The UK’s No 1 fitness industry magazineApril 2016 No 271 £3

Crowd-funding campaign aims to open gym THE 2016 National Fitness

Awards have got off to a fly-ing start, with entries already dropping in from gyms who are keen to impress this year.

Nominations are now open at www.nationalfit-nessawards.co.uk where clubs can put themselves forward for categories which recognise everything from community involvement to specialist facilities such as combat, strength and func-tional training.

There are also dedicat-ed categories for member achievement and best gym based personal trainer, as well as a best newcomer award, which rewards clubs less than two years old that have already made a big impression in the industry.

Event organiser Lucy Dickinson said: “It’s great to see so many gyms on the ball and getting their nomina-tions in already! The thought of cracking on and orga-nising another awards and conference is exhilarating; there are so many new and exciting ideas to plan.”

The awards are free to enter and entries can be submitted via the website, with winners announced at the Athena on Friday December 2.

By Olivia Taylor

AN inspirational personal trainer is calling on the public to help him on his quest to get more people active and healthy by launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise the money to open a community gym.

Simon Gunn founded Jelly Fitness to provide Nottingham locals with good quality exercise provision in the form of bootcamps and fitness classes.

Now he wants to provide a fully accessible venue under the Jelly Fitness brand that includes everyone – no matter what their age or ability is.

Simon said: “I’ve had this idea in my head for 15 years. It’s about family fitness and creating a place that can eliminate the issues and excuses that stand in the way of people exercising.”

The team at Jelly Fitness are asking for backing to achieve their dream, setting up a crowdfunding page with a target goal of £100,000.

Simon added: “It’s never been done before because it’s such a hard thing to put together.

“We literally want to eliminate every excuse in the book.”

Simon was attacked and mugged at

the age of 18, leaving him depressed and unable to get to the gym. The incident left him so low he attempted to end his own life.

He said: “I was so badly beaten and mugged that I had epileptic fits. I couldn’t work so I couldn’t afford to go to the gym.

“I managed to help myself and eventually I sorted myself out. I don’t want people to be in the same position that I was in.”

The facility is set to include a creche, children’s exercise classes and an autistic sensory room to entice parents that struggle with child care to keep fit.

Simon added: “I’ve built this up and done a lot of research, I want to make sure I get it right.

“People are going on Facebook and telling us that they think what we’re doing is fantastic, and that is lovely.

“We will make this happen one way or another.

“We want to become a national company.

“Once we’ve got the model right, we’re going to branch out into other towns.”

To help the team and pledge money to the cause visit: http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/jellyfitness.

Entries start to come in for fitness accolades

More than 60 runners took part in a charity race around the runways of Manchester Airport, raising almost £5,000 for two charities. The 6km race was organised by Manchester Airport and British Airways to raise money for their two chosen charities – CLIC Sargent and Flying Start. As well as the race a family fun day at the airport’s Runway Visitor Park also helped with the donations. Vernon Kay was on hand to present the prize to winner Richard Keep, who won a pair of flights to Las Vegas.

For more see page 16

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Editor: Christina Eccles Tel: 01226 734463 ce@scriptmedia.co.uk

Reporter: Olivia Taylor ot@scriptmedia.co.uk

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Trust transforms under threat centreRavenscraig Activity Centre is now a thriving facility thanks to a £1.4m redevelopment plan which includes a budget gym and X Height vertical walls.

By Christina Eccles

NATIONAL Fitness Award winning operator Inverclyde Leisure is cele-brating after successfully turning around the fortunes of one of its centres which was under threat of closure.

Ravenscraig Activity Centre was commissioned to be closed due to its age and condition, but is now a thriving facility, thanks to a £1.4m redevelopment.

Working with partners including Inverclyde Council and Alliance Leisure, the site has been remodelled into a budget gym, with the introduc-tion of X Height vertical walls, a soft

play area and Costa cafe outlet.The aim of the project was to

increase overall activity and partici-pation levels among local residents, as well as securing the future of the facility by making it sustainable long term.

Inverclyde Leisure chief executive Kieron Vango said: “The refurbish-ment programme has helped gener-ate local jobs within the area and as we grow the business, so will employ-ment in Inverclyde.

“The centre is a great addition to Inverclyde Leisure’s portfolio and helps build on previous projects from our business plan.”

The new facilities have already been

well received by local people, accord-ing to head of leisure and community facilities David McCorkindale, who told Workout the gym is set to reach 1800 new members since opening on February 1.

He added: “The new Ravenscraig Activity Centre will further reduce the barriers to exercise and general fun activity by introducing a more afford-able fitness option to the area. This links closely to our company mission statement of ‘getting people active.’

“The recent changes offer some-thing unique that has rejuvenated Inverclyde and benefited the local community offering a new innova-tion.

“The centre sits adjacent to a busy primary school and the largest sec-ondary school estate in Inverclyde and we have seen more school chil-dren getting active by engaging with the schools, clubs and nurseries, changing activity behaviours by offering free trials and open days to encourage low cost activity.

”The feedback from the commun-ity, customers and parents has been overwhelming with regards to the changes and uptake in party activ-ities.

“At Ravenscraig, we anticipate to see a growth of around £200,000 that will be reinvested in leisure facilities as we diversify our range of activities.”

WARRINGTON Borough Council has approved plans for a £1.5m neighbourhood hub development in Bewsey and Dallam.

Councillors have given the green light to a planning application, sub-

mitted by neighbourhood wellbeing company LiveWire, to develop an integrated community facility.

Construction on the project is set to start later this year, with the first phase opening in 2017.

£1.5m development approved by Council

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Customers encouraged to work out outdoors Westcroft Triathlon Club (left), who train at Westcroft Leisure Centre. Everyone Active is encouraging its customers to try some of its outdoor activities.

By Christina Eccles

EVERYONE Active is encouraging customers to make the most of their workouts by trying some of the operator’s outdoor activities.

Innovative projects taking place in Everyone Active facilities include a triathlon club at Westcroft Leisure Centre and outdoor gym and track based activities at Perivale Park Athletics Track.

Bannister Sports Centre, operated by Everyone Active in partnership with Harrow Council, is also tapping into the trend for outdoor fitness by introducing a weekly evening running club.

The Bannister Run Club is open to both members and non-members aged 16 or over, taking place on the centre’s outdoor flood lit running

track. Sessions will be led by a qualified Everyone Active trainer with expertise in group running and include a range of run-specific training drills and sessions.

Everyone Active general manager Laura Griffiths said: “Running is a fantastic form of exercise which can help burn fat, improve your respiratory system and promote better balance plus it’s a great activity to strengthen core and leg muscles.

“The group nature of this run club class is a little like a boot camp and will promote team support and motivate people to push themselves a little bit further than they would normally.

“Turning exercise into a fun social activity means you can also meet like-minded people and make new friends.”

Everyone Active group fitness development manager Mark Talley added: “We recognise that what our members do outside of our centres is just as important to them and a key part of their weekly activity targets, and that outdoor activity is growing in popularity. We believe this represents a huge opportunity for us.

“Our aim is to support these choices through either providing outdoor activities ourselves or to provide support and advice to members preparing for outdoor activities such as running events, swimming events, cycling events, triathlons and adventure races.

“Across many of our centres we either host or run a number of clubs and groups such as running clubs, triathlon clubs, walking groups and cycling clubs, with our centres being

the hub for these activities. We also operate a number of facilities that have outdoor training areas and exercise equipment which adds further variety and choice.

“We are also well positioned to offer support and advice to members involved in outdoor activities and events away from our centres through our Everyone Active Online platform.

“Members have access to a library of training programmes and workouts that can support training for these events, and are delivered digitally for ease and convenience.

“Our platform is also able to collect exercise data from wearable technology that our members may be wearing outside, allowing them to use our platform as an activity hub for everything they do, both inside and outside.”

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A Sheffield woman has raised more than £1,200 for charity after shedding 30 pounds in the gym to complete a cycling challenge for the association that tried to save her dad’s life. Debbie Young conquered a 255 mile bike ride from London to Paris to raise money for the Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association. She trained for six months in the Fitness Unlimited gym at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in preparation for the three-day challenge; completing the bike ride with friend Pip Dean.

By Olivia Taylor

AN ambitious personal trainer is reaping the rewards of following his passion after starting his own community based fitness business.

Ollie Wakefield lost his job as a gym manager at a local health club in 2010, inspiring him to take the leap and fulfil his dream.

He now provides top quality, pay as you go fitness classes in schools and local venues under his brand, Your Community Fitness.

He said: “Owning my own gym has always been something that I’ve wanted to do, but Your Community Fitness has a big following. I’m proving you don’t need to go to the gym to keep fit.”

Your Community Fitness is based in Gloucestershire and users are offered intense classes like HiiT and Kettlercise, as well as more gentle and slower paced classes like yoga and body balance.

Ollie added: “I really focused on the social side of things, I wanted to get everyone inspiring each other.

“It’s great to see people staying behind to chat and motivate each other.”

Ollie’s main priority is to keep people interested in fitness, employing engaging instructors to ensure his clients keep coming back.

He said: “My instructors are my sales team; that’s what it’s always been about for me, engaging people to get them fit and healthy.

“Fitness needs to be fun, all these new fitness trends are there to help attract people, but ultimately it’s the instructor that keeps people coming back for more.”

Children are at the forefront of Ollie’s model, providing schools with free fitness classes in return for use of their facilities.

He added: “We need to start educating the young about fitness and muscles.

You can build yourself up and make yourself better at fitness but with sports in schools half of it is about fitting in.

“That’s why I want to get more children involved in fitness.”

Ollie reaps the rewards after going it alone

MORE than half of Brits treat them-selves to cake, chocolate or alcohol after exercising – but admit their reward often far outweighs the calories they have just worked off, research has claimed.

