert BirayAlsac.

Social internet platforms likeFacebook, MySpace and Twitter aregrowing in popularity as fast andcheap ways to promote a club and keep members informed, however, inexperience or a lack offocus can mean wasted time andmoney.

Biray is an international health andwellness speaker and the owner ofthe FITTmaxx Institute, which is ded-icated to teaching fitness profession-als how to integrate internet tech-nologies into their work.

She believes that while internetforums like Facebook and bloggingcan be cost effective ways of reachinga target audience, gyms and healthclubs should think carefully aboutwhat they want to achieve beforethey start.

The best type of software to use willdepend on whether the club wants toincrease membership, build a com-munity among members, educatethem about fitness or update themon news and events.

She said: “A lot of the time peoplecreate a blog or a Facebook pagebecause they read about how theseonline social media tools are the ‘nextbig thing’.

“However, while they are very use-ful, without purpose and agenda theycan also be very ineffective.

“It is also important not to underes-timate the time commitment it takesto develop an online presence – while

creating a blog is easy to do, main-taining one is much harder.

“Many people assume that as soonas they have uploaded a profile orcreated an account on a particularnetwork, they will immediately seememberships increase and commu-nities form.

“This is a common misconception –you have to spend a lot of time anenergy in these spaces yourself if youexpect any commitment to yourefforts in return.”

According to Biray, the most essen-tial thing for clubs to remember is totailor the software to the job thatneeds doing – no one programmecan address every issue and eachtype of social sofware has its ownniche.

She added: “MySpace is very effec-tive with the entertainment business,which is why so many bands appearin that environment – so any market-ing efforts in health or fitness may belikely to get lost there.

“With that said, it is important toresearch the demographics and usage

of various online tools.

“Sometimes this data is accessibleto the public through the actual site,but at other times, you must rely onyour own experiences, learningthrough trial and error is all part ofthe process.”

Despite the challenges, Biray is con-vinced that social software is particu-larly applicable to the health and fit-ness industry because people in thefield are committed to helping peo-ple make better lifestyle decisions –and with the right preparation tech-nology can move a company on tothe next level.

She said: “Connecting with peopleis one of the key elements of successfor gyms and health clubs – it resultsin good member retention, exerciseadherence, success in event market-ing and helps to disseminate infor-mation.

“The great thing about online com-munities and social software, andwhat makes them ideal for clubs, isthat they allow this to happen on aninstantaneous, intimate level.”

Get it right with interactive technologyTips on how to use the web to connect withtechnology-savvy consumers:� Instant messaging and chatting online is often a preferred form of communica-tion – especially for quick questions and inquiries. A good way of addressing this isto embed chat widgets on a website or blog and then have a trainer or staff avail-able to answer questions online. Chat widgets (like meebo.com) are free!� Create communities for clients in places like fitfiend.com, dailymile.com or gyminee.com – these are social networking sites that have a lot of fitness relatedpeople joining and so provide a ready made audience.� Create a Twitter account for your club or organization. Twitter is a microblog-ging platform where you can send out selective information in 140 characters orless – you can then send out links to current blog posts, announcements aboutupcoming events or even motivational tips.

Biray Alsac

Lecturerscreate fitnesshandbookBy Lyndsey Smith

TWO Sunderland university lecturershave created a handbook for fitnessprofessionals.

Morc Coulson, and David Archer –sports and exercise science lecturer and physiology of traininglecturer respectively – have collabo-rated on The Advanced FitnessInstructor's Handbook, and David said: “The text books out thereare either very advanced, with notechnical, practical element or they’revery basic with very little science inthem.

“The science underpins this bookthroughout, but it still has strongpractical applications.”

Morc added: “We felt there was agap for a more progressive book, more in-depth and more scientific.

“This particular book covers lots ofpractical and theoretical issues, andwe felt that in the British marketthere wasn’t a book that does that.”

27 19/2/09 11:13 Page 1

UK FITNESS SCENE28

INTERNET TV Fitness Channel pro-vides interactive fitness content and‘one-stop’ gym resources.

