HEALTH & FITNESS
Irish health club becomes largest in énergie estate
énergie Fitness is the new operator of Naas Health and Fitness, a 31,000sq ſt (2,880sq m) health club in North Kildare, Ireland, which replaces Wilmslow to become the largest club across the whole énergie estate. Abbey Fitness and Wellness, master
licensee for the énergie franchise in Ireland, has taken a a 10-year lease on the club in the Dublin suburbs for an undisclosed sum. Naas Health and Fitness has been open
for 14 years and draws members from the North Kildare suburban area to the facil- ities, which include a gym, 25m (82ft) swimming pool, studio classes, indoor climbing wall and three squash courts. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=G3w9d
Gym Group eyes ‘Europe & beyond’
Te Gym Group is “positively exploring” foreign markets and engaging in discussions with a number of parties as it bids to banish the ghost of its failed merger with Pure Gym by way of overseas expansion. The Gym Group CEO
John Treharne told Leisure Opportunities the gym chain is exploring a number of mar- kets “in Europe and beyond” with a view to sealing deals sooner rather than later. “It’s tough to say whether
it would be in the first six months or the next, but cer- tainly we’d be disappointed if things hadn’t progressed one year from now,” said Treharne. “We’re review- ing all markets and not ruling out any options at this stage. We could enter a market on our own or we could go in on a joint venture – all possibilities remain open at this stage.” On the home front, Treharne doesn’t expect
the UK economic recovery to have an impact on the low cost gym sector, citing industry analyst Ray Algar’s view that the budget con- cept is here to stay, as can be evidenced by
Pure Gym founder and CEO Peter Roberts
Pure Gym maintains march on Manchester with 6th gym
PureGym is to continue its expansion after the failed merger with The Gym Group by opening yet another new club in Manchester by the end of the year. Te latest gym – located in Exchange
Quay – will be the chain’s sixth in Manchester. Te city has become a hotbed of operator activity as of late, with Pure Gym’s new site coming just weeks aſter Nuffield Health took over the former Virgin Active club at Manchester Printworks and announced a partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University to improve health across the North West of England. Pure Gym CEO Peter Roberts last month
announced the chain would open a fur- ther 20 sites by the end of 2014, through a combination of consolidating in areas where the company is already strong, as well as expanding its footprint in less-devel- oped markets. Te chain’s latest Manchester launch follows its existing sites in the city on Bury New Road, Debdale, Moston, Urban Exchange and Spinningfields, pro- viding a total membership base of 29,912. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=t4k9G
6 Fitness, not food, key to health crisis: report
A new report from a British think tank has given further support to the notion that inactivity, not obesity, is at the root of the UK’s health crisis. Published by the Institute
of Economic Affairs, Te Fat Lie studies evidence from DEFRA, the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, the ONS and the British Heart Foundation, finding all the evidence indicates that per capita consumption of sugar, fat and calories has been fall- ing in the UK for decades. The report notes that the
CEO John Treharne has big plans for the chain’s expansion
the continued success of the low cost airlines. “We’re eager to press ahead with our UK
expansion and will look at incorporating mar- ket trends like HIIT – most likely in our larger clubs – but still maintaining our low cost con- cept,” he continued. “Te plan is to continue rolling out 20-25 gyms per year and at some point in 2016 we’d like to be approaching the 100-club mark in the UK – regardless of overseas.” Details:
http://lei.sr?a=P5Z8q
A decline in activity has coincided with an increase in UK obesity levels
average body weight of English adults has increased by two kilograms since 2002, while calorie consumption has fallen four per cent and sugar consumption has slipped nearly 7.5 per cent. Highlighting the decline in physical activity – an ongoing trend since the 1970s – as the reason weight increase, the report points out that the rise of office jobs and labour saving devices means people have fewer opportunities for physical activity, both at work and at home.
Read Leisure Opportunities online:
www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital “Te root cause of Britain’s rising obesity
levels has not been a rise in calorie intake but a rise in inactivity,” commented the author of Te Fat Lie Christopher Snowdon. “With obesity now featuring so heavily in
the media it is worrying that so few people know that our largely sedentary lifestyles, not our appetites, have been the driving force behind the UK’s expanding waistlines.” Details:
http://lei.sr?a=W2j8u
Twitter: @leisureopps © CYBERTREK 2014
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