A study of 2,000 adults found 51 per cent indulge in an unhealthy snack or drink after a work out because they feel they’ve ‘earned it’, with 80 per cent admitting they usually end up consuming more from their ‘reward’

than they actually worked off before-hand.

The poll, by New York Bakery Co, also revealed four in ten adults only exercise to balance the scales and wipe out the calories they have con-sumed through an unhealthy diet, or a busy social life.

A bar of chocolate is the most popu-lar post-gym treat, according to the survey, followed by a glass of wine, a slice of cake and biscuits or cookies.

Brits enjoy a post workout treat

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OPERATOR Pure Gym is looking after the health and safety of members and staff by partnering with Cardiac Science to install automated external defibrillators in each of its outlets.

The manufacturer’s Powerheart G5 AEDs are now in place across network of Pure Gym clubs – helping to safeguard over 650,000 members and some 300 employees in the event of a sudden cardiac arrest.

Since their introduction, three members have received lifesaving defibrillation and CPR following SCA incidents in Sheffield, Edinburgh and

Nottingham.Managing director of Cardiac

Science Shaun Ingram said: “This partnership will ensure that – should any of their members suffer a cardiac arrest – Pure Gym staff will be able to administer lifesaving actions before the ambulance arrives.

“This is a highly encouraging step for Pure Gym to take in terms of staff and member welfare.

“What’s more, it also gives great support to the continued call for the increased installation of AEDs in public places.”

Defibrillators installed in all Pure Gym clubs

Staff with one of the Cardiac Science Powerheart G5 AEDs that has been installed.

By Olivia Taylor

TWO fitness loving sisters are provid-ing people with a fun way to exercise by teaching their classes together.

Twins Chloe and Francesca Townsend, 23, from Essex have always been interested in fitness – and they believe that teaching classes together provides clients with more motivation.

The Townsend twins do their best to cater for every type of fitness fan pro-viding classes like Zumba, Tone and Trim and Nifty Fifties for the more mature exerciser.

Chloe said: “Our unique relationship allows us to offer a different and fun approach when teaching, which we have been told gives our customers a whole new experience in fitness training.”

Now the duo are looking to further their fitness careers by providing personal training as well as exercise classes.

And after discovering the benefits they felt when working out together or in groups, the twins have devised a partner workout to show exercising can be more fun in pairs.

Chloe added: “We’d love to go down the personal training route. Me and my sister are really close and we

usually hate using the gym, it’s so much more fun to do it together in the studio with music.

“A lot of people have found it a bit of a challenge but I actually think that’s a good thing. I’d really like to make it into a fitness programme.”

The girls have tried the workout on their clients and are now looking to roll it out on to their exercise time-table and eventually take it to a wider audience.

Chloe added: “I’m quite happy that people enjoy exercising with us, the next step for us is to get the brand bigger, we both want to really prog-ress with it.

“We still need to find a name, we’re very much in the early stages.”

Teaching classes together raises clients’ motivation, fitness loving twins claim

Twins Chloe and Francesca Townsend.

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Academy launched to help industry deliver wellbeing servicesBy Christina Eccles

A SPECIALIST training academy has been developed to provide fitness professionals with the knowledge and skills needed to deliver a fully round-ed wellbeing service to their clients.

Viavi was set up seven years ago as a private client health management business, looking after every aspect of an individual’s health – from screen-ing early markers of disease to per-sonalised lifestyle planning.

Following its success, the company is now branching out with Viavi Academy; an offshoot from the core Viavi business, which aims to educate a range of professionals – including those in the fitness industry – who they feel can deliver wellbeing servi-ces to a broader audience.

Executive director at Viavi Oliver Patrick explained: “The professionals we feel can and should be delivering wellbeing services in the UK are fit-ness professionals.

“However, we need to provide fit-ness professionals with the clinical knowledge, technical skills, profes-sional skills and commercial mind-set to make wellbeing services worth-while.

“The Viavi Academy is providing skills that allow fitness professionals to deliver services to a new audience and in a new environment. Namely that is lifestyle services to people out-side of the traditional gym or fitness location.”

Oliver also told Workout those undergoing Viavi Academy training will have access to laboratory and clinical testing not normally permit-ted to fitness professionals directly, with the markers available giving them a new opportunity in client engagement and coaching outcomes.

He added: “Perhaps for the first time these tests are being trained from within a clinically governed and evi-

dence based organisation with best practice guidelines – we think that is hugely important step.

“We know there is a need for these services from the ever rising incidences of lifestyle disease, with particularly reference to obesity, sed-entary behaviour and stress related ill health.

“At present we don’t see an over-arching lifestyle specialist practi-tioner, one to whom you can go for fitness advice but also standardised nutrition, stress, sleep and self/home-monitoring advice.

“To have so many individual specialists is not needed for most people’s basic needs. We see an up-skilled fitness professional as the jack of all trades, master of one – well-being.

“Giving fitness professionals a broader skill set will give them greater fee earning capacity in the short term but I hope also greater longevity in staying true to what they love and remaining client facing for as long as possible – without having to go into ‘management’ to earn more money.”

Oliver Patrick

Thousands of runners turned out to complete the Inverness Half Marathon and its accom-panying 5k Fun Run. Superstitions about completing a 13.1-mile race on the 13th day of the month did not deter runners from all over the UK from turning up to take part.By doing so, they helped to raise thousands of pounds for good causes, including the event’s official charity, Highland Hospice.

Photo credit: Paul Campbell

12Welcome to WorkOut Weigh In – it’s your chance to have your say and share your views on industry issues. You can email us at ce@scriptmedia.co.uk or you can message us on Facebook or Twitter.

This month’s top Tweets...@minimisegroup: Funding #energyefficiency projects in #gyms article by @charlieogilvie in latest @WorkOutUK

@elevatearena: Read more about #Elevate2016 in the latest issue of @WorkOutUK – the arena of exercise, health and performance.

@chellejones315: @ChristinaEccles looking good in your pic with @damekellyholmes in @WorkOutUK #girlpower

@gym_hub: Huge thanks to @WorkOutUK magazine for covering our #CIMAwards nomination in the March edition! #NotAllGymsAreEqual

@TownsendTwins: Great chat with the @WorkOutUK Magazine! Looking forward to sharing our fitness ideas and workouts with you.

@serendipity_gym: Just submitted our nomination for @FitnessAwards with @WorkOutUK fingers crossed for us ladies!

@form_leeds: @WorkOutUK really looking forward to seeing the piece on @form_leeds written by @ChristinaEccles

@one2onefitness: Brilliant little article for One2one Fitness in @WorkOutUK Thank you for the inclusion – everyone go check it out!

Picture of the month

WHAT does being a part of the com-munity mean to you?

Do you offer free classes, organise charity events or fun days or perhaps you are a hub where locals call in for a coffee and a chat as well as a workout?

All of these things, plus much more, can be so important to members – and rewarding for the gyms who organise them – so it’s always great for us to hear from clubs which are leading the way.

This issue, we chat to gyms which reveal what community means to them, starting with long standing Aberdeen facility, The Warehouse Health Club.

You can read the feature on page 18 where we find out why giving some-thing back to the city is more import-ant to the team than making a large profit and how over the years it has become a place where members have turned into friends.

Our front page story this month also focuses on a fitness project designed to help the community.

Jelly Fitness’ quest to create a fully accessible gym will get a massive boost if they can pull off a crowd-

funding campaign to raise the money.

It’s good to see them taking the initiative to turn their dreams into reality and we wish them luck in getting the business off the ground. We’re looking forward to discovering how they get on over the coming months.

We’re also still looking to hear from gyms which have been an integral part of their communities for many years for our feature on some of the country’s oldest gyms.

If you have been in business for 20 years or more, we’d love to hear from you about the challenges you’ve faced along the way, your biggest achievements and the secrets of your success at standing the test of time.

The oldest club we’ve heard from so far is celebrating its 60th birthday this year, which is a great achievement!

We can’t wait to hear if can anyone beat that, so get in touch and let us know!

Enjoy the issue and, as always, if you read anything you’d like to comment on or want to tell us what you’re up to in your club, we’d be happy to hear from you.

Editor’s Comment

Follow us on Twitter @WorkOutUK or contact us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/workoutmagazine

This month’s hot topic:

With January now seeming like a distant memory, how have you managed to keep the New Year momentum going in your club? What are you doing to attract new members and how are you keeping existing ones happy? Send your answers to ce@scriptmedia.co.uk or contact us via Twitter or Facebook. We’ll print the best responses next issue.

Christina Eccles

Ladies only gym Curves in Wokingham has celebrated its 10th birthday. Staff and members gathered at the club to mark the milestone and celebrate the important contribution the club has made to the lives of local women. Owner Bev Gellard said: “I have been on the most wonderful 10-year journey of meeting the most amazing women and can honestly say I have loved every minute of it. We have the most amazing and loyal staff that help and inspire every member that exercises at Curves to help them reach their goals. It was an absolute delight to celebrate this special occasion with the lovely women at Curves.”

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INDUSTRY expert Cody Sipe will be running an event prior to this year’s FitPro LIVE which focuses on func-tional ageing training.

The workshop teaches fitness pro-fessionals how to train older clients more effectively in order to maximise what is most important to them: their functional longevity.

For fitness professionals trained in Pilates, yoga, kettlebells, CrossFit, martial arts, boot camp, sandbags, free weights or bodyweight, this course demonstrates how to use these methods in a safer and more effective manner with older clientele.

Cody said: “Treating older adults as one group, and therefore training them all the same, is one of the big-gest mistakes a trainer can make.

“The ageing process does not affect everyone the same way and is con-tingent upon many factors, such as genetics, chronic disease conditions and lifestyle (nutrition, physical activ-ity, etc.).”

The workshop takes place in London on April 7.

Expert Cody to host workshop

Cody Sipe

PT and her client launch fitness clothing rangeBy Christina Eccles

A PERSONAL trainer and her client have teamed up to launch a new fitness clothing range after they identified a gap in the market for urban style training gear at affordable prices.

