Staying in Shape
One woman’s discovery of a workout that promises way more than toned muscles
Fitness Moves
Orangetheory Fitness had me with its ad: Spend one hour exercising, and for the next 36, I’d burn more calories even while resting. “Try us for free” clinched our rendezvous. So I filled out an online form and the next day received a text message: “Hey Dayna! This is Bre from Orangetheory Fitness. How are you today?”
I was fine but apprehensive. I was also committed to trying Orangetheory’s group approach to personal training. Bre and I corresponded about what I needed to do: The next day, report half an hour early for class, fill out paperwork and be introduced to the workout. I was to bring a water bottle and towel and wear comfortable workout clothes and “running shoes.” Running shoes? Uh-oh. I’m not a runner.
I’m not a complete wreck, either. What I am is older than I feel, most days. My physical history includes big peaks and valleys, like having two children and then teaching step aerobics, then gaining 100 pounds (don’t tell anyone, OK?) and losing 50 (tell everyone, please).
No doubt my body mass index (BMI) is too high. My fitness level is fair, perhaps tapping timidly on the door to “good.” About a year ago I began a health campaign with the goal of increasing my activity beyond hopping onto an elliptical in my house at least every other day.
And along comes an opportunity to take a class at Orangetheory. Why not Taupe Theory or Seafoam Green Theory? I wondered.
Sales associate Amy Scott at the Orangetheory studio in Fort Myers had the answer. Yes studio, not gym, and the first opened four years ago in Fort Lauderdale. The facility is smaller than the average gym and that’s on purpose. At about 2,500 square feet, it’s designed to foster camaraderie, according to co-founder Dave Long, quoted in Forbes magazine.