Geelong's Gym

On Sunday 4th October, our very own Adam Ryan (Membership Coordinator, Class Instructor and Personal Trainer at Geelong’s Gym) competed in the Bankwest Tower Stair Climb in Perth.

Adam completed the climb in just 6 minutes and 23 seconds, breaking the record and winning the race. In fact, he had time up his sleeve since he accidentally took a wrong turn and had to back track!

Adam finishing the Sydney Tower Run-up in 2008

There’s something seriously wrong with this guy – for example, he moved to Canberra for a year just so he could climb mountains and condition his body for the brutal assault it would be receiving in future stair climbing events.

But Adam’s all about doing the out of the ordinary.  His body isn’t physiologically made to climb stairs but he believes in pushing boundaries and challenging himself to break the mould.  It’s taken a lot of determination, countless hours of training and buckets of sweat but it’s all worth it for Adam, who firmly advocates developing a new mindset to reach greater health and fitness goals in your life.

So what’s the next challenge? Adam plans to run up Eureka Tower in Melbourne so he can qualify for the pinnacle of stair climbing events, the run up the Empire State Building in New York. We’re all right behind you Adam, in thought if not in action!

Check out this You Tube video of a few contestants running up the Empire State Building – you gotta want it bad, this is one crazy sport!

To find out more about Stair Climbing as a sport simply click here.

Geelong’s Gym is such a popular place that they’re breaking the walls down trying to get in!

Whoah... that's quite some hole in the gym wall!

We have Drive Thru Coffee, Drive Thru Fast Food and now we have Drive Thru Gym – the quickest workout you’ll ever have.

Check out the photos of one eager beaver, who just couldn’t wait to get into the gym to improve his health and fitness.  Whoops… I guess next time he should try checking in at Reception first!

That piece of red at the bottom of the hole is part of the eager beaver's car!

Did you know that training with friends can heighten your tolerance for pain, allowing you to potentially train longer and harder?

Why is this so?

Well, according to The Economist, when endorphins are released into our brain they make us feel good and more endorphins are released into our brain when we train with someone else.

Two friends training together have a chat in between sets

Dr Cohen from Oxford University conducted a test to prove this. She got 12 members of Oxford’s heavyweight rowing squad to row on machines in four 45 minute sessions over two weeks.

In two of the sessions they rowed in complete isolation. In the other two sessions they rowed in groups of six, perfectly synchronized. After each session their endorphin levels were tested.

Dr Cohen discovered that the rowers’ pain thresholds were significantly higher following group sessions.

So the next time you head off to the gym to do some exercise, how about taking a friend along with you. You might just find that you’ll have a more rewarding workout, that is more effective but also easier, and that you’ll get fitter and healthier faster than if you continue to train alone.

According to this new study, Rocky Balboa may have endured less pain and done even better if he’d trained with a friend!

To give it a go, quote BAF101 to Reception to bring a friend along for FREE to your next workout.

If you were asked to define Naturopathy, what would you say?  I’m willing to bet that the vast majority of people have no idea where to even begin defining the term, let alone explaining how it will benefit their health.

So we thought we’d call in an expert to give us all a little helping hand.  Rob Claridge, a distinguished Naturopath from Claridge Naturopathics and Geelong’s Gym member, has kindly put together the following information to enlighten us all.
Rob Claridge

Did you know that there are three clear distinctions when it comes to Naturopathy?  Some Practitioners could be best described as “Natural Doctors”, others as “Classic Naturopaths”, whilst others practise a combination of the two.

Please let me explain.

Continue reading ‘Naturopathy – huh??!!’

Well the pace has really stepped up in the training for Walking Home, with Nike setting the group of 20 volunteer walkers a challenge for September…300km to be walked in the month.

Now at first glance that doesn’t seem such a big deal. So let’s break it down.

30 days….10km walked daily. Seems easy enough I hear you say.

But it is WALKING, not running.

So based on walking at 6km per hour, that’s 1 hour and 40 mins of walking every day. Too bad if it’s raining, if your work is hectic, if the kids have extra needs to be met before and after school. And what happens if you miss a day? You do the sums.

And here is the biggest hurdle-the time required to prepare for this event. There is nothing but walking to get your hips, shins, ankles and knees ready for the 187km five day hike. But all the participants have ‘normal’ lives to co-ordinate and sometimes finding the extra time is very hard.

So if you see one of the walkers in training in the gym, give them a smile and pause to ponder just what they are giving to this amazing event.

Ordinary people making an extraordinary difference.

If you haven’t been in the gym lately, you haven’t seen our new sign… We took the new up on the scaffolding to ‘unveil’ the new sign as part of our corporate facelift and rebranding makeover. I thought you’d like to see the fun we had!

Geelong's Gym's New Sign Unveiled

Here is close up #1!

Gerard And The Team Reveal Geelong's Gym's New Sign!

Here is close up #2!

New Sign For Geelong's Gym!

Here is close up #3!

The Team Has Fun Announcing Geelong's Gym's New Sign!

We are delighted to announce the arrival of TWO AMT Precor Machines into the Cardio Theatre at Geelong’s Gym.

Most of you are probably asking right now, what’s an AMT machine?