MeVMe – created by trainer Jade Godfrey and client Kate Swinson – was inspired by Kate’s own fitness journey over the last 12 months, which has seen her progress from an ordinary gymgoer to achieving fourth place in her first ever physique competition with the Natural Physique Association.

The collection was unveiled at a special event with a fashion show and nutrition and fitness tips for visitors from Jack Gibson, owner of Fitness Worx gym in Warwickshire where Kate trains.

Kate said: “Just over a year ago I started an 80-day lean body plan with Fitness Worx.

“I was 35 and had never been happy with my body and I finally wanted to do something to change it.

“Proud of my new figure and inspired and motivated by my new found love of strength training I wanted to buy some new workout clothes that fitted me well and looked a little different from the usual

training gear. “Anything that I did like was

only available in either the USA or Australia, so I decided I could do something about it.

“I mentioned it during a training session with Jade and we instantly agreed that we would collaborate and create our own range of fitness wear and accessories for women.

“I met Jade at the start of my plan, she was one of my personal trainers who would motivate and train me

through it. “Although we are both mums we

feel our time in the gym is our own, a chance to be ourselves and forget the stresses of everyday life, and so our one agreement was that although for women, the brand would have a strong visual appearance (not girly), that captures the true struggles and efforts that training takes when you truly want to succeed.”

The pair’s first collection, the Jet Range, was designed and manufactured in the UK and includes a body and leggings, as well as accessories such as training gloves.

The products are available to buy online, in Fitness Worx gyms and at pop up shops at fitness events around the country.

Jade added: “ME v ME was born out of a love for training but was inspired by the toughest competition in life.

“We believe that when you stop competing with others and start competing with yourself an amazing journey begins as you realise that with Motivation, Effort, Vision and Mind you will achieve the Effect you desire.”

Kate and Jade are currently working on the design and samples for their new collection that will be launched in May, and another one in the autumn.

Kate Swinson and Jade Godfrey modelling their clothing range.

16

MORE than 60 runners took part in a charity race around the runways of Manchester Airport, raising almost £5,000 for two charities.

The 6km race was organised by Manchester Airport and British Airways to raise money for their two chosen charities – CLIC Sargent and Flying Start.

As well as the race a family fun day at the airport’s Runway Visitor Park also helped with the donations.

Bolton’s very own TV and radio personality, Vernon Kay was on hand

to present the prizes to the lucky winners and posed for photos with fans throughout the event.

Richard Keep, aged 33, from Birmingham was the fastest around the course completing it in just 20 minutes and eight seconds.

His efforts saw him win a pair of return long haul flights with British Airways.

Richard said: “I couldn’t believe it when I crossed the line first. It was a tough race with lots of competition, but such a fun and friendly event to

take part in. “The long haul flights are an

incredible prize, I’m sure there are going to be lots of people wanting to join me for the trip.”

Matthew Best, aged 14, was the fastest junior to get around the course and bagged himself four tickets to see Derren Brown at the Lowry Theatre.

While the runners were being put through their paces out on the course hundreds of families enjoyed a fun day at the airport’s Runway Visitor

Park. Visitors were able to get a guided

tour of Concorde, while children were able to take part in mini races inside the hangar and have their faces painted.

Vernon added: “I was delighted to be able to attend Run around the Runway and provide a helping hand for two great charities.

“I couldn’t believe how quick Richard managed to get round the course and he was a very deserving winner of the flights.”

Manchester Airport and British Airways are teaming up again to give people the chance to run a 6km race around its busy runways and raise cash for charity, with the Run Around The Runway event. Workout reporter Dominic Musgrave took part and met up with a familiar face.

TV personality and runners help to raise money at Runway Run

By Dominic Musgrave

I’D BEEN looking for a goal to work towards, and the Runway Run seemed perfect when the press release dropped into my Inbox at the beginning of the year.

But the decision was swiftly taken out of my hands by my younger brother, whom I forwarded the email to, asking him if he fancied it.

He soon responded to let me know that he had filled in the online entry form, which gave me two months to be race ready.

I’d done numerous runs before, including the Great North Run and Sheffield Half Marathon on several occasions, but that was a number of years ago.

Most recently it’s been ‘fair weather’ leisurely weekend jogs that I’ve done, combined with trips to my local gym two or three times a week, that have made up my fitness regime.

If I’m being honest I’ve never been a fan of treadmills, and doubt I ever will be, but I did make a concerted effort to do more cardio work in the gym – building up from five minutes at first up to 20 minutes in the days leading up to the race itself.

I also made more of an effort to drag myself out of bed at weekends, which at times wasn’t easy given the cold, wet weather.

All was going well with my

preparations, and I was fairly confident that I’d get round the 6km course, until three weeks before the race when the office cold that everyone seemed to have finally struck.

It knocked me for six and try as I might I could not shake it off. I even tried ‘sweating it out’ by going out for a run, but that turned out to be a bad idea as less than five minutes in I had a coughing fit and quickly realised that it wasn’t going to happen. I trudged back up the hill feeling completely disheartened.

Once I had finally got rid of the cold the last week or so of preparations went well.

The weekend prior to the race I’d done two great practice runs with my brother despite the thick snow that had blanketed South Yorkshire, and come race day I was ready.

The evening before the race the competitors were sent an email to say that the course had been shortened to two laps of a 3km course due to part of it being underwater, and on the day itself that changed again to three laps of a 2km course.

Following registration the competitors were treated to a warm-up with ‘King of Disco’ Lionel Vinyl, who compered the day and got everybody going.

Everyone I had spoken to about

the race had responded with ‘at least it will be flat’ – how wrong they were. The first kilometre took in a towpath by the canal, but then we turned a corner and were greeted with a dreaded hill which sapped all energy out of my legs and took my breath way.

On the third lap I practically had to crawl myself to the top but, unlike some of my competitors, I’m proud to say that I didn’t have to walk.

As always there was a great camaraderie among the runners both before and after the race, and having completed it I’ve definitely

caught the running bug again.Having my brother running with

me was great too, and that sibling rivalry certainly drove us both on.

For the record we surprised ourselves by managing to finish in the top handful of runners in a time of just over 25 minutes.

But the highlight for my wife was having a selfie with Vernon Kay!n A special mention too for the Mio Fuse wristband that I’ve used over the last few weeks to track my daily movements. Combined with the Mio Go app, it proved to be an excellent gadget.

Dominic Musgrave and his brother Christian at the end of the run.

Taking part gave me the running bug back

17

Looking to entice new members into the gym? Need to retain existing members? �en KETTFusion, THE award winning �tness class has all the answers!

KETTFusion is di�erent and it works! �e format is unique and hasn’t been seen anywhere else in the UK.

�e secret is the use of lightweight kettlebells performed to retro music in an aerobic format to improve cardio strength and stamina, combined with martial arts exercises performed to tribal rhythms to improve balance, �tness and �exibility.

With this innovative class you’ll boost retention and member motivation and they’ll keep on coming back for more. �e results are astounding!

Designed for all �tness abilities, the KETTFusion format can easily be adapted to suit all the members in the class. A complete beginner can work out next to a seasoned class member and still get an e�ective full body workout.

Want your instructors to teach KETTFusion? Our next instructor training courses will be on:

• 22nd May at Velocity Fitness in Bournemouth

• 12th June at Bankside Health & Fitness in London

�e price for the one-day training course is £190 but if you book in advance we o�er an early bird booking price of £160.

To book yourself or one of your instructors onto a course, simply visit www.kettfusion.com click on the ‘become an instructor’ tab and choose which date you’d like to attend.

And now for something completely different!

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UK FITNESS SCENE18A long-standing independent gym in Aberdeen is facing increased competition head on by looking to focus on an untapped market and further push out its core messages of customer care and quality service. Christina Eccles found out more.

The extensive weights room (left) and the gym (right) at Warehouse Health Club in Aberdeen. Photo credit: Frances R Photography

SITUATED in an iconic city centre building, Warehouse Health Club started life as a grain store, but has existed as a fitness facility for over 30 years.

Initially focusing on the bodybuilding market, the club has always kept up with the times; changing and expanding to offer more equipment, classes and a wider range of facilities – including a swimming pool and sauna – as new trends hit the industry and customers wanted more.

Current owner Kerry Smith has worked at the club since 1995; stepping up at the request of members to take the reins in 2007 when the business was under threat of closure.

Since then, Kerry and her team have worked tirelessly to turn around the club’s fortunes and attract new people through the doors – with

members helping out for free with refurbishment works to get it back on its feet.

But while the offering has changed over the years, the gym’s family values and a firm focus on the community has always remained.

Kerry explained: “A few of the members asked if I would speak to the owner about keeping it open.

“We had to do whatever we could. We stuck at it. People worked for nothing and we had to do that for a couple of years. We asked people to help us. If not, we would have closed down.”

Although the club still remains an integral part of the community it serves, unfortunately times are tough.

The downturn in the local oil industry, plus the arrival of low cost gyms offering membership for just £10.99 per month are making things difficult for the independents. But

Kerry is determined not to give up without a fight.

She added: “It’s hard times in Aberdeen at the moment. The oil downturn is hitting every gym hard.

“It’s a real struggle. We’ve had to cut our costs, but we always maintain our service.”

As competition intensifies, the business, which currently has about 500 members, has had to think creatively and focus on its strengths.

Regular community events – including a recent bake sale and ‘class-athon’ which raised £2,000 for charity – plus offering free classes to specialist populations is helping to position them as a club which really cares.

Members have also become friends; with trips away, local walks and visits to industry events all well attended.

Kerry added: “The staff know everyone’s name and every summer

I go on holiday with a group of members – last year there were 12 of us.”

Over the coming months, the gym will be looking to specialise in the over 50s market, using the skills of the team and their strong customer service skills to promote the fact this is a place where all ages are welcomed and looked after.

Community links will also be strengthened further with a new partnership with Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust.

