DOWN WITH LEISURE UP WITH WELLNESS 



We don't like the name Leisure Centre, it implies people lying about 'at their leisure' as they say but that is not what these centres are about.they are focused on wellness and supporting people who want to get fitter so it is good to see that they are being renamed as Wellness Hubs. Similarly Gyms are not primarily for gymnastics but to help people feel and function better. neither is the image of Gyms and Fitness Centres accurate any more. Sure there are wonderfully toned young people in lycra and leotards and just the right amount of sweat but increasingly they are realising that their traditional market, people aged 20 to 40, are only a small proportion of the people who would benefit and are developing new services and a new style, for example sessions in the afternoon without booming music.

So ask around, partly about cost but at least as important is the culture -

• do they welcome older people or tease them?
• ​do they have any trainers aged over 60?