The Fitness Equation:  Combining Fitness With Fun

Marty Thomas, General Manager of The Fitness Equation knows it’s difficult enough to fit exercise into a busy schedule and dragging reluctant kids to the gym can turn it into a real workout.  So he decided to give his fitness center a "Wow" factor that would make kids want to tag along.

Soft Play sales representative Donnie Harrelson helped Thomas design a custom, 2,000 square-foot, contained Soft Play playground, complete with a Cobra Copter, Aerial Batbox and two Vertical Climbs, that fit the site.

"Donnie was great," says Thomas.  "He made it very easy to visualize the design by providing drawings and digital pictures and the turn-around was quick.  While I can’t translate the impact of the play area on our business in terms of dollars, I can tell you that kids’ eyes light up when they see the playground during tours with prospective members.  The adults love it because the kids love it and it wears them out!"

It has also been popular with fitness center staff because children are safe and occupied, which makes it easier to supervise them.  The play area is open—and busy—from 8:30 am to 8 pm every day and can be rented by the hour for birthday parties.

Although the play area has been great for attracting members and keeping kids happy, even more important to Thomas, are the benefits  it offers for children’s overall health and well being at a time when exercise has taken a back seat to video games and schools are being forced to cut back or remove exercise from the curriculum.   Play is a critical part of a child’s neurological and physical development and helps development of fine and gross motor skills and social skills.  

"I can tell you, the play area has been a huge factor in our success," he says. "In fact, I recently recommended Soft Play to another of our clubs and I think they’ll be installing a playground this year."