Kerry added: “We’re actively involved in the community. If that never makes me a rich person, I’m not bothered.

“I’ve always said I want to give something back.

“I’ve managed to get so much from the community; I realise how lucky I am. If I can give something back, I want to.”

Community friendly gym has to think creatively in tough times

The swimming pool and sauna (left) and studio (right) at Warehouse Health Club in Aberdeen.

UK FITNESS SCENE20

South Downs Leisure staff with the sugar mound to represent the weightloss.

Popular challenge has its biggest final weigh-in yetSOUTH Downs Leisure’s popular Weight Loss and Lifestyle Challenge has finished with its biggest final weigh-in yet.

A record 392 local people signed-up for the free ‘New Year, new you’ six-week challenge back in January, losing a combined 40 stone in all, with prizes awarded to the biggest losers.

Participants took part individually or in teams with prizes on offer including a meal for two at local award-winning seafront restaurant, Casa Ciro’s, and Go-Karting.

As well as goals like weightloss, the challenge also looked at sustainable changes to lifestyles and attitudes, such as introducing exercise into a

daily routine and focusing on good dietary habits.

During the awards’ presentation evening the equivalent weight lost in sugar was stacked to emphasise just how much weight had been shed by the challengers.

Weightloss and Lifestyle Challenge organiser and fitness manager, Julia Gleeson, said: “I am delighted so many local people took part and thrilled by their fantastic achievement, losing all this weight.

“We thought we’d represent their weightloss with a sugar mound as it’s one of the greatest contributors of weight gain.

“Well done to everyone who took part.”

DAVID Lloyd Edinburgh celebrated a group of its inspirational older members with a special brunch event.

24 members aged 80 and over who regularly use the club for activities including gym sessions, tennis, swimming or group exercise classes attended the event, including oldest member Jan Ridgeway, who at 89 years old is still a regular gym user.

General manager Michelle Chambers-Cran said: “Our members thoroughly enjoyed their brunch followed by home baking and it was evident from the conversation that the club is also clearly their social

group. “Many of them joined nearly 16

years ago when the club first opened and unfortunately a few of them have now lost their partners, therefore making the social interaction even more important.

“It was great that many of their own children enjoyed their club growing up and it is with pride that they now bring their grandchildren.

“The response from our Octogenarians was very appreciative and other members all commented on how inspirational these members are!”

Club celebrates with brunchDavid Lloyd Edinburgh’s older members enjoy their brunch.

UK FITNESS SCENE 21

The digital age of fitness ...By Dave Wright

THERE was a study in Oxford that defined that there are three lifestyle factors (smoking/ diet/ inactivity), responsible for four chronic diseases (lung disease/ heart disease/ diabetes/ many cancers) that are responsible for 50 per cent of the deaths in the world.

They are called NCDs – non communicable diseases. You can’t actually catch type two diabetes.

And that’s where we lead into the need for better interventions such as technology and fitness.

The sport and physical activity sector has a strong history of utilising technology to monitor and feed back data with areas such as biomechanics and the building of equipment to better service the body.

Indeed the UK has a very strong global reputation of innovative technology in sport with the likes of Loughborough and Sheffield universities.

What has changed how technology has been embraced is the inclusion of two things; the cloud and the mobile smart phone. The phone has been able to collect and process the data in ways never thought possible and the cloud has provided that ability to disseminate that knowledge in milliseconds around the globe.

The funny thing about the mobile is that back in 1983 when it first came out, there was a fear that people would lose touch with one another without seeing the whites of the eyes.

However UGov commissioned a report with UK postal workers and found that there is a new condition called mobophobia, which is the fear of being without your mobile phone be it lose it, battery flat or out of reception.

It apparently affects 60 per cent of

you. Not me. But the whole point as an operator

in this era is the ability to utilise technology – you have to meet the customer where they are.

Because it’s not good enough that there may be 120m active ‘gym goers’, but the fact is that 60m fall out of love with exercise every year.

And unless we embrace the new era of digital fitness, we will be left behind.n Dave Wright is the CEO of CFM (Creative Fitness Marketing), CEO and creator of MYZONE, owner of the Feelgood Fitness and Voyage Fitness Club chains, a former board director of ukactive and founder of the IOU.

With offices in Chicago (US), Nottingham (UK) and Melbourne (Oz), Dave’s companies have worked directly with over 5,000 health clubs across 30 different countries, encouraging people to be more and stay more physically active.

He may be contacted on Dave@myzone.org

Dave Wright

Supplier Life Fitness has partnered with East Leake Leisure Centre to create a fully connected gym for the local community. The dual use site in Loughborough, operated on behalf of Rushcliffe Borough Council and managed by Carillion plc, features a 25m swimming pool, aerobics studio, sports halls and outdoor pitches along with a new fitness suite. The gym features 12 stations from the Life Fitness Insignia Series selectorised strength range, CV stations with the Explore console including FlexStrider Variable-Stride Trainer, plus a selection of free weights. The introduction of connected fitness equipment has enabled members using the LFconnect app to enjoy personalised, interactive workouts and experience the latest in functional training with the new SYNRGY360T fitness system. Operations manager at East Leake Leisure Centre, Stuart Radford, said: “We’re thrilled with the high standard refurbishment and the addition of SYNRGY360 and Explore consoles has created an excitement amongst the membership which we are keen to build on.”

UK FITNESS SCENE22

CalisthenicsUK athlete and CEO Stephen Hughes-Landers will deliver three sessions at the event.

Calisthenics is the new buzz word in the fitness industry – and athlete and CEO of CalisthenicsUK Stephen Hughes-Landers is leading the way. With this type of bodyweight training on the rise, Workout spoke to Stephen ahead of his appearance at this year’s FitPro LIVE.

You launched REPs accredited training in calisthenics for fitness professionals at FitPro LIVE last year. What’s the uptake been like? The sessions at FitPro LIVE were really well received, we had at least 50 people in each workshop and the feedback and engagement was fantastic. It was nice to see such a broad mix of backgrounds ranging from those that had been practising calisthenics for some time to those that were doing band-assisted pull-ups. It just goes to show bodyweight training really does appeal to the whole cross section of fitness instructors and clients.

The popularity of the FitPro sessions definitely carried over to our workshops. We’ve delivered bespoke classes for CrossFit boxes and gyms and our uptake for our REPs recognised courses throughout the country has been great. It’s fantastic there’s a growing community of calisthenics instructors as it means that more and more people are applying this form of training to their workouts.

Why do you think the fitness industry is getting behind calisthenics? The sport is absolutely huge on social media so that’s definitely fuelled the interest from the fitness industry. Instructors, operators and members are seeing videos of people using this form and training and wanting to find out more.

It offers so many different benefits to so many different people. It

enables PTs to be much more flexible with where they can train clients because the client’s bodyweight provides the resistance. Knowing how to adapt the various exercises means they can continually challenge clients of all fitness levels, without being reliant on a gym and weights.

Group sessions are perfect from an operator standpoint because they can be conducted in a variety of environments and don’t require a massive equipment outlay. They also appeal to those that otherwise wouldn’t exercise. With a relatively small amount of training, instructors can deliver varied, engaging sessions to those of all fitness levels.

Because there are so many programming options available to instructors, there’s also plenty of scope for instructors to put their own stamp on sessions and to tailor content to their setting and participants.

We find that participants are also motivated by a sense of achievement that cannot be matched by upping a weight in the gym or using a bigger gear on the bike. Moving from one version of an exercise to the next, getting your first pull up or muscle up, represents a real triumph and the feeling of mastering your own body.

What’s on offer at LIVE 2016?I’m back to deliver three sessions at LIVE 2016. These will look at how to apply calisthenics to small group training, as well as how to first introduce bodyweight training to

clients and the fundamentals of this form of training. Later this year, we will be delivering sessions throughout the country as part of the LIVE Tour.

We will deliver a half day workshop at each venue, looking at the fundamentals of bodyweight training and how to progress towards some of the iconic moves. As these workshops are a little longer, it will allow participants to get more involved as well as gain four REPs CPD points.

What can we expect to see from CalisthenicsUK this year? We’ve partnered with HAGS SMP to design, build and install a range of bar setups. We’re really excited to be able to put our own stamp on the look and feel of workout parks in the UK. The provision of more bespoke facilities can only help to grow the sport, which is central to our aims for 2016.

Given the popularity of our workshops and instructor courses we’ve expanded our offering to include two different courses for instructors/PTs and three courses for enthusiasts. The instructor courses are REPs recognised so participants will be able to claim CPD points for attending.

We’re finding more and more people are wanting to make the progression from training to competing. In response, the workshops for enthusiasts will help prepare participants for competing, focusing on the key judging criteria; statics, dynamics and combos.

Stephen to showcase calisthenics’ benefits at FitPro LIVE show

UK FITNESS SCENE26

Tennis fans will be given a once in a lifetime opportunity to get up close and personal with one of the sport’s most famous trophies when it makes its way to a Warrington leisure facility. The Davis Cup will visit Birchwood Leisure and Tennis Complex on Friday April 22 as part of a whirlwind tour of the UK, co-ordinated by the Lawn Tennis Association to celebrate the British team’s historic cup win last November. As well as having the chance to take a photograph with the trophy, Warrington schools and residents will also be able to try their hand at some on court activities including touch tennis, cardio tennis and free play. And as part of the Davis Cup legacy, Birchwood Leisure and Tennis Complex will receive its share of 10,000 free rackets offered to local venues by the LTA to encourage an increase in junior participation.

TONBRIDGE and Malling Leisure Trust has been voted one of the top performing lei-sure trusts in the UK by Sport England’s national quality scheme Quest.

TMLT, which delivers sport and leisure facilities on behalf of Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, was named

the top performing organisa-tion with two to 10 facilities 2015 by Quest, at its annual awards in Loughborough.

