Tune in, log on, get fit

ANYONE WHO IS as devoted to gadgets as they are to fitness will be in their element at Virgin Active, the gym that’s just taken over four floors in Bangkok’s Empire Tower. 

It’s part of the chain of fitness clubs run by the Virgin Group – yes, the high-flying corporation that British billionaire Sir Richard Branson owns. The Bangkok outlet, which launched last Wednesday, occupies an astonishing 4,000 square metres, the better to get you in shape for one of those space flights that Branson is promising.

Once you join the club, you download a Virgin Active application for your phone. With this you can check the timetables, book or cancel classes and track your progress on the workout regime you’ve chosen. 

Your personalised profile is picked up by the state-of-the-art Technogym workout machines at the club, which will display all the data you need during a session on a swipe-screen. Customise the training programme as you please, and then, while burning off the kilograms, enjoy some TV or games or see what’s happening on Facebook. You can even take a selfie while you’re running on the treadmill and then upload it to share in all its sweaty glory. 

“We have six workout studios and over 200 classes per week,” says Christian Mason, operations director for Southeast Asia. “We make sure the club doesn’t feel too big, but comfortable instead.”

The changing rooms are huge and equipped with lockers for your gear and charging units for your gadgets, which also lock up securely. Rather than a key you use your member card or wristband, through which cash-free payments can also be made at the cafe. And the lounges have free Wi-Fi and Internet stations.

“We try to make it as convenient as possible for everyone by removing any ‘excuses’,” Mason laughs. “Someone might say they forgot their gym bag, so we provide workout attire in various sizes at no charge, and towels too. All you need is your own shoes!”

Equipment includes the power plate, which is good for stretching the muscles and getting the blood flowing with its combination of cable resistance and vibration, so you can do a virtually limitless range of static and dynamic exercises. The patent-pending kinesis device is a pulley system that rotates 360 degrees so you can move in any direction, straining against the resistance coils. 

The Bangkok branch is home to Virgin Active’s first “high-altitude training studio”, in which classes are conducted at a simulated altitude of up to 3,000 metres, meaning you burn off more calories and better strengthen the lungs and heart. 

Among the other classes are zumba, body pump, zuu, Pilates, hot yoga and anti-gravity yoga.

The cycling studio will have you riding your stationary bike through stunning virtual landscapes. There’s a rock-climbing wall as well, supreme exercise for mobility and strength. They have a large pool, a Jacuzzi for a nice and gentle massage, and ice and steam rooms. 

In the Rock Salt Room, Himalayan rock salt is heated and the fumes have a detoxifying effect while improving your breathing. All you have to do is recline in a comfortable deck chair, breathing in the particles of salt and negative ions that soothe the nervous system, relieving stress. 

 If you get any more relaxed – or if you’re worn out from a rugged session (or by life itself) – climb into a futuristic cocoon-like sleep pod. The pod itself will then recline as if it needs a decent sleep too and close a privacy shield around you. It has ambient lighting, calming sounds and vibrations and a built-in timer in case you absolutely must wake up again and get back to reality.

With flexibility and mobility the keys to our era, the club requires no long-term commitments. You sign up for Bt3,000 and thereafter pay Bt645 a week and you can walk into any Virgin Active location in the world. 

Expect a second Bangkok branch in the EmQuartier mall rising up opposite the Emporium, coming next year.

 

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