ThinQ Digital Media, the digital TVcontent company, have seen signifi-cant online membership growth withtheir focus on fitness.

Customers access the workoutsfrom their computers by visiting theweb site www.thinqfitness.com wherethey can select from a range of grad-ed sessions according to proficiency.

ThinQ Digital Media are now begin-ning to deliver their content back intogyms, hotels and commercial organi-

sations, allowing easy access to class-es when trainers aren’t available, par-ticipant numbers are very low, orwhere individuals would like to work-out out on their own.

“We are able to easily re-purposethe content depending on how muchcontrol each organisation would like,”explains Paul Gullett, managingdirector, ThinQ Digital Media. “Youadd value to your customers, they seeyour brand.”For more information contact Paul Gullett,

managing director, 07917 030239, paul.gullett@thinqdigitalmedia.com

Company sees significant growth

Advertiser’s announcement

By Lyndsey Smith

A GYM is aiming to double its mem-bership in the next 12 months aftermore than doubling in size.

The Gym, in Golburne, Warrington,started as just 2,000 square feet butafter expansion due to popularity itnow covers 5,300.

Owner Mark Howlett said thingswere going better than he had everenvisaged.

“It has been a complete snowballeffect and grown faster than I everanticipated.

“I own my own supplements com-pany too and have met many gymowners over the years, talked to themand seen how they operated and itwas always my ambition to start upmy own.

“I did my homework and quicklyfound that within a four-mile radiusof the enterprise park where we arebased there were 9,000 homes and nogyms.

“There had been a couple in thepast but they were hardcore body-building gyms that attracted about a100 members so we opened as a facil-ity accessible to everyone.”

The 700 members now have accessto a fitness room kitted out bySportsArt with cardiovascular equip-ment, two weight rooms, an aerobicsstudio and spinning studio.

The weights room tends to be splitwith females in one and males in theother and Mark said: “One is mainlyfreeweights and Olympic equipment

and is more popular with the men,whist the other is mainly resistanceequipment, and I think the females feel less intimidated with thisset up.

“They do mix freely in the fitnessroom and our system works well.”

Basic advertising in local press anda poster and leaflet campaign workedfor Mark when he opened and hesays he plans to continue that strate-gy.

“We had massive initial help fromPowerzone, Jordan Fitness andSportsArt that has helped us to get tothe stage we are at.

“Obviously word of mouth mayhave some effect now but I aim tostick with what I know.

“Ideally, I would love to double ourmembership as we have more thanenough space to accomodate com-fortably now.

“It’s been swings and roundaboutsbut I have certainly enjoyed it.”

Expanded gymbids to doublemembership

Mark Howlett, right, and Andy Pritchard from Powerzone

‘It has been acomplete snowballeffect and grownfaster than I everanticipated’

New training service is‘filling gap’ – operatorsBy Mary Ferguson

THE operators of a new corporatepersonal fitness training serviceclaim they are filling a gap left by‘impractical’ gym memberships.

iGlobalFitness – whose chairman isformer world 5,000m record holderDavid Moorcroft – offers a worldwide network of personal fit-ness training for corporate and con-sumer markets.

A company spokesman said: “Incontrast to company gyms or gymmembership, consistent monitoredfitness training ensures that employ-ees actually do stay on track withtheir fitness goals and benefit fromthis perk – as gyms are often notpractical enough and go unused dueto busy schedules or personal lack ofmotivation.”

A one-time life membershipenables qualified personal trainersto be booked both in the UK andworldwide, with 24 hours’ notice.

Operators say the service could bepaid for by the company or as part oftheir corporate benefits scheme orwellness programme.

Alternatively the employee can payfor the service themselves, possiblyat a special subsidised rate.

The spokesman added: “It is aproven fact that membership ofgyms is declining, whereas the flexibility and convenience of personalised fitness training fits in with busy schedules andneeds.

“With iGlobalFitness no membership is required and a sys-tem is put in place to ensureprogress is tracked against agreedfitness goals and individuals aremotivated to stay on track with theirown specially designed and person-alised training plans.”