Put simply, it’s a machine that is as versatile as the human body. It will move the way you want to move. Sounds pretty cool, huh?!

It’s a low-impact cardio trainer that actually adapts to your movements. Which means you can completely change the motion and path of your steps without even having to touch a button. So you can go from short to long strides, walking to running and even into deep lunges without pressing a single button! Every workout you have can be as challenging and unique as you want it to be.

So you will never get bored!

Do you want to know more about how the muscles in your body respond to different movements?

Now is your chance. You’ll learn how to use short strides to work the calves and quads, mid-length strides to hit the hamstrings and glutes, and long strides for full engagement. Can anybody see a taut, toned and amazing looking lower body evolving right before your eyes?

The more you learn the more you’ll be able to customize your workouts to target specific muscle groups. Not only will your workouts be so much more interesting, but they will also be that much more rewarding.

I don’t know about you, but the AMT actually makes exercise sound like fun!

So why not come in and have a try of this fantastic new cardio machine. The AMT is ready and waiting for you to let your

Well, we had an absolutely fantastic time at our Geelong’s Gym Open Weekend.  The atmosphere was lively, the Instructors pumped and the whole place was buzzing with activity.  And people were getting fit too – let’s not forget that!

Some of the key highlights were:

•    Special Introductory ½ Hour Classes – we had heaps of people who tried out some classes that they’d never done before and they loved it.  The special short classes were designed to give you a taste of what the full class is about, without making you feel like you have to be a fitness guru to keep up.  Our regulars enjoyed having some extra classes to choose from too.  And the Instructors had a great time getting to know new people and making the most of the shorter format.  What a great way to warm up quickly over a cold weekend!

•    Personal Trainers on the move – it was awesome to see our personal trainers having the opportunity to mingle with new people and help them try out our equipment, especially the new pieces that have just arrived in the gym.  I bet there were some well worked muscles that were making themselves known on Monday!

•    Special Open Weekend Membership Offer – Wow!  Many of our guests came on down for a look and loved it so much that they decided to take up our extra special Membership Offer, available only for the Open Weekend.  They left with huge smiles on their faces and their wallets still fat.

•    Free goodies – everyone enjoyed the free apples, lollies (extra low fat of course!) and Gatorade.  Just the thing you need after a workout.  And we all appreciated the wonderful girls who were handing out the Gatorade with gorgeous smiles for everyone.  Did you know that one of those girls met TomKat just the night before serving drinks at Geelong’s Gym?

There was plenty more going on all weekend and we have had some awesome feedback about the Open Weekend and how much members and non-members alike enjoyed it.

If you didn’t make it along this time, come along to our next Open Weekend on 3rd and 4th October.  It’s going to be even bigger, better and more exciting, so bring along your friends and family for a weekend of fun and fitness.

But if you can’t wait that long to try us out, why not come on down for a look today?  Our Membership Consultants will be more than happy to give you a tour and set you up with a Free Trial.

Our Open Weekend to celebrate the name change to Geelong’s Gym has been highly patronized thus far with a large number of interested people attending the Introductory Classes and also trialing our other gym facilities.

In addition to our usual timetable we have a variety of intro classes booked for Sunday also – 30min Yoga Fit at 1pm, Spinning at 2pm and Body Pump at 3pm. Why not come and try something a little different, it’s a great opportunity to discover what it might be like to exercise in a gym.

Full facilities are available from 8am thru to 6pm, we also have a fantastic Special Membership Offer. Hope to see you down at the Geelong’s Gym soon.

Did you know that indoor cycling on a stationary bike travelling on imaginary terrain set to music is one of the most efficient ways to burn kilojoules, tone the body and develop great fitness?

The cycling craze which swept the world was originally developed as “spinning” by ultra-endurance cyclist Johnny Goldberg (aka Johnny G) in 1986.

Johnny G’s original goal was simple: to help people challenge themselves to be their physical and mental best.  He succeeded; the classes are tough on the body and mind.

But don’t be scared… You don’t have to be super fit to do Spin!

Why not?

Because Spin requires next to no coordination – do I hear a cheer from all of you out there who can’t even manage to walk down the street without tripping on your shoes?

And, the Spin bikes allow you to set your own resistance levels so you can work as easy or as hard as you choose.

So if you’re a beginner, you will be just as at home in a Spin class as an experienced athlete.  How’s that for comforting?

Want to hear some other great benefits about Spin?  Try these on for size:

• Spin is non-impact, so you can train hard without worrying about injuring yourself.
• If you currently have an injury (damn that footy game where you pushed yourself a little too hard!!), Spin has proven benefits for knee and other leg injuries – so you can keep fit while recuperating from your injury.
• Watch your fat just melt away – Spin gets your heart rate soaring and your metabolism climbs with.  But it gets even better… when your heart rate slows after the class, your metabolism still stays up for hours so you continue to burn fat while sitting in front of the TV!!
• Say goodbye to flabby thighs and hello to fantastic looking, taut and toned legs.  That’s right, Spin combines a resistance workout with cardiovascular training, so you can’t help but get toned!

If you take just 45 minutes out of your day and try a Spin class, you can experience the benefits for yourself.

So what are you waiting for? Get to a Spin class and start riding to music now.