MUMS – shape up for summer at Racquets

Shape up for summer with Racquets Fitness Centre

With summer just around the corner (always the optimist!) our thoughts wander to imagining our summer holiday and long lazy days in the sun. Imagine lazing next to the pool with a great book, a light bronzed sheen to our skin and…the DREADED SWIMWEAR!

After several months of hibernating on the sofa, the excess of Christmas and perhaps a few too many Easter eggs means the physique hidden under the woolly jumpers and jeans may not be in tip top shape.

A lack of activity for the last six months combined with winter comfort food is unlikely to be the best remedy for maintaining a bikini body ready for display this summer.

The good news – you can do something about it.

Racquets Fitness Centre has been helping the people of Thame to shape up for summer. Currently run by husband and wife team Simon and Sue, Racquets is a family club with the aim to keep the people of Thame and the surrounding area fit, healthy and ready for summer.

Racquets Fitness Centre is an inclusive, friendly club supporting members of all ages, levels of fitness and skill. Throughout the club there are people of all ages and levels of fitness using the facilities. Members range from 5 to 87 years old with under 4’s attending the crèche.

The staff are friendly, relaxed and knowledgeable. They are always on hand to answer any questions, help with concerns or to provide advice and encouragement.

The club offers a wide range of facilities, classes and activities so there should be something that appeals to most people or why not mix and match a variety of activities to keep sessions interesting.

So how can Racquets help you shape up for summer?

Shape up in the Gym

One way to shape up ready for summer is to hit the gym on a regular basis.

The gym at Racquets is arranged into three zones: the cardio room, weights room and the grit yard.

The cardio room is well equipped with treadmills, cross trainers, rowing machines and climbing equipment.

Most machines include a heart rate monitor so you can track how hard you are working to support effective fat loss.

The weights room features everything you need to tone, strengthen and develop your muscle to complement your fat burn.

The grit yard is an outdoor area for training with a range of equipment. It includes TRX which is great for toning using your own body weight. There are also punch bags to tone the upper body and burn fat plus it’s great when you need to let off some steam!

Every new member receives an induction to the gym. To get you started an instructor will show you around the equipment and develop a programme especially for you. This will be reviewed every few weeks to make sure you are progressing towards your goals.

With a range of membership options available, there is a solution for everyone. Memberships are available on an annual (where you’ll receive two months free!) or monthly basis and offer fantastic value for money starting from £1 per day.

Jack Shrimpton is one of the instructors. He has been with the gym as both a member and staff for 7 years and Racquets have supported him in qualifying as a personal trainer and instructor.

He explains, “It’s a great place to work and meet all sorts of people with different reasons for being here. We can help people with their exercise programme and advise on diet and nutrition as well to help them reach their goals”.

Shape up with some Personal Training support

Unique to Racquets is the personal training membership.  This option provides unlimited access to the gym, weights room, squash courts and social areas.

It’s especially great value because it includes a generous three group personal training sessions per week. This incredible offer works out at less than £7 per session with a personal trainer. What other gym can offer that level of support for that value for money?

Working out with a personal trainer has many advantages and can be a great way to kick start your journey towards your goal whether that is to lose weight, tone up or strengthen your body.

Shape up with others in a Fitness Class

The club offers over 25 fitness classes each month and cater for all.

Do you want to sculpt, tone and strengthen your body? Try the Free Weights Tone Class, Circuit Training, Boxercise or Body Pump.

If you are looking to get into the fat burn zone, try Spinning, HiiT, Zumba or Circuits.

If you prefer to relax the club offers a variety of yoga including Hatha and Flow. For stretching there is and toning  there is Pilates, Stretch session and Fitball.

There are many more classes available and new classes are being introduced regularly. Unlimited access to classes is available in most membership options and non-members are also welcome to join the classes too.

Shape up and learn a new sport with Squash Coaching

Well, Racquets is a squash club so of course there is squash coaching. This is a unique aspect of the club as no one else in Thame offers this facility.

Just in case you didn’t know, squash is one of the best fat burners and so an excellent way to shape up for summer. A good session can burn up to 500 calories in 30 minutes and the combination of movement during a game tones arms, legs and bums.

The club has an active group of members and non-members at all levels, including complete beginners who participate in the coaching sessions. It provides exercise, fun and it’s very sociable. Those attending their first sessions will be paired with others of a similar level and coached appropriately and there is a choice of ladies or mixed sessions.

The coaches are very skilled and knowledgeable and include Oxfordshire’s no#1 women’s squash player and a previously top 40 World ranked squash player and the last European champion in Racketball.

With this calibre of coaching the club has successfully developed and nurtured players from grassroots through to international ranking playing all over the world.

Shape up while the little ones have fun in the Crèche

Getting back into shape for the summer can be a challenge when there are small children to consider.

Well the good news is this is no longer a problem, because for parents looking to join classes or use the gym, Racquets has an onsite crèche facility. This means you can exercise knowing your children are in safe hands.

The children love the crèche and all the staff are experienced in caring for little ones and, of course, all are DBS checked.

“We open our crèche to coincide with a selection of our most popular classes each morning so our members with young children can enjoy the benefits of the club” explains Sue.

The Racquets crèche is open Monday through to Saturday and can care for children aged from 6 weeks old. This makes it a perfect option for new mums looking to get back into their pre-baby wardrobes or those looking for a little bit of time for themselves.

As with the rest of the club, the crèche also offers excellent value for money. A session for members costs just £4 for the first child and £3 for siblings. Non-members attending classes or squash sessions can also use the crèche facilities. As an added bonus, you don’t have to book days in advance so if you want to attend a class just turn up, drop off your children, get moving and start shaping up.

Sue Martin-Downhill said, “We want our members and guests to get the best from our club and so a crèche session is around 2 hours giving mums a chance to come along to a class and then have a session in the gym or cardio room and still have time to shower and change ready for the rest of their day”.

Junior Programme

Racquets offers an extensive junior programme for children from 18 months onwards. There is a toddler and parent ball skills session on Wednesday mornings.

For 4 -7 year olds there is a Saturday morning ball skills session. Parents can play with their children or drop off their kids and head off for a workout. The crèche is also open on Saturday morning, so if you want a longer session you can book your children into the crèche afterwards.

For older children there are squash sessions. Many children in Thame will already be familiar with Racquets due to partnerships with local primary schools where the children receive squash coaching as part of their PE lessons.

From 11 onwards, juniors can participate in squash coaching and access to the cardio zone in the gym. For over 16’s they can also access the weights zone.

The juniors are an important part of the Racquets family and a lot of the juniors have introduced their parents to the club by encouraging them to have a game of squash with them.

Throughout the holidays there are a range of activities including drop in sessions for non-members.

Racquets is a good option for teenagers looking for something to do at the weekends and during the holidays. Non-members are welcome.

Still unsure whether you can shape up for summer with Racquets?

Call us now on 01844 261754 to meet the team and visit the club. Quote SHAPE10 for a free trial gym session with a trainer, or a free try out one of our fitness classes.

Find out more about our forthcoming events and news at www.racquets-fitness-centre.com or follow us on Facebook  www.facebook.com/Racquetscentre/