The battle of the bulge has begun – and with it the battle for new members too as gyms slash their fees to entice people to sign up.
One gym manager said people would be 'spoilt for choice' soon as the former 24/7 Fitness opens under the PureGym name, the firm's third venue in Norwich.
Meanwhile another new gym has also just opened for 2020 at the Royal Norwich golf course, run by local personal trainer Brad Williams. Others such as The Gym and David Lloyd are slashing memberships to cash in on new sign-ups.
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Jason Ives, manager at both PureGyms in Norwich; in Castle Quarter and Aylsham Road, said the firm now had 10,000 members across both with their newest gym, opening in the Riverside's former 24/7 Fitness, due to be up and running by the end of the month.
He said current offers aimed at enticing new people included no joining fee at Pure's existing Norwich gyms, saving people £15. Memberships currently cost £19.99 a month and Mr Ives said Pure had offered a deal to members of 24/7 Fitness to use Pure while work was going on at their gym. This offer is no longer available but they're offering a multi membership, meaning you can use all three Pure gyms for just £2 extra on an existing membership.
He said: "People will be spoilt for choice. We've seen huge success since we opened in Castle Quarter and we expect some big numbers of new members."
Meanwhile, a new gym officially opens on Monday at the Royal Norwich golf club at Weston Longville. Called GYM 121, it's a personal trainer service run by Brad Williams, who is director of the Club 100 health clubs with a facility in Canary Wharf, London as well as in Norwich. The new service at the golf club is for members or non members, he said, but personal training and some exclusive fitness classes only. Sessions are available for £40 an hour or if you are a member, £36.
"The facilities are truly stunning," he said.
Other gyms around the city also doing deals to attract new members include The Gym, Hall Road, which is currently offering the first month at half price, £8.50, and David Lloyd, Drayton High Road, is offering a three month membership trial.
But at Bannatyne health club, where full memberships are priced from £45.99 a month, some users seemed less than impressed with the Thorpe facility. One person recently put on TripAdvisor: 'Don't know what other Bannatynes are like but this one is very low grade, worn, grubby and massively over used.'
However, a spokesperson said: "We have a strong and loyal membership of local people who we are supporting in achieving their healthy lifestyle goals. They benefit from the highest quality facilities and equipment alongside expert professional support at our health club, which has received around £1 million worth of investment in the past 12 months."
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