On 9/8/2011, TruckersNews.com ran an article about a trucker gym project being launched at ten "Pilot Flying J travel centers in a partnership between Snap Fitness and Rolling Strong."
The article stated:
Each Snap Fitness Rolling Strong gym will be located at a Pilot Flying J travel center or travel plaza, will be staffed by fitness professionals and will include a variety of fitness equipment. Monthly gym dues are $29.95 for members of the trucking community. The membership includes access to Snap Fitness Rolling Strong gyms as well as any of the 1,300 Snap Fitness clubs worldwide. Family membership options for the trucking community will be available. Current Snap Fitness club members will be able to use the amenities at Snap Fitness Rolling Strong gyms at no extra charge.
Vicki spoke with a lady at the Snap Fitness/Rolling Strong booth at the 2012 Mid America Trucking Show in Louisville, KY, and asked a lot of questions.
According to the lady with whom she spoke, the fitness professional will be in the facilities 12 hours per day, not 24 hours per day as the article perhaps implies.
As we see it, here are some pros and cons regarding actual trucker gym facilities, memberships and usage:
We visited the Greater Chicago I-55 Auto/Truck Stop in June 2010.
A good part of the area upstairs had a trucker gym with about a dozen pieces of equipment at the time.
As you will see from these photos, no one was using the equipment.
On June 15, 2012, TruckingInfo.com published an article about how the TravelCenters of America at TA Dallas South (Dallas, Texas) would be opening a StayFit fitness center that would be "free to all professional drivers who are members of the company's UltraOne Driver Rewards Program."
Drivers may learn about and sign up for the UltraOne program.
Money saving tip: Some professional truck drivers prefer different trucker fitness programs of health
and wellness, such as those that utilize no equipment (body weight exercise) or equipment specifically designed to be used in a truck.
Another type of in-truck exercise program, Truckercise, is designed to let you use what is already in your truck.
(For your convenience, we are linking to or listing products on Amazon.com, with which we have an affiliate relationship.)
Some drivers prefer to have "fun" with their workouts, such as by dancing to lively music like Sweatin'
to the Oldies or Zumba
Fitness Exhilarate
.
There may or may not be enough room in the cab of a big rig to allow for these dance programs.
Depending on the gym you visit and when you visit, there may or may not be a scheduled workout set to music.
Depending on the program set-up, the types of exercise equipment in gyms may or may not be consistent from location to location.
Since some pieces of exercise equipment have built-in electronics (elliptical trainers, treadmills, recumbent bicycles, etc.) to track such measures as distance, resistance/incline, heart rate and calories burned, they are subject to breakdown/failure.
Unless the facility has a regular schedule of maintenance regarding machine performance, the number of machines may be reduced indefinitely.
Check how often the machines will be evaluated and what the truck stop's policy is regarding rapid machine repair.
Before you invest your hard-earned money in a trucker gym membership, you will want to develop your own regular exercise routine.
Without having established this first, your likelihood of being consistent in working out at a gym is decreased.
Check the fine print on your membership paperwork to see if a refund for the unused portion of your membership will be issued, should you decide to cancel.
Some drivers feel more comfortable paying for only a month at a time instead of a year at a time.
Remember that an exercise routine should also be conducted under the supervision of appropriate health care professionals and should be accompanied by a nutritious diet.
Return from Trucker Gym Tips: Fitness Programs at Truck Stops with Gyms to our Health and Wellness page or our Truck Drivers Money Saving Tips home page.
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