Features
and I was gradually increasing from fi ve, to 10, then 20 press-ups with no knees on the ground - something I’d never managed to achieve in years of aerobics classes! I’m noticing a huge diff erence in my general fi tness levels too.’
PARKLIFE AND PUSH-UPS Once the preserve of countries with more reliable climates than the UK (Los Angeles’ famed Muscle Beach has been around since the 1930s, for example), free-to-use urban gyms are springing up all over the country. In just over three years T e Great Outdoor Gym
Company, in partnership with Park Leisure, has designed, supplied, installed and maintained nearly 200 outdoor gyms and fi tness areas across the UK.
BELOW Equipment from the Great Outdoor Gym Company allows users to enjoy exercise and fresh air
Child’s play and
crunches Once the domain of huge, cast-iron slides, lethal- looking roundabouts and rusty see-saws, many children’s play parks have changed almost beyond recognition in recent years. Nowadays they are more likely to include miniature climbing walls, rope netting – and, increasingly, workout facilities. Creative Play UK has recently completed an installation of junior and adult outdoor gym equipment at the historic Penrhyn Castle in Bangor, Wales. The National Trust site, an enormous 19th-century neo-Norman castle, which sits between Snowdonia and the Menai Strait, is a popular tourist attraction throughout the year. With its 60 acres of grounds, there was plenty of scope for adding new facilities for visitors, particularly families and younger children. Nestled in a woodland play area, the newly installed outdoor gym equipment will provide fun and entertainment for visitors to the castle as they take a trip through its gardens and woodlands. Mark Durrans, of Creative Play UK, said: ‘Our outdoor gym equipment is specially designed to develop aerobic fi tness and the general well-being of children in a fun and unique way. What makes the range from Creative Play unique is that we have designed the range in house using the latest materials to ensure that it is durable, simple to use, and capable of withstanding the elements. Unlike many outdoor gym companies we not only design and manufacture the outdoor gym equipment, but we also install it using our own trained in-house teams. ‘The range has been developed to simply work on
the users own body weight, to create resistance and comes with informative training guides developed in association with fi tness professionals at Tonic RML. The training guides are highly informative but also simple and effective to use.’
Healthy living from Creative Play UK
Now the two companies have teamed up again to design innovative Family Fitness Zones, in an eff ort to widen and strengthen community use of their facilities. Creative director Georgie Delaney explains: ‘Family
Fitness Zones are spaces designed for the whole family to enjoy exercise for free, in the great outdoors. T e zones incorporate mini and senior gym equipment,
34« May 2011 Sportphysical activity &
www.imspa.co.uk
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