To achieve the accolade, the trust successfully completed a two year assessment process, which included a mystery visit and two-day assessment in year one and a second mystery

visit and one-day review in year two.

Tonbridge Pool was also recognised at the awards. The centre was just one of seven facilities nationwide to gain Quest Stretch accreditation last year – the body’s tough-est assessment – from 720 assessed sites.

Trust is named one of UK’s best by Quest

By Olivia Taylor

A FITNESS team from Harrogate have lifted a million kilos in record time, raising more than £10,000 for Yorkshire Cancer Research.

Originally expected to take 24 hours, the team smashed their target in just eight hours and 20 minutes, with members lifting their own body weight more than a thousand times to reach the goal.

The challenge was organised by Shaun Hallett and Ollie Holtam, two of the town’s most experienced personal trainers, to celebrate the launch of their new business thebodydocs and took place at thebodydocs studio.

Shaun said: “Our original intention was to show people that lifting weights can be for everyone, and we are so pleased that the whole team met their individual challenges.

“We’re still collecting dona-tions but it looks like we have well exceeded our fundraising target of £10,000. As the first thebodydocs event it’s really set the standard.”

The Million Kilo Challenge included squatting, deadlifting and bench pressing and each participant prepared for months beforehand with personalised programmes.

The team was sponsored by health food business ÜGOT, compression sports equipment

provider SKINS, specialist retail-er Up and Running, clothing provider HPE Clothing and independent fitness clothing shop Fit Harrogate.

Ollie added: “Putting together this type of event was always going to be a step into the unknown. We weren’t even 100 per cent sure that we could complete it ourselves.

“We’re delighted with how the day went and very thankful to our sponsors and those who donated individually.

“It was tough and we are all sore but knowing that the money raised will be used by Yorkshire Cancer Research to directly help people makes the pain worthwhile.”

Charity lift raises over £10,000thebodydocs team celebrate their successful million kilos challenge and the launch of the new business.

UK FITNESS SCENE 27

Entries are already flooding in for this year’s National Fitness Awards, with clubs expressing their excitement at getting involved on social media. Keep up to date with the latest news or ask us any NFA related questions on Twitter @FitnessAwards. We’re always happy to help and are looking forward to reading more of your entries over the coming months. For more information turn to page 35.

GYM managers have been offered complimentary trade passes to attend BodyPower’s industry and preview day, giving them the chance to learn from and network with other industry professionals.

With over 400 leading global brands and 90,000 fitness enthusiasts set to occupy six halls at the NEC from May 13-15, 2016 is set to be another huge event for CEO Nick Orton and his team.

As with previous years, the Friday is billed as a dedicated Industry and preview day. Although still open to the public, Friday at BodyPower is traditionally dedicated to fitness professionals with purchasing responsibility to network with other key decision makers and influencers.

Those with a purchasing responsibility in a fitness centre, health club, independent gym or fitness business can apply until April 29 via the BodyPower website for a

complimentary pass for the Friday.BodyPower CEO Nick Orton said:

“We offer a free one-day pass to managers, owners, directors and those with purchasing influence in fitness businesses.

“It’s our commitment to this industry that we support the workforce, and we’re the best platform in the country to network and meet with leading brands and buyers.

For brands, we’re ensuring that the right people are in front of them on a dedicated day for networking and for professionals it’s a great chance for buyers to see products and services in use by consumers or to try out for themselves in an inspiring environment that captures the positivity of fitness.

“I hope people take up our offer and we see another influx of industry figureheads at BodyPower in May as we’ve always seen in the past.”

Free trade passes for managers available

KEEN tennis fan The Duchess of Cambridge joined a group of parents, teachers, coaches and sports leaders to help deliver a tennis themed session to a group of local primary school children.

Tennis on the Road welcomed The Duchess to Craigmount High School in Edinburgh to experience a taster of the grassroots programme developed by Judy Murray.

From a rackets warm up, to bean bag tennis, balloon rallies, and relay races, The Duchess got stuck into all of the fun activities, designed to develop the skills needed to play a sport like tennis.

Tennis on the Road specifically aims to bring tennis to communities that have limited existing activity, and builds a workforce of local people to ensure everyone has the opportunity to enjoy the sport.

Judy said: “We were thrilled to welcome The Duchess of Cambridge to our session in Edinburgh and hope that she found the afternoon useful and a lot of fun.

“Tennis on the Road is about inspiring and supporting parents,

teachers, volunteers and coaches to increase participation and grow the game in their backyards or whatever space they have.

“You don’t need a tennis court to get kids started.

“It’s great to now have the LTA supporting the programme and I can’t wait for another action packed year on the road.”

Duchess of Cambridge joins Judy Murray at first Tennis on the Road session of 2016

Judy Murray with The Duchess of Cambridge.

UK FITNESS SCENE28Advertiser’s announcement

Thousands of the world’s most respected organisations implement lean thinking. Applying the concept to gyms would prevent waste and enhance value, says Rory McGown, founder of GYMetrix

The five steps of the lean cycle1. Specify value from the customer’s view.2. Identify all the steps in the value stream, eliminating, whenever possible, anything that does not create value.3. Eliminate anything that will stop the customer being able to easily flow through their value stream.4. Enable customers to ‘pull’ value from the system, preventing a waste of resources that customers choose not to pull.5. Begin the process again and continue it until a state of perfection is reached in which perfect value is created with no waste.

LEAN is not a cost-cutting exercise, but a way of looking at the value a business delivers for its customers.

A lean organisation understands what its customers’ value and focuses its key processes to continuously increase it, whilst at the same time removing waste.

Identifying valueLean Thinking is all about focusing on customer Value.

GYMetrix is focusing on the equipment that customers value, and this is done in a number of ways. Firstly by analysing the total time customers spend using each piece of equipment.

Time using equipment is a proxy for the value the equipment is adding to customers. If they do not use it they do not value it. GYMetrix also asks customers what is their favourite three equipment types are to support the data from the sensors.

Map the value streamThe value stream in Lean Thinking is looking at all of the different steps in the customers journey that are adding value. This is done in order. So start with the journey to the gym, does the location add value because it is conveniently located, then getting parked, going through reception, getting changed, are there lockers available?

On the gym floor the value stream is moving from one piece of equipment to the next. Once the workout is finished when leaving the gym floor can the customer get a shower and after their work outs do they feel good, have they achieved their goals, lost weight etc This is the value

stream for gym customers.

Create flowLean thinking wants the customers to be able to ‘Flow’ through all the steps in their value stream. As soon as a customer cannot ‘Flow’ they stop gaining ‘value’ and can get frustrated. GYMetrix is interested with the ‘flow’ on the gym floor, and as soon as customer cannot use the next piece of equipment they want to use, they cannot get value from the gym and frustration builds.

GYMetrix analyses where customers on a gym floor cannot flow easily because there is not enough equipment and other customers are constantly using it. This is done looking at where the Availability is very low and utilising equipment Heatmaps but also focusing from the surveys where customers say the favourite equipment ‘Is usually busy and it bothers them.’

Establish customer pullThe fitness industry uses a push, rather than a pull model. Currently, it is suppliers and/or operators who decide what equipment goes into a gym, not their customers.

To be lean, operators must

understand what equipment their customers’ value and enable them to ‘pull’ that kit into the gym.

The problem with a push model is customers get equipment they don’t value, which is waste in the business and not ‘Lean’.

In fact, in the vast majority of GYMetrix projects, operators could provide more value to customers with less equipment, if they focused more on just giving the customer what they value and stopped giving them the equipment they don’t use and don’t value.

Seeking perfectionBy going lean, gyms could generate huge increases in value for their customers by enabling them to pull in equipment and services they value, while removing equipment bottlenecks that stop them flowing through their value stream.

At the same time operators could increase profits by reducing their spend on equipment and services that add little or no value to their customers.

By thinking lean, gym owners and operators can enhance the value for their customers and prevent waste to benefit their bottom line overall.

Think lean to banish waste and enhance value ...

Rory McGown

INDOOR CYCLING AND ROWING 29

A LEEDS gym owner has completed a gruelling 24-hour rowathon, raising over £3,000 for charity in the process.

Director of Primal Gym Phill Wright covered a total distance of 213,202m on an indoor rowing machine in 24 hours, with his efforts raising money for Heart Research UK.

He said: “I’m overwhelmed by the level of support I’ve had. I was never on my own – there were always at least two people there with me.

“The constant encouragement from people in the gym and comments

received online were what kept me going through during the darkest hours of the night.

“I knew it was going to be challenging and very uncomfortable for me, but it’s not about my discomfort – it’s about raising as much money as possible for a really worthwhile cause.

“We smashed the fundraising target. I thought £2,500 was fairly ambitious but we’ve managed to raise over £3,250 for Heart Research UK, which is phenomenal.”

Phill completes charity rowathonDirector of Primal Gym Phill Wright raised over £3,250 for Heart Research UK.

INDIVIDUALS and teams of indoor cyclists will come together next month for an all-day sponsored ride for the MND Association, with club music provided by top DJs.

Organised by entrepreneur Steven Smith, who lost his mum Genifer to MND, the Rave and Ride event at Stoke Park on May 14, could also break two World Records due to its scale and the numbers expected to take part.

Steven has already raised £115,000 for the MND Association from previous Rave and Rides, as well as other fundraising adventures.

He hopes this event will push his fundraising total to over £160,000, helping the Association to fund the work of two PhD students, based at

its MND Care and Research Centre at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital.

He said: “I will not stop until a cure is found for MND. That is my motivation and that is what keeps me going.

“If I could fund a scientist who helps to find the cure, that would be amazing.”

The event will also be the official launch of the new Star Trac Studio Series of indoor cycles from Core Health and Fitness.

Managing director of Core Health and Fitness John Gamble added: “We are so pleased to be able to support such a worthy cause.

“Steven is passionate about the charity and we are delighted to be on board.”

Entrepreneur Steven Smith, who has organised the all-day event in aid of MND Association.

