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Western Racquet & Fitness club provides online classes for members

Group fitness classes go virtual with social distancing
Posted at 6:07 PM, Apr 19, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-19 19:07:02-04

GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC 26) -- Without group fitness classes, full-time instructors are looking for solutions to bring fitness to their clients.

"I want to have a place for our members that are still paying for their membership dues and I want them to have resources to be able to do workouts at home," Membership Director and group fitness instructor Amanda Boeder said.

With technology at their fingertips, Western Racquet Club management was eager to retain the sense of community amongst their members.

"Our goal is to keep our members connected," Group Fitness Director Kari Merrill said. "I do not want our members to lose their focus, lose their goals, lose their connections. We're family. So how can we get everybody in one place? How can we communicate this correctly? And how can we keep them moving and connected? "

Merrill manages the Western Group Fitness Junkies Facebook group that has over five hundred and fifty members, with instructional videos going up almost daily.

"We're creatures of habit, and we all have these routines," Boeder said. "So everybody had their routines Monday through Sunday of things that they like to do so we're trying to make it as normal, to make all of this as normal as possible for our members."

It hasn't been easy to teach all staff how to use the same technology, coordinate classes, and teach to clients at home using various internet providers at different capabilities.

"We know it's not going to be perfect. We know it's not going to be like walking in the door. And I had to let that part go," Merrill said. "Like, 'am I off beat? I can't teach like this!'"

At the end of the day, "they just want to see each other's faces and hear your voice and get that little bit of like 'this is my 4:30 class. And that is my instructor,'" Merrill said.

Western is workshopping ways to bring all of their regular services to members safely. Starting Monday, April 20, Western is offering home delivery for smoothies and wellness shots from their fuel bar.