28 19/2/09 11:05 Page 1

NUTRITION/SUPPLEMENTATION 29

FORMER Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies hasrevealed how a new trend in supplementation forwomen is helping gyms support female memberswho need to balance busy lives with keeping fitand healthy.

Sharron – who is helping to develop nutritioncompany Perfect UK‘s products for women – saidthat women are often very busy and sometimesstruggle to find the time to look after themselves.

She told Workout she is pleased to see a growth inproducts geared towards helping women managebusy lifestyles and stay fit and healthy.

She said: “People are becoming more interestedin looking after themselves but men and womenare very different both physically and emotionally.

“Women are generally juggling and multi taskingand put themselves at the bottom of the list.

“We live very fast, busy lives and supplementa-tion is a way of topping up or maintaining what weput into our bodies.”

Company spokesman Todd Wilson added thatthe growing trend for women using supplementa-tion is one area where gyms could boost secondaryspend.

He added: “If someone comes into a gym or to apersonal trainer with a goal, exercise is one thingbut you have to start with diet.

“Once members get that knowledge, you can goone level deeper and move on to talking about sup-plements.

Supplementation has become more accessibleand there are now more products designed for awoman’s physique.

“Also knowledge and understanding about sup-plementation has increased and it has becomemore acceptable for women to use it.”

He advised gyms to make sure their front ofhouse staff are up to speed on developments in thenutrition and supplementation industry, so theycan best offer advice.

Sharron backs new trend in supplementation

Athletes from the EricssonRacing Team have sailedaround the world – withhelp from nutrition com-pany CNP.Team spokesman for TheVolvo Ocean Race JoelRewa-Morgan said: “Wecan't take fresh meat, veg-etables or fruit, so we hadto find other ways to givethe guys the macro nutri-ents they need.”Kerry Kayes, nutrition spe-cialist at CNP Professional,recommended proteinbars to supplement thecrew’s high carb diet.

Sharron Davies

29 17/2/09 17:21 Page 1

TRAINING – ADVERTISER’S ANNOUNCEMENT30

By Alan Runacres, FCollP. FISM.BSc. Hons. DipHMan. MICM DipDirector of Training – WABBAQualifications

WHY do trainers keep telling us thatif you don’t (and I quote) “engage thecore” the exercise “won’t work prop-erly and give you any results.” Howhave we ever managed to train in thepast without this wonderful piece ofadvice?

When it comes to any kind of resist-ance training with weights or yourown bodyweight, muscles only growstronger, bigger, or more toned over aperiod of time through muscularoverload.

This can happen in three ways,firstly by lifting a heavier weight, sec-ondly by doing more repetitions withthe same weight, and lastly, by target-ing the muscle to be worked asdirectly as possible, rather thandraining valuable energy into loadsof surrounding muscle groups.

If you are training your chest oryour legs, or indeed any body part,forget about ‘engaging the core’(there is a time and place for thatlater in this article, and later on inyour workout too) and put all yourconcentration into the muscle youare trying to work.

Focus intensely on making everyrepetition count force the muscle torepeatedly contract to a point offatigue by the end of the set, withouthaving to worry about balance andfalling over.

Remember, while your mind isthinking about ‘can I keep my bal-ance’ it’s not thinking about ‘is mymuscle working properly’?

If you divide your energy and con-centration levels into four or fivemuscles at once you end up with 20per cent effort on each muscle, but ifyou place all your energy and con-centration levels into one major mus-cle group at a time it gets 100 percent effort and overload leads to

quicker and more noticeable resultsget the idea?

If you want more core stability andstrength then by all means let’s trainfor it, but let’s train for it properly.Use a variety of oblique, abdominaland lower back exercises at the endof the workout session to specificallytarget these core areas.

Studies show that abdominalcrunches on a Swiss ball can workyour abs harder than the same move-ment done on the floor, or when try-ing to ‘engage the abs’ during anexercise for another muscle group.

Plank exercises will give ‘static’ corestrength, but not ‘dynamic’ strengthas there is no movement involved.

