Types of gyms and health clubs
Essential the term 'gym' is seen as an old school term for what we commonly now know as a health club. Back in the day a gym would have been a weights room housing free weights and a selection of hardcore machines.
These days a gym will still include those essential components but it will also include a wide range of exercise machines - from resistance machines to cardiovascular machines, exercise and stretching areas, fitness instructor on hand to help out, personal trainers training clients in the art of progressive and effective exercise.
But there is a little more to it than that. Below we highlight the real differences between gyms, health clubs and leisure centres.
The gym
A gym is a intergrated part of a health club or leisure centre which allows 'gym users' or gym goers' to exercise effectively using a wide range of resistance and cardiovascular machines.
Many gyms also provide exercise classes - Body Pump, Body Combat, Spinning, RPM, aerobics, step and more - in exercise studios, run by professional exercise and fitness teachers.
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The health club
A health club will include a gym, but usually much more besides. Health clubs can include:
- A spacious, fully equipped gym
- Exercise studios
- Personal training
- Swimming pool
- Steam room / sauna
- Juice bar or club room
- Social activities
- Clubs - running, dance etc
- On-site spa
- Shop
- Internet access
- One off pricing for use of all facilities
The health club is very much about your health and fitness under one roof. Typically health clubs are also run by large multinational companies like Virgin Active, Fitness First, David Lloyd Leiusre, LA Fitness, Bannatyne, Livingwell and more. Each health club has its own heavily branded identify, allowing it to stand out from the rest.
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The leisure centre
The leisure centre is the health club minus the branding and highly inflated prices. Ordinarily the local leisure centre will be council run - or trust run in conjunction with the council. Leisure centres are run by non-for-profit organisations who are more interested in the general health of the community rather than making a quick buck.
Good mainained leisure centres usually cater for all age groups an all ranges of the socio-economic spectrum. This means off-peak membership pricing that is affordable, under 16s and over 50s exercise sessions and facilities including:
- Swimming pool
- Gym
- Steam rooms
- Cafe
- Trained fitness instructors
- Pay as you Go pricing - pay for what you use
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The hotel gym
Many leading hotels come fully equipped with small gyms available to guests. The very best hotel gyms also allow non-staying gym members through their doors. Allowing non-hotel guests to use the facility means that they must compete head on with other local facilities - upping their game and services somewhat.
Typically hotel gyms (good, bad or different) will house:
- Resistance machines
- A range of free weights
- Cardiovascular machines - treadmills, rowers, bikes, cross trainers etc
- Stretching areas
The best hotel gyms will also employ fitness instructors and or personal trainers to aid the workouts of guests and members.
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