SAh, the winner of the latest series apprentice plans to establish a chain of gyms aimed primarily at professional women. Explaining his business strategy, Rachel Woolford says this is a morale booster because prospective customers have enough income to pay for fitness and can splurge on fancy gym sets. He said it was a good thing.
I thought back to the small gym in the country that I reluctantly go to twice a week. The average member spends more on tattoos than Lycra. I imagined there was a highly decorated young man, his tattoos spread all over his body, flailing around like the Virginia Creeper. He gave me the name of a tattoo artist in Galashiels if I was interested.
Mostly male customers He is not what you would call a fashion conscious person and wears baggy T-shirts, hoodies, and high-top sneakers like a model. wire. There's no urban chic here. After all, this is the heart of Borders and we don't know it. One afternoon there was so much dry mud on and around the treadmill that it looked like Belted Galloway training for a 10K.
Rachel Woolford and Lord Sugar.Gym owner wins Apprentice 2024 series
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My own dress code is as modest as possible, hoping to blend into the background. I would be happier if I could wear a balaclava. Of course, one of the good things about getting older is that when you're my age, you're almost invisible. Last month, on a trip to Sweetie Betty, a women's fitness facility that's like the Tesla of electric cars, I was met with blank stares from employees. I'm not sure which was more off-putting: their apparent lack of interest in my vintage figure or the price tag on cheap clothes that fit in my back pocket. My sports style of quickly reversing remains an homage to Sports Direct, if you can call it that.
After a year of forcing myself to lift weights and overcoming the fear of hitting the wrong speed on the treadmill and falling off track, I realized a real gap in the market. It's not just a place where strong women can get comfortable while exposing their chiseled torsos, it's a gym for people over her 55s of all genders and abilities.
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The places I frequented were mostly sanctuaries of young men, who would discuss their latest injuries and caloric intake while waiting their turn to lift weights. There are also groups of people in their 30s and 40s, pounding away on the treadmill until those nearby are enveloped in a miasma of acrid sweat. But alongside these health fanatics, there are also many who are old enough to remember the three-day week. Some of them are so arthritic that they may have served their country.
This gray-haired brigade tenaciously and slightly self-consciously engages in floor exercises, leg presses, dumbbell lifts, and punishing themselves with cable pulls while mostly avoiding eye contact. There was a silent camaraderie between us, and a barely concealed amusement in the theatrical groans of young men lifting barbells so heavy they could barely roll across the floor.
My sports style is more of an homage to Sports Direct than Sweaty Betty.
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I try to imagine a studio that feels completely like home. By this stage in life, we don't chase torn muscles. That's what was done for us first. Most of us have been referred by a physical therapist to help reverse damage caused by a slipped disc, sciatica, an accident, whiplash, or a lifetime of manual labor and sitting at a desk. I think there is. Just like churchgoers who say they attend not because they are good but because they want to be better, we attend to relieve some of our shortness of breath and weakness, even if it is weak. We are here to restore the non-resistance limb to normalcy.
Bracing myself for a rowing machine session feels like trying to keep a tiger at bay with a cane. It is a desperate attempt to stem the decline. Running a marathon isn't on your agenda, but catching a bus departing from a stop might be.
For those with more osteoporosis than the Olympics (some of whom have trouble even getting down on an exercise mat), training in the shadow of bodybuilders and triathletes can be daunting. But if there was a place explicitly designed for our use, far more people would sign up and stick there.
The bulletin board may display the number of sports physical therapists who respond quickly. Near the water cooler, we have gear tailored to our needs, such as non-slip trainers with Velcro closures, yoga mats with hydraulics to help regain upright posture, and a variety of age-appropriate isotonic health drinks. There may be select shops that offer it. Flavors such as Rich Tea and Horlicks. Not to mention the series of best-selling books starting with . Grandpa and Grandma's Gym Guide. I welcome your offer, Lord Sugar.
Gabriella Bennett is absent.
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