Strength athletes and Powerlifterscan never be accused of having weakcore muscles, yet never do specificcore exercises.

They do however train on the ‘kingof lifts’, the Deadlift, which ironicallyis the best all round dynamic core

stability and strength builder avail-able as It utilises the entire trunk as amajor synergistical group during themovement.

But please people, ensure theweight starts from, and returns to,the ground. Not off a bench as I have seen in some gyms recently, this limits the ROM and nullifies the effectiveness of the exercise.

Powerlifters including myself woulduse blocks in certain instances toimprove on ‘partial ranges of themovement’ (hence why this tech-nique is called Partials) but this is forserious amounts of your 1RPM andnot for building core stability andstrength. Until next time, train thecore. Spread the word and keep train-ing real.

� Alan Runacres has over 35 years’gym experience, been WABBA direc-tor of training for 14 years and is theauthor of three books, and over 100published articles.

Core blimey!

Alan Runacres

‘When it comes to any kind of resistance training with weights or your own bodyweight,muscles only grow stronger, bigger, or more toned over a period of time through muscularoverload’

30 17/2/09 17:20 Page 1

TRAINING 31

Advertiser’s announcement

JANUARY 12 saw the merger of PTSand Premier Training, with both com-panies recognising the value in com-bining both skill-sets, product offer-ings and infrastructure.

The aim is to be the best in class forthe business to consumer and busi-ness to business market within theindustry.

The merger will provide new andexisting students with a larger moreflexible course offering, a wider prod-uct offering, accessibility to some new and exciting courses and work-

shops, conventions and new resultsbased PT products.

Premier has just launced a new exciting suite of CPD courses available from January, NASM alsohave some new and exciting developments and courses plannedover the coming months so watchthis space.

The merger brings together some ofthe industry's strongest brands increating, managing and deliveringhigh quality education to health andfitness specialists across the UK andbeyond.

Colleges and operators will now beable to access the highest qualitybespoke training through govern-ment funded routes.

PTS and PremierTraining merge

By Dave Wright, Creative Fitness Marketing

THERE is a marketing saying:“When times are good youshould advertise and when times are bad you must adver-tise.”

Of course it is a hard questionthat clubs must ask when thingsare a little tight. But the lastthing that clubs want to do whenthings are getting tough is toturn off the tap.

Remember that it’s the market-ing and thus the sales that paysfor the rent, the wages and theequipment.

The old adage of build it andthey will come has long pastalong with the old infamous newyear rush.

Clubs must be more proactivewith their marketing and aim atsetting between five to eight percent of their club’s turnover eachyear to obtaining and gettingtheir message out.

In times of recession it is evenmore necessary that this spendis allocated.

A study done in America inJan/Feb 2008 found that thosecompanies that had maintainedor increased their marketingbudget in the times of economicturmoil found an averageincrease in sales growth for thefollowing three years after therecession compared with thosewhich eliminated or decreased

their marketing spend. Companies such as Dell,

Microsoft and BMW view reces-sions as opportunities as it is agreat chance to exploit theircompetition with aggressivemarketing.

Of course for clubs, it’s not amatter of ‘he with the deeperpockets win’, but I think manyindependent operators don’trealise how little some of the bigchains actually market theirfacilities.

Luckily enough they are greatly

controlled from centralisedoffices and thus focus more oninternal referrals to attain newmembers. They can’t necessarilyrespond to a new marketing ideathat an independent has the lux-ury and quick authority to do so.

Be creative with your staff-offer bonus for the most creativeway to get the word out.

Offer commission for sales that they generate off their own back.

If times are tough not only doyou want to show the staff thattheir jobs are safe, but also thatthey can earn more money intimes when people are lookingto cut down.

If it’s possible, then have peo-ple hand out fliers for your clubon a commission only basis sothat they get say £10 for everyperson that they get into theclub and join.

It doesn’t cost you anythingapart from printing the fliers,but you get a no risk handout.

Marketing aggressively in arecession can not only boostyour sales and market share, itcan also open a lead on themore timid competition.

