Fitness is Fun at the Sports Center

By Marivir R. Montebon

It is the biggest and one of the most advanced health clubs and gym in New York City. The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers, on Manhattan's lower west side, boasts of state of the art facilities and excellent training that spell fun and excitement for health buffs and athletes alike.

Named as the “Best Gym for the Urban Athlete” by Fitness Magazine and the “Best Manhattan Gym” by About.com, it is also naturally attractive to clients for it faces the lovely Hudson River since it was established in 1996.

Fitness Director Josh Fly shares to OSM! what the Sports Center has to distinctively offer in this health conscious city where gyms grow like mushrooms. He is a certified personal trainer at the National Academy of Sports Medicine and is an Elite Personal Trainer at Chelsea Piers. Josh has had seven years of Personal Training experience. Excerpts:

1. What is the edge of The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers in New York City?

The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers has an edge over other health clubs in the city because it is truly Manhattan’s ultimate gym. The facilities, programs and services here are unlike any other gym. Some of these features include NYC’s only indoor sand volleyball court, a 25-yard swimming pool, a 1/4-mile indoor track, a rock climbing wall and bouldering cave, and a boxing ring.

Additionally, the Sports Center is the home for a nationally ranked competitive triathlon team, a triathlon training program for beginners, a Performance Center for runners, cyclists and triathletes to train on state-of-the-art high-speed treadmills and Computrainers, a boot camp training class lead by a former Army sergeant and much more. A lot of our members also appreciate the club's location in Hudson River Park since the bikeway/walkway is right outside our doors.
It’s a great option if you feel like taking your workout outdoors.

The Sports Center has been named the “Best Gym for the Urban Athlete” by Fitness Magazine, the “Best Manhattan Gym” by About.com and has more 5-star reviews on Yelp.com than any other gym in the city.

2.  What makes The Sports Center attractive to clients, aside from facilities?

Athletes are attracted to our gym – we attract people who are serious about your fitness or sport and want to surround yourself in an inspiring environment.

A number of the personal trainers at the Sports Center are also accomplished athletes, including former NBA players and Olympians.


3. As a training coach, what is the key to maintain good relations with and good results for clients?

It’s really important to listen to your clients so that you can be on track with their goals. Our job is to get them to work towards the results that they want, while maintaining safe and realistic expectations. We always follow-up with our clients as well to make sure that they’re enjoying every aspect of the training experience at the Sports Center. Good communication is definitely the key for a great trainer-client relationship.


4.   How do you keep pace with competition?

We’re really dedicated to providing innovative new fitness options for our members, so we’re constantly on the lookout for new workout trends and equipment. We like to be the first to offer anything new.

Last fall, we were the only gym on the East coast to offer SurfSET Fitness classes and to have our trainers become certified SurfSET instructors. Next year, we will start providing Ortho Kinetics training to our members. We will be the first gym to offer this type of training in the Northeast and one of only four gyms in the entire country, so that’s really exciting.

We prefer to stay ahead of the competition – not on pace with them. That’s part of what really makes us unique.

(The Sports Center is located on Pier 60 at Chelsea Piers, 19th Street & the Hudson River Park. Tel. No. 800.787.5495 and website at http://www.chelseapiers.pth4.com/sc/fitness/index.cfm)