World records could go at Rave and Ride event

INDOOR CYCLING AND ROWING30

By Christina Eccles

A FORWARD thinking leisure trust is achieving success with its innovative group exercise timetable, which includes both instructor led and virtual indoor cycling classes.

Inspiring Healthy Lifestyles introduced freestyle indoor cycling, plus Les Mills RPM live and virtual classes at Howe Bridge Leisure Centre in Wigan as part of a drive to expand its health and fitness offering, following a £2.9m investment.

Development manager – health and fitness Emma Howard said: “It’s going really well. so much so we rolled out the virtual offer at another centre – Leigh Leisure Centre – in December. It’s great added value to the membership.”

According to Emma, the virtual classes also act as a great introduction into group cycling for people who may feel slightly intimidated by a live class or want more flexibility on session times.

She added: “The virtual classes are helping to drive attendance through memberships and also attract new audiences who can try them before they commit.

“Investment in equipment and the virtual offer, coupled with training and educating staff, has led to a real added benefit.”

Les Mills UK CEO Martin Franklin added: “We are pleased to see the success the team at Wigan have been having with their cycle offering after they took the bold step to exploit the boom that the boutique studios are showing around the country.

“Building a cool cycling brand and producing world-class, research-backed programs takes time, money and energy.

“As well as the fact that cycling is not the only thing operators have to deliver on.

“We are so proud they asked us to help them out with our training and programmes to help power the results they are seeing.”

Group exercise timetable is a hit with Trust

Inspiring Healthy Lifestyles has introduced a range of classes as part of a drive to expand its health and fitness offering.

Wattbike Hub launched with updated featuresTHE creators of Wattbike have launched the updated Wattbike Hub, complete with updated features.

The app is designed to act as a portable personal trainer that users can take with them wherever they go, regardless of whether they’re training at home, in their gym or abroad.

From data collected through fitness tests, the app can suggest suitable workouts, plans and targets matched specifically to the user, which also work to chart progressions over time.

Commercial director at Wattbike Richard Baker said: “There has been a rapid shift in the industry as the value of technology has been recognised.

“Users are increasingly using technology to monitor performance and goals. Consumers are now savvier than ever before about what they want from their fitness and trackable data. Our updated app provides

a service that the consumers now demand; full tests, workouts and programmes to assess, plan and track fitness all in one place – the palm of their hand.”

The Wattbike Hub app is designed to act as a portable personal trainer

Pulse Fitness has added a technologically advanced new bike to its product portfolio.The Trixter Virtual Reality is the world’s first fitness gaming bike to showcase facial recognition to log user workouts. It gives a unique 360° virtual cycling experience over an array of virtual cycling environments including medieval forests, mountain lakes and tropical islands. The new model features real feel gears, handlebars, pedals and seat sensors and a 23-inch screen. It showcases VR software and VR headset to give a totally immersive cycling experience and facial recognition to store results centrally, track progress and allow users to race against themselves or others. Pulse is also able to fit existing Trixter bikes so they become newly fitted with VR capability, with all service issues and software downloads managed remotely via the cloud.

INDOOR CYCLING AND ROWING 33

The 2012 Big Spin had 180 bikes and raised £7,000 for charity.

Charity event gearing up for successA CHARITY indoor cycling event organised by a New Forest gym is gearing up for success after securing backing from other local fitness facilities and businesses keen to help.

The Big Spin concept started in 2009 with 70 bikes, before growing in 2010 to 150 bikes. The last one in 2012 had 180 bikes – and raised £7,000 for charity.

Following on from these past successes, this year the Big

Spin is set to be even bigger and better, with over 200 bikes available and four, 45 minute sessions taking place on May 22 at Totton Health and Leisure.

Health and fitness manager at Totton Health and Leisure Toby White said: “Our target this year is to raise in excess of £10,000 for four local charities within the Southampton and New Forest area.

“What is unique about our

charity event is that all the entry fees go straight to the charities.

“We also encourage each participant to raise sponsorship money and we have an amazing raffle on the day which will have some amazing prizes which have been donated by local businesses. The event wouldn’t be possible without the help of some of our neighbouring gyms who assist us in lending us their spin bikes for the day.”

Staff at Lifestyle Fitness Burnley ran, cycled and rowed their way around the country without leaving their gym – raising almost £300 for charity. 15 members of staff covered the distance of every Lifestyle Fitness club in the UK, totalling 1,700 miles. The money was donated to Sport Relief.

Life Fitness installs state-of-the-art gymLIFE Fitness has equipped the fitness suite at Ramside Hall in Durham, following an invest-ment by the hotel of £16m.

This included the installation of the North East’s latest luxury spa and follows the creation of a second 18-hole championship golf course in 2014.

The facility now boasts a state-of-the-art Life Fitness gym and two studios, offering over 40 classes and gym workshops, one-to-one inductions and regular fitness support from staff.

The major installation has seen the introduction of Insignia

Series Strength Range, the Discover SE Cardio Range and 15 Lifecycle GX group exercise bikes.

General manager of Ramside Hall Spa and Leisure, Anthony Woodhouse, said: “We felt strongly that to follow our lux-ury ethos it was the right time to introduce some magnificent gym facilities alongside our new indulgent spa.

“We believe that this was an investment worth making for our members, day visitors and hotel guests alike.

“We selected Life Fitness for

the quality of their equipment which perfectly complements the hotel’s premium and profes-sional offering.”

For more information visit www.lifefitness.co.uk

INDOOR CYCLING AND ROWING34

INDIVIDUALS from 52 countries race over 1,000m in the inaugural World Rowing Indoor Sprints.

This was the first internationally sanctioned virtual rowing event of its kind and it attracted more than 3,800 competitors.

There were 118 entrants from a race in Guatemala, as well as 27 fishermen from Tanzania who had never sat on a rowing machine before. Nearly 400 athletes from Great Britain took part, including Justine Reston of Port Sunlight, Merseyside, who as well as winning the Women’s 40-49 Lwt event also set a new world record for her age category of 3:29.9.

FISA president Jean-Christophe Rolland said: “We are very pleased with the level of participation in this first edition of the World Rowing Indoor Sprints.

“Indoor rowing is a great way to engage people around the world and to encourage them to participate in the sport of rowing.

“The World Rowing Indoor Sprints, in collaboration with Concept2, is one of a series of steps we are making to facilitate and encourage indoor row-ing worldwide.”

One of the founders of Concept2, Judy Geer, added: “It’s been really exciting seeing the results come in from all across the world, and as a first time event the Indoor Sprints has been a great success.

“We look forward to working with World Rowing next year to make the event even bigger and better.”

The second edition of the World Rowing Indoor Sprints will take place from March 10-12 2017. For results and more informa-tion, go to concept2.co.uk/indoor-sprints

Inaugural event is a success

OPERATOR One Leisure is embarking on a drive to make cycling indoors as exciting as it is outdoors; teaming up with Matrix Fitness who will supply IC7 Indoor Cycles to multiple sites.

The One Leisure team will enhance their current offering of 63 indoor cycle group sessions per week, as well as branding cycling as a service in its own right.

As part of the agreement with Matrix Fitness, 97 IC7 Indoor Cycles – pow-ered by the Indoor Cycling Group –will be distributed between the Huntingdon District Council’s five leisure centres: Huntingdon, Ramsey, Sawtry, St Ives, and St Neots.

Individuals will also be encouraged to take up a cycle membership and participate in a host of cycling club and class activities, including Virtual Active sessions.

One Leisure’s business manager Paul France said: ”As part of our commitment to supporting cycling and active lifestyles, One Leisure has partnered with the UCI Tour of Cambridgeshire event which is prov-ing even more popular this year than ever. As we see the growing number of cyclists on our roads every day, it is clear that cycling in our district is def-initely a massive growth area.

“We are very pleased to also part-ner with Matrix and introduce the

IC7 Indoor Cycles to our facilities; bringing the thrill of outdoor cycling indoors, and introducing a whole new fitness experience for existing and new users.

“You’re never too old to ride a bike and the IC7 cycles will appeal to people of all ages and fitness levels, regardless of their cycling experi-ence.”

Two IC7 cycles will be installed at each venue, as part of the pre-launch activity. Taster sessions for local cycling groups and schools will be delivered ahead of the official launch, which takes place at The Burgess Hall – part of One Leisure’s flagship site in St. Ives – on April 16.

Operator aims to make indoor cycling exciting by increasing offering

One Leisure’s flagship St Ives facility.

MEMBERSHIP MANAGEMENT AND RETENTION36

By Christina Eccles

INVESTMENT in innovative fitness equipment and a commitment to delivering engaging training sessions has been helping to retain members at multi award winning St Peter’s Leisure Centre in Burnley.

The club is going from strength to strength and the team is keen to build on this in the coming year, according to head of operations Neil Hutchinson who attributes much of the leisure centre’s success to its equipment offering, which includes high quality Life Fitness cardio and strength kit.

He explained: “Like all leisure operators, we understand the import-ance of retaining members and another strength of St Peter’s is that we encourage repeat visits through competitions for members, along with social events which inject a fun atmosphere into the gym.

“We look to maintain this success by continuing to offer innovative fitness equipment that keep workouts excit-ing and engaging.

“We pride ourselves on supplying diverse, appealing ways to keep fit and live an active lifestyle.”

The centrepiece of the gym is the SYNRGY360X which incorporates

eight popular fitness trends; personal training, group personal training, strength training, boot camp training, exercise and weight loss, function-al training, core training and sport specific training.

Neil added: “We signed an agree-ment with Life Fitness in December 2012 as we were keen to educate our members about the benefits of func-tional training.

“We’ve since developed and choreo-graphed a thriving SYNRGY360X programme, including high intensity classes which are extremely popu-lar and a number of low intensity rehabilitation classes, which are led

by a trained physio and concentrate on core and back strength.