It can put your club in the limelight in a chaotic business envi-ronment and show your market-place that you have stabilitywhilst also allowing you theopportunity to dominate theadvertising media.

Marketing in tough times

Dave Wright

A Mendip leisure centre has been praised for its staff train-ing and development programme, leading to a 78 per centscore from Quest.Wells Leisure Centre, run by Avalon Leisure on behalf ofMendip District Council, is now among the top third ofQuest registered leisure centres in the UK.Amongst other things, one of the inspection’s key findingswas that management recognise the benefits of improve-ment and are developing staff and the service including atraining and development programme.Centre manager Jackie Treasure, said: “We are absolutelydelighted to have achieved such a great score, which recog-nises the progress we have made since our last assess-ment.”

31 19/2/09 11:11 Page 1

TRAINING32

Central YMCA Club is celebrating after becoming one ofthe first in the country to earn the Fitness IndustryAssociation’s Code of Practice award. An assessor visit-ed the gym to mark it against standards set out in theCode of Practice – which ranged from health and safety,to staff training and customer care. The club is nowworking on new facilities like extended cardio and GP

referral zones, media information screens for membersand a new sports hall floor and free weights room.

� Pictured: Proud owners of the FIA Code of Practiceaward: Alun Wood (left), facilities manager, CentralYMCA Club and Daniel Lynn, operations manager,Central YMCA Club.

A MENDIP leisure centre is celebrating a 76 percent score from Quest – marking it as one of thebest centres in the country.

Strode Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre, run byAvalon Leisure on behalf of Mendip DistrictCouncil, was commended for the way it is man-aged, what it has to offer and how it meets theneeds of its customers.

Coun Ron Forrest, Mendip District Council’s port-folio holder for community, said: “The council andstaff at Strode Swimming Pool and Fitness Centreshould be exceptionally proud of the work they doin helping local communities lead healthierlifestyles.”

Centre succeeds in QuestCoun Ron Forrest with some of the team at Strode

32 19/2/09 11:08 Page 1

CLASSIFIED 33

EQUIPMENT

Are you looking to:Open a new gym or fitness centre?Acquire finance and CAD design?Have your equipment serviced?

Expand or update and existing centre?Re-upholster tired looking equipment?

Train your staffYou need to contact us.

We are leading suppliers of service and re-manufactured fitness

equipment including Precor, Cybex, Life and Technogym.

Tel: 01538 387999E-mail: sales@staffsfitness.com

staffsfitness.com

Finance solutions for the fitness industry…As the fitness industry’s preferred finance partner, Shire hasdesigned innovative leasing packages that allow you to acquirenew equipment to expand or upgrade your facilities right now,rather than waiting until you can afford to pay cash.

Call Phil Morris on 07968 452061 for free confidential help and adviceSHIRE LEASING PLC Company Registration Number: 02476571. VAT No: 55889480.

FINANCE

To advertise in Work Out please call: 01226 734615

WANTED

FOR SALE

MEMBERSHIP COLLECTION SOLUTIONS• Credit Agreements• Instalment Collection• Cash Advances

Tel: 01444 449157www.harlandsgroup.co.uk

Supplied and fullyintegrated with Clubrunner

Management Software

FOR SALE UPHOLSTERY

33 classi 17/2/09 17:06 Page 1

CLASSIFIED34LLOOCCKKEERRSS

Lockers + Locking Systems + Cubicles + Washrooms

Safe Space LockersLocker House 7 Barrow Hill Close Worcester ParkSurrey KT4 7PT info@safespacelockers.co.uk

Please call0870 990 7989

for more details

IINNSSUURRAANNCCEE NNUUTTRRIITTIIOONN

MMAARRKKEETTIINNGG MMAANNAAGGEEMMEENNTT

FFLLOOOORRIINNGG MMEEMMBBEERRHHIIPP CCAARRDDSS

Call 01226 734 615 to advertise

SSUUNNBBEEDDSS

EEQQUUIIPPMMEENNTT

34 classi 19/2/09 11:06 Page 1

35 perfect UK 17/2/09 17:03 Page 1

36- AMC 19/2/09 11:00 Page 1