Founded in the US back in 2002, Anytime Fitness is the world’s largest 24-hour gym chain. Their bespoke access control system allows members to attend any of their 3,000 gyms globally at no extra cost -great for those of us who travel with work or the super dedicated who still love a workout on their hols! I was invited along to their Trowbridge Branch to see what else they have to offer.
It was a cold, wet, windy evening when I turned up at Anytime Fitness but my welcome from Amy and her team couldn’t have been any warmer. After a guided tour Amy talked me through the setup of the club. “Members’ safety is paramount and access to the gym is protected by our state-of-the-art security system. We have CCTV covering all areas which we can access remotely 24/7 and members are always encouraged to use the personal safety lanyards at all times especially during the unmanned hours.”
All of their gyms offer top of the range equipment and Trowbridge is no different. With touch-screen cardiovascular machines, resistance training equipment from Precor, a massive selection of free weights, a wide variety of instructor led or virtual Les Mills fitness classes and individual private changing rooms all included in your monthly membership it’s not hard to see why this gym is so popular.
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- Wellbeats customise your own gym workout
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- Outside view
The CV machines allow you to log in and keep track of your progress (or catch up on your favourite soaps) and if you can’t make it to one of the 22 classes on offer each week the Wellbeats device allows you create a class of your own at the touch of a button! Simply select the type of class you want, anything from Yoga, Spin or Zumba to Step or Kettlebells, wait a couple of minutes for the projector screen to drop down and you’re good to go. Plus there’s a My Protein vending machine for that all important post workout snack or shake!
All members are offered a free personal training session on sign up and I was no different. Enter Jon, my PT for the next 45 minutes. After a short warm up on the CV machines we headed to the studio to work through a circuit of 6 different exercises, each especially designed to overload different muscle groups. These “supersets”, as Jon called them, of lunges, wall sits, weighted halo’s, boxing, and intervals on the spin bike really put me through my paces but at the point where I felt like my legs couldn’t take any more, Jon was there to motivate and push me that little bit further helping me realise that my body is capable of much more than I thought!
Feel free to find out more via Facebook about Anytime Fitness.
The chain have also recently launched their annual #WhatsMyAnytimeStoryUk competition where members upload their success stories on a dedicated microsite. Amy explained why this is so important, “It encourages members to share their achievements no matter how big or small -for some, success is that first workout or attending regular classes to others it’s shedding serious pounds or making great physique gains but we want to celebrate them all, with the most popular winning a great prize!”
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- Gym floor
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- Circuit training class
It’s easy to see why Anytime Fitness have over 2 million members worldwide, I left exhausted but Jon made my workout fun and I felt like part of the family. Strict audits are in place to make sure that all their branches offer brand continuity, consistency and the same high level of service no matter where you go. They are due to open their 100th branch in the UK later this year so check out Anytime Fitness to find your nearest one. With a free trial period for all new customers and all-inclusive memberships starting from around £35.00 a month you’d be mad not to give them a go!