“We regularly run taster weekends and sessions to show new members how the versatile equipment works, and we review every three months to ensure our programmes remain fresh and interesting.

“Our membership has risen from 2,500 to 3,000 since the introduction of SYNRGY360x and our full Life Fitness gym refurbishment.

“We have seen monthly attrition fall from 4.8 per cent to 2.3 per cent and the average length of membership has doubled from eight months to 16 months.”

The SYNRGY360X, which incorporates eight popular fitness trends, is the centrepiece of the gym at St Peter’s (left), which also offers high quality Life Fitness equipment (right)

Investing in innovative kit helps member retention at St Peter’s

A GROUP of renowned speakers from across the globe have been announced for this year’s Retention Convention, organised by industry guru Dr Paul Bedford.

The two day event will focus on improving customer experiences, with experts sharing their knowledge including chair of IHRSA Molly Kemmer who will talk about structure protocols, on-boarding clients, prescribing programmes, tracking performance and delivering and measuring outcomes.

She will also review the development of new technology that automatically writes and updates exercise progression programmes.

Other international speakers include Germany’s Dr. Niels Nagel, who is head of the German Industry Federation for Health and Fitness.

Niels will talk about his research on health-oriented fitness training with the focus on attendance, compliance and adherence from a behavioural psychological perspective.

He will also discuss how developments in technology may assist with improved results in the

near future.Also at the event, Selda Gamzeli

from Turkey – who was Jatomi Fitness’s group customer experience director for six countries – will talk about how she was responsible for providing strategic and technical direction for customer analytics, including defining KPIs and methodology, designing test-and-learn experiments, growing data sources and producing regular customer insights to answer key business questions.

From the UK will be Arron Williams, former special projects lead at Life Fitness, who believes designing and driving stronger human connections into the fabric of health and fitness facilities helps turn members into profitable customers.

His diverse background as a personal trainer, coach, university lecturer and facility and fitness product designer will ensure a fun and thought provoking session that decodes the current exercise experience and then recodes it with added value to meet the needs of the

customer and the business.

In his session ‘the Ordinary vs the Extra Ordinary’, Arron will explain what drives people to pay £25 for a single class – more than some gym chains charge for a month of membership.

He will also describe how boutique operators deliver their service and how they measure performance using non traditional metrics.

With extensive experience across the sector, fellow speaker Tiffeny Gould supports organisations across areas such as health interventions, customer experience and programme delivery and digitally-led developments including product integration and development.

At the convention, Tiffeny will discuss the technical challenges of going digital – integrating new software, staff issues, training and end user engagement.

She will explain how to achieve significant improvements in membership figures, adherence to programmes and demonstrations of long term behaviour change and how to make projects financially sustainable with a flexible resource model.

Other speakers will include Dr. Melvyn Hillsdon, as well as organiser Dr Paul Bedford, who said: “The two-day format will enable us to focus on the customer experience; hearing from retention experts across the globe, as well as operators that have put fantastic measures in place to increase retention and boost revenue, and technology experts; who will demonstrate the wide applications technology can play within the leisure industry.”

The event will take place at Austin Court, the home of the Institution of Engineering and Technology in Birmingham on May 19 and 20.

Renowned group of global speakers lined up for Retention Convention

Selda Gamzeli

MEMBERSHIP MANAGEMENT AND RETENTION 37Advertiser’s announcement

Creative Fitness Marketing has been helping operators attract new members for 26 years. Director Dean Godfrey explains how it can make your business more profitable

Boosting activity with CFMWhat does CFM do?We help health clubs, leisure trustsand multi-site operators to attractnew members through our innovativeMemberdrive campaigns. We sold more than 30,000 memberships last year alone.

What does your Memberdrivecampaign involve?Our Memberdrive is a marketing solution that aims to increase your membership base, boost your month-ly cash flow and ultimately improve the profitability of your facilities by tapping into the inactive population in your local community.

Running for four to six weeks, we provide a complete package for your sites incorporating telemarketing, direct mail, guerrilla marketing and a corporate outreach programme.

The campaign is run by a dedicated CFM marketing manager working onsite alongside a CFM sales person.

Our marketing campaigns are stra-tegically developed to tap into new markets and maximise your brand awareness.

This unique sales and marketing programme generates additional monthly cash flow for your health and fitness clubs and provides secur-

ity from local competitors.As national partners of the govern-

ment’s Change4Life scheme, we can also use Change4Life branding on all advertising materials and can foster direct relationships with other part-ners such as Tesco and Asda who may be located in your area.

I already have a membershipteam, how would I benefit fromCFM’s sales consultants?Recruited for their experience, edu-cation and work ethic, our sales con-sultants have worked in clubs of all sizes and demographics, overcoming the specific challenges faced by each

particular site to attract hundreds of new members in just six weeks.

This gives them unique insightand experience that your own sales team can learn from.

The role of the dedicated CFM marketing manager is to manage the promotion, implement guerrilla marketing initiatives and give regular updates to the club manager onthe day-to-day progress of the cam-paign.

The assistant’s role is to meet, greet and to enrol the prospects generated from the marketing campaign onto a long term membership.

Together, they manage the entire process leaving the club to work withtheir new members.

Q. How many new members areyou able to attract?On average, our campaigns attract 200 to 500 new members in six weeks, generating our customers between £2,000 and £10,000 per month.

We agree a promotional member-ship price and terms with you.

Memberships are for a 24 or 36-month term, giving you regular, long term income.

We take a share of any monthly income generated which will depend

on the pricing structure agreed with you.

Q. What are the risks?There is no financial outlay for your club.

We pay for all the marketing costs and as our model is self-funding, there is no financial risk for you.

A six-week campaign can attract 200-500 new members on average.

Telephone +44 (0)115 777 3333 (option 1), email uk@cfm.net or visit www.cfm.net

We have helped thousands of clubs secure new member-ships including:Wigan Leisure TrustFinesse LeisureBrentwood LeisureBest Western HotelsChampneysCroydon Park Hotel3-1-5 Health & FitnessSeaham Hall

38

SUPPLEMENTATION AND NUTRITION40

USN has launched the USN Diet Whey Isolean, with a big focus on providing a great tasting supplement for those looking to push their body makeover challenge to the next level.

Diet Whey Isolean can be taken at any time of the day and contains ingredients that may support the maintenance of lean muscle.

Quick and easy to prepare, Diet Whey Isolean offers a high nutritional shake with numerous benefits to support the user’s Body Makeover challenge and is ideal for anyone looking to really kick-start their challenge.

For more information visit usn.co.uk

USN launches new supplement

JST Jodie, Jodie Marsh’s collection of fitness and wellbeing supplements, has announced a new partnership with Lifestyle Fitness. Lifestyle members are now able to receive an exclusive 20 per cent discount on products in the JST Jodie range, including SEMTEX and OMG Protein Bars. Jodie said: “I am delighted to partner with Lifestyle Fitness and introduce my range of supplements and protein bars to club members. Lifestyle Fitness shares the JST Jodie brand values and I am extremely excited for the future. National sales manager for Lifestyle Fitness, Seth Malik, added: “JST Jodie supplements are proven to assist people in achieving their lifestyle and fitness goals. We expect the products to be a big hit with our members and we are sure they will enjoy exclusive discounts and competitions.”

HIGH5 has become the official nutrition partner to Britain’s leading male and female professional cycling events, the Tour of Britain and the Aviva Women’s Tour.

HIGH5 will enjoy branding and VIP Hospitality, as well as sampling and marketing opportunities across both events, plus the Pearl Izumi Tour Series events throughout May and June.

In addition to the support of the professional races for the next three

years, participants in two mass participation events in 2016 can look forward to sampling HIGH5 nutritional products as part of their entry.

HIGH5 general manager Wendy Lee said: “It is a great honour and privilege for HIGH5 to partner with such prestigious events.

“As a British company this is a special time for us, we look forward to supporting the events for the next three years.”

HIGH5 partners cycling events

Council rewards research on milk and sports nutrition TWO students have been recognised for their research into the benefits of milk and dairy in sport and exercise nutrition.

Alistair Monteyne from Loughborough University and Neasa Forde from Ulster University have been awarded The Dairy Council Sports Nutrition Award at the British Dietetic Association live Event in London.

The competition, open to Sports and Exercise Nutrition registered graduates and students, saw applicants compose a formal, evidence-based paper on the use of dairy foods as part of a healthy, balanced diet in sports nutrition and elite performance.

Alistair’s entry investigated the effects of a protein or carbohydrate drink on appetite regulation after exercise and Neasa submitted a review of the efficacy of popular protein drinks for athletes and recreational exercisers.

Director of nutrition at The Dairy Council Dr Anne Mullen said: “As ever, the standard this year was very high and The Dairy Council would like to thank everyone who entered.

“The Sports Nutrition Award recognises the current talent in sports nutrition and highlights the growing evidence to support the use of milk in sport. The award has been very successful and we are looking forward to running it again later in the year.”

Britons have a ‘calories blind spot’, study claimsMILLIONS of ‘healthy’ Brits have a ‘calories blind spot’ over sauces, sug-ars, condiments and snacks, research has claimed.

A study carried out among 2,000 adults found that while calorie count-ing and ‘five a day’ are a focus of their daily food plan, a large percentage admit they often forget to consider things such as putting sugar or syrup on their cereal or dressing on a salad.

It also emerged many adults are consuming ‘invisible calories’ on top of their usual daily intake, with syrup, sugar and jam on porridge among the biggest culprits for the ‘hidden’ extra calories.

General director of the Chilean Blueberry Committee, which commis-sioned the report, Andrés Armstrong said:

“You may think you are being healthy, but as soon as you add sugar or syrup to porridge or pancakes,

or put a dressing on your salad, you are instantly adding extra sugar and calories.

“By ignoring the calories, fat and sugar in sauces people often make an otherwise nutritious meal quite the opposite.”

Dr Christy Fergusson from Channel Four’s Secret Eaters added: “More and more people are becoming sugar savvy and want to make healthier food choices.

