WORDS Laura Morel
No sooner had that Christmas pudding left your lips than you’re already feeling an enormous sense of guilt. Too much over indulgence leaves us hurtling to the gym in January, which has become known as ‘Gym Fever’. Promises of clean living, regained sanity and a Victoria’s Angel body are too much of a temptation not to start the year afresh with the best of intentions. But with 90% of new gym bunnies cancelling memberships and a further 80% breaking new years resolutions hope exactly do we make it stick?
Like most things, there is not a one size fits all gym solution. The answer to staying true to your new fitness commitment is to find your perfect fit to start. Which is why we’ve given you the round up on a few local gyms and how they could work wonders for you.
Club Soulgenic (seen above)
Set out on three levels, Club Soulgenic is more than a gym, it is a one-stop shop to wellbeing. With a collection of the Island’s best wellbeing practitioners at your fingertips including physio, nutritionist, masseur and chiropractor, there really is nothing more you could want for a healthy lifestyle that isn’t under their roof. The newest contender in the Jersey gym scene looks to balance out their members workouts, alternating between classes entitled Burn (cardio), Strong (strength training), and Vibe (yoga and mental wellbeing). Throw in some of the world’s latest scientific technology, no gimmicks here, and your workout just hit a new high. With classes 35-45 minutes long, the Club in the centre of St Helier is perfectly placed to cater for those on their lunch hours. With Nude Food settling into the ground, serving up members a free morning coffee and a terraced area to relax post-workout, you’ll find yourself spending a whole lot longer in this gym than you originally planned.
Best for: Those that want a rounded approach to health.
Healthhaus
Unveiling a new ear of fitness, the gym’s Milon technology takes the worry out of work out routines. A computer scans your body, programmes the machines for you and adjusts your resistance to maximise your sessions. There’s no fear over what you should be doing, as the technology plans this out for you, leaving you to enjoy a 35 minute circuit routine. Fancy a change? Take a virtual cycle through an alpine landscape or better yet, a wholly realistic dip in their award winning spa pool. The club caters for those who want to have an efficient workout, with the emphasis on a luxurious environment as well as working up a sweat. There isn’t much chance for socialising in-between machines, as circuit timings don’t allow it, but you can always rendez vous in the sauna afterwards. If you’re finding your sessions too easy or having a bad day, the Milon system will adjust the resistance accordingly and an instructor is always on hand to motivate, guide and answer queries. Best of all, it’s the only gym I have ever been to with the nozzles still on the changing room hairdryers (girls, I know you feel my pain)!
Best for:Those who like to have their workouts mapped out for them.
Crossfit
The gymnastic based circuit training model of Crossfit has reached cult status around the world, both for its ability to produce impressive body transformations and for the criticism it receives from other professional trainers for its unusual technique. With a reputation of being highly competitive and back-breakingly hard, you’d be forgiven for assuming that this was only the gym for you if you had Olympic medals in your sights. To break this stigma Crossfit are introducing further classes this year to allay the fears of new members. Their Quickfit classes allow you to squeeze in a work out in 30 minutes and their new ladies only classes will cater for those feeling a little daunted by new surroundings. For all the technique that has to be learnt at Crossfit, the gym’s greatest selling point has less to do with function and everything to do with community. Joining Crossfit is like joining a family, it comes with invitations to social functions, charity events and if you are keen, the ability to compete across the network of Crossfit gyms globally.
Best for: Those that like to sweat..a lot!
LH Fitness
This small, back street gym is something of a rarity in Jersey. Created to be accessible to people from all walks of life, it’s goal is to help people not just with their physical fitness, but with their mental wellbeing. They look to improve people’s lives through fitness. On first sight it is very much a man’s gym, one much in need of the love of a good woman. But as long as you’re not tempted to start licking the equipment you’ll start to overlook the grime and find a lot of love deep within those boxing gloves. The old school boxing gym offers personal training sessions, boxing fitness classes (including women-only classes) and more technical boxing training. Yes, it smells of sweat, but that is just evidence of the hard work and effort that goes on behind its doors. There is no judgement, no expectation and almost no rules as long as you bring the right attitude.
Best for: Those that find gyms intimidating.
Where do you start?
Investing in you
Fitness first have recently invested over £250,000 on these stunning sleek new changing rooms as well as purchasing new strength equipment and creating a state of the art spin room.
General Manager, Warren Johnson, knows that pursuing an active lifestyle enables people live healthy happy, longer lives, he commented “with the huge rise in social media use, such as instagram, more and more people are being inspired to get to the gym; it has been a fantastic boost to the fitness industry. It is not an easy journey and requires motivation, determination and persistence, but we’re here at Fitness First to help islanders achieve their fitness targets for 2018.”
For the cost of less that £2.00 per day Fitness First can help members achieve their goals. Whether it is through one of the many studio based classes such as spin, HIIT, pilates, body pump, attack & combat or yoga. Warren says that “still one of the most popular methods for our clients is having a personal trainer. Someone right there to motivate them to do their best and it also makes them more accountable, so they turn up for their sessions and get to work. We have 13 Personal Trainers offering a great variety in education and training techniques.”
Members of Fitness First are still able to bring a guest in for free every Friday, so if you’d like to try it out find a gym buddy who is already a member, or head to www.fitnessfirstjersey.com to get a free 3 day pass.
Sports massage…it’s not just for sportspeople!
Agnes Banach, the owner of Body Sync has been practising massage since 2008 and would love the opportunity to debunk the myth that a sports massage will result in a painful experience. Yes, a sports massage is certainly very different to one you’d traditionally have in a spa, it doesn’t, however, have to be painful. It will always be beneficial and is even suitable for armchair athletes.
Agnes explains: “I tailor each appointment to the client, making sure that we work to target specific areas of concern. Whilst this can cause some discomfort, I’m always able to adjust the pressure to make sure that it isn’t too painful.”
Aware of the need to take a holistic approach to wellbeing, Agnes is also an accomplished yoga instructor and practitioner, her philosophy is clear and simple: “Be kind to yourself, listen to your body’s needs and act when it tells you. When you feel good about yourself, life becomes easier and more enjoyable.”
Body Sync is based at the CrossFit gym at 24 Commercial Buildings. Agnes can also visit your home to perform a massage.
Visit www.bodysync.je for more information.
Healthhaus – where they’ve made exercise simple
They would love to say that they’ve made it easy too, but you don’t achieve anything in life without putting in hard work. However, they promote quality of exercise over quantity, leaving you time for the finer things in life, such as a dip in the relaxing Ayush Wellness Spa.
Their time efficient, award winning Milon Circuits, allow you to achieve results by following a personalised programme just twice every 10 days for 35 minutes.
Combining the most up to date exercise technology with a personal touch; at Healthhaus you get a great community of members and a team of supportive staff who are there to encourage you and make your visit to the club a little bit more fun.
For more information on membership call 614800 or visit www.healthhaus.co.uk
