Delighted to open new gym in Bunclody
ONE of county Wexford’s most prominent and highly respected gymnasiums is expanding from its existing Enniscorthy base into an additional premises in Bunclody.
Nolan Health & Fitness is owned and operated by brothers, Sean and Michael Nolan.
Its existing facility on the Old Dublin Road, Enniscorthy, is renowned all over the county for the professionalism of the staff and quality of the training and advice given to clients.
Now, that service has been expanded to include the wider Bunclody area with the opening of the business’s second gymnasium.
Speaking to this newspaper Sean Nolan said opening a second centre was required due to increasing clientele.
The Nolan brothers and their staff have catered for everyone from the senior Wexford hurling, football and camogie players, to people like Irish rugby legend, Tadhg Furlong.
‘We have been involved with the Wexford panels for over seven years,’ said Sean.
However, they give all of their customers the same level of expert care to ensure that each person’s individual goals and needs are addressed.
‘I am still studying,’ said Sean, who with 24 years in the industry behind him, is always striving for excellence.
‘Things are always evolving and there are things I do differently now to what I did 10 years ago and we give that expertise to our clients,’ he said.
Sean said strength and conditioning, nutrition and dietary advice, and a general overview of clients’ lifestyle and wellbeing are part of what he and his staff offer customers.
‘I want to know about the food our customers are eating and then work a programme around that,’ he said.
‘You can live your life so long as it’s in moderation and there is structure and balance to your exercise and what you eat,’ he added.
Sean said his brother Michael also has a very ‘ hands-on’ approach to his work and both brothers regularly put in 60-hour weeks to ensure their clients are getting the best possible care and attention.
They are elite trainers at the very pinnacle of their chosen profession and in Sean’s case he also has world class sports nutritionist qualifications.
The ‘can do’ attitude adopted by Sean in his profession is perhaps best summed up by his own journey back from a broken neck he suffered playing rugby seven years ago.
With doctors having indicated his sporting life was over he fought his way back to win a world championship handball title this year. ‘Exercise keeps me going,’ he said.
‘I love my job and the satisfaction you get from knowing that you are helping other people cannot be measured,’ he added.
Highlighting what motivates him Sean said that when the Wexford senior hurlers were travelling back down to the model county after their victorious Leinster final victory over Kilkenny one of the players text him to thank him for his hard work and help during the year.
‘That just makes it all so worth it,’ said Sean.
‘To know you’ve helped and to have it acknowledged that way is just a great feeling,’ he added.
He himself completed the gruelling Leinster cycle challenge which saw him cycle 180km a day for four days-in-a-row for Downs Syndrome
Ireland.
Throughout his career to-date Sean has trained hundreds of thousands of people and it’s that level of experience that he and his brother, and their staff, are able to offer clients in Enniscorthy and Bunclody.
‘What works for Jack might not work for Bill,’ he said. ‘That’s why we look at each individual person and work out a programme that best suits their needs,’ he added.
Nolan Health & Fitness also offer clients use of a 3D body scanner which can meticulously pinpoint where body fat is building up.
The state-of-the-art scanner is mobile and can be utilised through both gymnasiums.
‘We feel that two or three good sessions a week is ample for most people,’ said Sean.
‘People need to enjoy life and that’s what we aim to help them with.’
Clients of the business range in age from 82 down.
‘It’s not just another gym,’ said Sean.
‘For us it’s about longevity of life,’ he added.
Sean is particularly focused on helping kids not make ‘structural mistakes’ with their bodies from buying weight sets at home and doing the wrong thing.
He takes children from the age of 12 upwards and develops strength and conditioning programmes for them.
He also admitted to being ‘furious’ about ‘crazy, non factual myths about such activities stunting growth.
Nolan Health & Fitness have identified the need to give children the best start for a healthier life, which translates into giving them an extra advantage going forward for whatever they aspire to. They are delighted to introduce Aspire gymnastics to their premises. This is an elite gymnastics academy which operates, three or four-daysa-week, catering for children aged 5 and upwards.
Other activities and programmes include Strong by Zumba, spinning, body-toning, boxercise, kids strength and conditioning, yoga and pilates.
The brothers helped a team of people get through this year’s Hell and Back challenge who thought they couldn’t do it.
‘It’s about meeting challenges and helping people achieve things they thought they wouldn’t be able to.’
‘Whether it’s a girl standing at the alter getting married or someone completing a cycling challenge it’s a great feeling knowing you contributed to them being ready for it,’ said Sean.
A competitor in the Hell and Back challenge text him after the event to say thanks for the help and support. She said “Thanks for all the help and support. Knowing that you were behind my back crossing the line has changed my life”.
‘It’s those comments that make it all worthwhile,’ said Sean. For more information about Nolan Health & Fitness at either the Ryland Road facility in Bunclody or the gymnasium on the Old Dublin Road, in Enniscorthy, contact 086 6010584.