“However, this research suggests that many people are falling into the trap of consuming more sugar than they realise.

“Most people aren’t considering the impact of hidden sugars in store-bought sauces, dressings and ready meals.

“The good news is looking closer at the ingredients in the foods we eat and making a few simple swaps can make a considerable difference.”

THIS one takes effort but is definitely worth it. We all crave comfort foods from time to time, but what if you could still eat your pie and not feel that guilt about the carbs? Even if you are just looking for a gluten free, wheat free, dairy free pastry, alternatives like this could be what you were waiting for.

The pulled pork filling for this pie can be bought at www.mygsn.co.uk/meats/pulledmeatsIngredients:GSN Pulled pork pouch – to fill piePulsin Pea protein – one cupEggs – four mediumUnsweetened almond milk – as necessaryBaking powder – one tspInstructions:Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees C. Ensure your Gold Standard Nutrition Pulled Pork is defrosted.In a mixing bowl place the pea protein powder, the baking powder and crack in your four medium eggs. Mix thoroughly until a dough starts to form.If the mix is too dry and a dough isn’t forming, add some unsweetened

almond milk cautiously.You should be able to knead the dough with your hands without it sticking to you. When you have this consistency, let it sit while you empty the pulled pork into a pie dish.Lift the dough on to a rolling board and cover your rolling pin with a little pea powder. Turn the dough a quarter turn every now and then to ensure an even thickness.Repeat this until you have enough to cover your pie dish.Lay the dough over and trim to fit the dish. Use the cut away spares to make the edging.Place in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. (You can brush the top of the pie with egg to enhance the growing if you wish!).Serve with peas & low fat gravy.

GSN pulled pork pie recipe

PRODUCT AND INDUSTRY NEWS42

OVER the last couple of years, gym culture has been a hot topic, with regular articles appearing in consumer press, largely pertaining to the negative environment gyms present.

In a bid to gauge the current perception of gyms among the public, ClubWise has conducted a survey around ‘gym culture’ and what this term means to people today.

Out of the total number of members surveyed, 45 per cent felt gym culture represented ‘sociable and friendly’, while only 16 per cent felt it represented ‘serious and intimidating’.

60 per cent of gym members said they felt a sense of belonging and part of a community at their gym, with 55 per cent declaring a strong sense of loyalty.

This is great news, but what’s caused this shift in perception? In short, gyms across the UK have latched onto the value of implementing powerful retention methods, including member reward schemes, regular communication, building supportive

friendly communities, listening, and upping the ante when it comes to customer service.

More owners are working hard to enhance the overall member experience, giving them compelling reasons to stay. This is great for everyone involved, gyms are benefitting from improved retention and members are getting a better experience.

It’s with this in mind, ClubWise has launched the #HappiestGymInBritain campaign to celebrate clubs going the extra mile to make their members feel important, valued and supported on their fitness journey.

The winning gym will receive a whole host of benefits, including a trophy and certificate, a double page spread in a leading industry publication, a PR pack, the opportunity to stand out in a hugely competitive industry and much more.

To find out more go to info.ClubWise.com/happiest-gym-in-britain

You can also follow the campaign on Twitter @ClubWise #HappiestGymInBritain

Facebook/HappiestGyminBritain

Campaign launched to find the happiest gym

SIMPLY Gym have just opened the doors to their new Hinckley branch and already have over 2,300 members signed up; smashing their initial tar-get and proving how popular they are.

They opened their first site in Cheltenham in 2011 and have had a steady succession ever since, with Shrewsbury opening in September 2015.

Hinckley is their 12th site and their popularity is reflected in the huge rise in membership numbers and proves that they are onto a winning formula.

The directors Andy Tee, Andy Hastings and Phil Taylor are already planning another two new start ups in 2016 – locations yet to be confirmed.

Great news for both Simply Gym and the public as other areas in the UK will benefit from this outstanding brand; a place where they can work-out and enjoy themselves in great sur-roundings at an affordable price.

ServiceSport are pleased to have won the order and have supplied a massive £100,000 worth of kit,includ-ing CV and resistance finished in the instantly recognisable black and yel-low Simply Gym colours.

Simply Gym are going from strength to strength, showing great potential for further success in future years to come.

To find out more visit www.servicesport.co.uk

Chain opens Hinckley gym

Protein Porridge from Feel Free Nutrition is filled with nutrients essential to main-taining a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle. Each pot is loaded with 34g of protein per serving to support fitness training and sports activities. Jam-packed with amino acids, vitamins and minerals, protein porridge is well equipped to fuel you throughout the day. And that’s not all. Protein Porridge is convenient. The products include a massive 34g of protein, with added BCAA, and are naturally high in L-Glutamine and fibre. The 100g servings are great for after a work out or as power breakfast and support muscle tone and recovery. For more information call 0800 7797718, email info@feelfreenutrition.com or visit www.feelfreenutrition.com

A NUMBER of market leading suppli-ers will be exhibiting at Elevate, the UK’s first cross-sector event focused on tackling physical activity.

With over 150 exhibitors at Olympia London on May 4-5, many will be demonstrating innovative products and research all designed to engage the nation, encouraging more people to be physically active.

Over 4,000 attendees are expected to descend on the capital with the likes of Matrix, Technogym, Precor, Pulse Fitness, Origin Fitness, Les Mills, Wattbike and Power Plate all sponsoring or exhibiting over the two day event.

This will be the very first time per-formance experts, practitioners, gov-ernment and the physical activity sec-tor come together on mass to focus on this complex societal challenge. In

addition to the exhibition, three sem-inar streams will run examining the ways in which exercise, health and performance connect.

A large number of the most influ-ential organisations are already sup-porting the event including London Sport, The Institute of Sport, Exercise & Health (ISEH), The Royal life Saving Society (RLSS), Sports Therapy Association (STA), Fit for Sport and bounts.

Director of Elevate Max Quittenton said: “Elevate will be the UK’s first cross-sector event, allowing profes-sionals to come together, learn from each other and contribute their per-spectives on how to tackle physical inactivity, facilitating future health innovation.”

To register for free, visit: www.elevatearena.com

Market leading suppliers to exhibit at physical inactivity trade event

A KEY feature in ensuring member retention is customer satisfaction.

Direct Debit has been a proven source of increased customer loyalty and satisfaction due to its ease of use, safeguard measures, and reliability.

The automated service allows the fee to be taken without having to remind the customer to complete the transaction physically, saving valu-able time for both the client and the customer.

At DFC we do more for your mem-ber retention. We have designated UK based customer helplines and pay-ment lines to support your customers and answer any queries concerning their direct debit payments, using our local rate phone numbers. Our Easy Payment solution ‘My Payments’

allows customers to pay default quickly, with no pain, through a secure payment portal. With our ser-vice, we offer bespoke customer pay-ment confirmation letters and emails so your customers will feel valued.

We’ve taken the stress out of col-lecting payments, for both our clients and their customers. Our mission is to help you improve your relationships with your customers so that they stay longer. We reduce the administration allowing key staff to concentrate on your core business. You can leave us to collect your direct debits, while you concentrate on running – and grow-ing – your business.

For more information call 01908 422000, email sales@debitfinance.co.uk or visit

www.debitfinance.co.uk

Increase your retention by offering direct debit

Staff at Oxley Sports Centre in Sherborne successfully challenged their members to a Row Off to raise money for Sport Relief. The challenge lasted for the whole time the centre was open – from 6am to 9pm – and participants rowed for as long as they wanted before recording the distance travelled for their team on a scoreboard. The staff team was victorious clocking up 85,000m, with the members hot on their heels with 82,000m. Just over £500 was raised for the charity.

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AUDIO / VISUAL

43

POINT OF SALE

If you’ve got a story for a forthcoming issue of Workout email it to Christina Eccles at

ce@scriptmedia.co.uk or call 01226 734463

EQUIPMENT

CLOTHING & MERCHANDISE

Pure World Energy has appointed Steve Bambury as director of operations to meet growing demand from leisure operators investing in sustainable energy technology. In his new role, Steve is responsible for the operational delivery of the business and ensuring installations, energy performance contracts and service level agreements are project managed and delivered to the highest standard. This involves working with key clients, contractors and suppliers to guarantee the best value and quality is delivered for all parties. Prior to joining PWE, Steve most recently held the position of regional director at leisure management contractor 1Life and was responsible for a combination of six local authority and private contracts across 16 sites.

OXYGEN Freejumping has joined forces with health and safety and quality management expert, Right Directions, to create a Trampoline Park Safety Operating Plan.

Right Directions, which delivers Sport England’s quality scheme Quest, as well as ukactive’s Code of Practice, has been working with Oxygen Freejumping since July 2015 to develop specific guidance for trampoline parks, similar to the industry-recognised swimming pool guidance.

Following a risk assessment process, the TPSOP sets out how a trampoline park will operate on a day to day basis, including staffing levels, where staff should stand, how breaks should be rotated and the pre use inspection and maintenance of equipment,

as well as customer numbers, the minimum age, and rules of engagement for customers while they play. The guidance also covers health and safety management processes for the rest of the building.

Oxygen’s CEO David Stalker said: “Oxygen Freejumping puts the health and safety of its team and customers at the top of our priorities.

“We could only ever partner with the best health and safety provider in the leisure industry and so, with the help of Right Directions, we have set procedures in place to ensure this happens.

“As one of the first trampoline park operators in the country we want to pioneer guidelines that others in the sector can implement and the TPSOP does just that.”

Trampoline park guidance created

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HYGIENE

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LOCKS CLOTHING & MERCHANDISE

LOCKERS

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UPHOLSTERY

DIRECT DEBIT COLLECTIONS

HYGIENE FLOORING

FLOORING

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SOFTWAREWANTED

INSURANCE

MANAGEMENT

SOFTWAREHYGIENE SOFTWARE

INSURANCE

MARKETING