Fitness Center Updates

15 Sep
ParCHillsGolf 0 Comment Uncategorized

fit_centOur fitness center has been recently fitted with some new equipment, which required a little reorganization. Members may notice these changes throughout the next month as we finalize the new arrangement of equipment, but don’t worry, nothing you loved using before is gone. If you can’t find a particular piece of equipment that you are interested in, please let one of our trainers or fitness center staff know and they will be able to direct you.

These updates are not meant to inconvenience our members, rather, we will now be providing some new equipment and services that any of our members can use. While much of it is not golf-specific, it helps to round out our fitness center, allowing you to get even more out of our beautiful country club! Here is a summary of the newly added equipment and associated classes that will be planned in the future.

New Equipment

More exercise balls – Due to popular demand, we have outfitted our fitness center with more exercise balls of various sizes. This will cut down on wait times during peak hours, and also promotes the use of exercise balls during certain exercises, which allows you to work on core strengthening and stability.

Universal machine – This is a new exercise machine that looks pretty bulky, but it’s because you can perform multiple exercises on the same machine in a very controlled manner. These exercises include seated shoulder press, leg extensions, assisted pull-ups, and two bars with a sliding component for customized exercises.

More elastic bands – Many of our members are active individuals that, at some point, have experienced sports-related injuries in their past. On top of that, we all know how other nagging injuries and conditions can affect our day-to-day activities. Therefore, there has been a lot of demand for more products that you may find in settings such as a physiotherapy clinic. The bulk of this includes a variety of resistance/elastic tubing, Thera-band, and various forms of exercise foam rollers.

Boxing equipment – With some very generous 2nd-hand contributions courteous of a couple different boxing gyms in the city, we have been able to set up a couple nice pieces of boxing equipment so our members can release some of that stress after a frustrating round on the links! At this point, we have currently installed two heavy bags of different weights and one speed bag, but we should have more on the way. We have 6 different sets of communal boxing gloves that are available to use, all of which are cleaned daily by our fitness center staff, but you are also welcome to bring your own as long as they are over 8oz.

Classes

While not yet fully arranged, we encourage you to keep an eye on the schedule or postings on our main lobby bulletin board for new classes. These classes will likely consist of some basic self defense classes, stretching classes, practical exercises you can do with resistance tubing or Thera-band, and some classes on how to incorporate more core strength and stability into your workouts.

 

Meet Your Fitness Goals at the Country Club

Meet Your Fitness Goals at the Country Club
31 Aug
ParCHillsGolf 0 Comment Country Club

Staying healthy and in shape is challenging enough, so if you’re going to make a commitment to good living do something you enjoy.  Most people think of gyms and fitness centers when it comes to working out, but you meet your fitness goals at the country club instead.  You’re probably thinking that a country club is some exclusive thing only there for rich people.

That’s not completely true and they have a lot more to offer than a simple gym.  It has a really good social component; country clubs were originally social clubs that gradually added things like tennis courts and golf courses.  The number of activities you can participate in is much greater than even the best gyms.  You can play golf, tennis and use the fitness facilities all for one membership fee instead of several.  So how can a country club help you achieve fitness goals.  Here is a virtual tour to see what is offered at a country club.

Create a routine

Exercise has to become a habit and not an interruption of your daily life.  Life is filled with distractions and keeping a commitment to fitness is harder than ever, exercise or the gym simply doesn’t show up on our radar.  Take advantage of the social element of a country club and book a weekly tennis game or round of golf with another member.  You are more likely to hold to your commitments if other people help you.  Work the buddy system in the weight room too, there is more than likely someone just like you trying to stick to their goals, make it easier for yourselves and work together.

Join a club

There are country club all over that are extremely well equipped for a bunch of different activities.  Golf and tennis aren’t the only sports available, try a squash game for something different or even just jump in the pool and do some laps.  It’s a good place to pick up a new skill in a safe environment.  Take part in some group activities, be brave and try dancing or something new.  You will get the chance to meet new people who are likely in the same situation as you.

Don’t wait

Research has linked our sense of well being closely to our social situations and the social contacts we maintain…that doesn’t include Facebook, we’re talking real interaction.  Exercise has also been known to fight depression, it releases endorphins in the brain that govern how we feel and our mood.  Use the good feeling from the first session to motivate you to keep coming back.

Don’t hesitate any longer get to the nearest country club and sign up for a tour.

Choosing the Right Fitness Center

Choosing the Right Fitness Center
30 Aug
ParCHillsGolf 0 Comment Fitness Center

Fitness centers are pretty common and your choices for membership are pretty varied.  You can choose from expensive country club facilities that offer the same as an average fitness facility plus golf, tennis and full spa facilities or you can opt for the no frills gym with a couple of treadmills and some weights.  It can make choosing the right fitness center difficult.  All the bells and whistles always sound nice but are you going to use them enough to justify the cost?

Before you plunk down your hard earned cash on any fitness center you need to figure out what your fitness goals are.  What type of workout do you enjoy and which will you stick with.  Once you have that figured out now you need to match facilities with your goals.  Once you have the fitness center picked out it’s time to take a tour, check out the equipment and meet the staff.  Here are some questions to ask before you agree to any commitment.

  1. What are the hours and is it conveniently located? You need to make going to the fitness center as easy as possible otherwise you will just blow it off. Find a place that is either close to home or to your work.  If you work shift work or any type of odd hours make sure it is open during the times you are most likely to work out.
  2. Is the facility clean and well maintained? Are the changing areas and the showers clean? Are you going to enjoy spending time here, don’t overlook the environment, if you’re not comfortable don’t waste your time.
  3. Does it have modern and up to date equipment? Not only does the equipment need to be up to date there needs to be enough of it, nobody wants to wait around form machines every time you go to the gym.
  4. Do they offer the type of fitness classes that you are looking to take? Are they at convenient times? If you’re looking for yoga classes but the only offer them at 11am when you’re at work, that’s not going to work for you.
  5. What kind of training do the staff have, are they qualified instructors or are they there to sell memberships? Do they have personal trainers for you to work with and are they certified?
  6. Are there any child care, towel services or saunas available? To some these may be perks but for others they are the deal breakers.
  7. What is the cost and the details of the contract? Most fitness centers are going to make you sign an agreement for anywhere from three months to one year. Some will bill you monthly and others will want the entire amount up front.  You need to look at the fine print, some contracts are pretty straight forward and in other cases getting divorced is easier and less expensive than trying to get out of your gym membership.

If the fitness center won’t let you try before you buy with a free pass for a week or so then you should probably take a pass.  Larger fitness facilities will not only do that for you then use it as a sales tool.  Use your trial at the time of day you plan on working out, it will give you a more accurate idea of the availability of machines and cleanliness of the whole facility.

At the end of the day pick the one that gives you the best value for your money, fitness centers can be a great investment in your health…but only if you use them.