High-tech gym launches despite business gloom
Pandemic restrictions and the struggles of the fitness industry have not deterred at least one Auckland business from taking a giant, future focused step.
Pandemic restrictions and the struggles of the fitness industry have not deterred at least one business from taking a giant, future focused step, with Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay launching New Zealand’s largest million dollar high-tech – digitally connected – health club in a substantial two-level 900m2 facility.
Co-founder of the new state-of-the-art health club, Lolesh Sharma, said that while some people may have questioned the founders’ sanity with the new venture, he believes gyms now more than ever have a significant contribution to make to supporting the physical and mental health of our communities.
“The gym industry must change from how they did things before the pandemic. We have a duty of care to do so. The new Snap Mairangi Bay facility does that by creating a unique sensory, digitally-driven experience that significantly improves health and fitness outcomes. This gym will not be a chore. It will be an experience.”
The new Snap Fitness health club combines the metrics offered by high tech digital technology – customers can connect using their own devices – along with a visually stimulating experience in settings such as the cinema-like dedicated spin studio (described by one person as “like a fitness nightclub”).
Co-founder, Jeremy Tevaga, says the new health studio caters from the complete fitness spectrum of gym users, from heavy lifting to functional and cardio zones, with all conceivable equipment.
“We will also have a dedicated recovery area complete with massage guns and stretching machines. Spin, pump, yoga, HIIT training or boxing, the new facility has it all.”
Snap Fitness will use the TeamBeats(TM) platform, which combines music, time efficiency, variety and fun for a unique and uplifting trainer-led fitness experience.
TechnoGym equipment, when combined with the MyWellness App, allows users to scan the QR code on any piece of equipment to record, store and track their fitness data on their phone – as well as access their brand of entertainment, such as YouTube or Netflix, while training.
The facility’s combination of metric and visual stimulation, along with an extensive menu of group fitness options, is shown to increase user motivation, participation and performance significantly.
With the ability to choose from more than 30 fitness classes a week in the dedicated group fitness studio – over and above the Technogym Group Cycle Programme – users will be able to join a class at any time, plug in their heart rate device for real-time feedback and track progress.
Brie Tawhai-Tevaga, co-founder and facility manager says, “group fitness classes are the way forward because they are social and inclusive, which not only creates community but social accountability that improves both attendance and performance.”
Te Ao Māori
Having engaged Cultural Flow director, Hone Heke Ngapua-Rankin, Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay is the first gym of its kind in the country to adopt the philosophy of te ao Māori right across the business.
Not only will all signage be in English and Te Reo, the gym aims to use the traditional values of Tikanga Māori to inspire performance, etiquette, ethics and communication between members, the staff and the local community.
“We are a multicultural business partnership and we are all on a journey of self-discovery of who we are and we want to develop deeper connections to te ao Māori in a modern world,” says Tawhai-Tevaga. “It makes sense to bring who we are into our business, but we also believe that the culture, values and philosophies that Māori have to offer can add real value to the mental and physical wellbeing of our diverse community. It connects all of us.”
Finishing touches
The new Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay will also include infra-red saunas, which can aid sleep, assist muscle recovery and improve joint pain and stiffness.
In association with Swolefoods, Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay will offer a café called, Café Oilei – which in Fijian means ‘oh gosh or ‘wow’, and will offer healthy food, supplements, coffee and drinks. As a nod to co-founder Sharma’s Fijian roots, the new Snap Mairangi Bay will have pure Fijian product in all the showers.
Pictured above: (L-R) Lolesh Sharma, Brie Tawhai-Tevaga and Jeremy Tevaga.
Checkout the new Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay at https://snapnation.co.nz/new/mairangi-bay/