 |
|
||||||||
| |||||||||
|
|
|||
|
Numbers plunge at fitness centers during fasting month -
10-10-2007
Numbers plunge at fitness centers during fasting month
Ramadhan is not a good time for the city's gyms. Abstaining from eating and drinking during the daylight hours tends to curtail the fitness urge in even the most enthusiastic gym junkie and gyms around Jakarta have been quiet for the past few weeks. "(During the evening) the gym would usually be packed. We'd have at least 50 visitors coming a day, but during the fasting month, we're lucky to have 20," Antonius Waluyo, assistant manager of the Manggala Fitness and Sports Center in Central Jakarta, told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. He added that fewer people were using the center's pool, spa and tennis court than usual. "In fact, those using the swimming pool these days are mostly children." Other fitness centers around Jakarta tell a similar story. Ismail Yordan Usuluddin or Yodi, 25, who usually allocates four days a week for his cardio workout and bench presses, said he had to alter his habits in the fasting month. Yodi is a graphic designer who works at night. Usually he works out during the day but at Ramadhan the need to save energy for the day has forced him to work out at night. "During Ramadhan I only work out twice a week, on Saturdays and Sundays. I don't have the energy to go during the day like I usually do. I feel like I just won't be able to do a full exercise," said Yodi, who goes to Celebrity Fitness at Pondok Indah Mall, South Jakarta. "There are fewer people at the gym during the fasting month. Usually there would be around 50 to 60 people, but the last time I went there, there were only three people," he said. Roni, a part-time fitness instructor at Manggala agreed. "You can sense how quiet it is these days. Everywhere I teach, the attendance is at least 50 percent down from before Ramadhan." Neni, a full-time fitness instructor at Manggala, said that most classes in the gym have been reduced from one-hour sessions to 45-minute sessions. "The instructors get paid per hour, but the management doesn't reduce our pay just because of the shortened sessions." She said that during Ramadhan there is more administration work because of the change of habits among the gym-goers and part-time fitness instructors. Another fitness center facing a decrease in attendance is Fitness First, a UK-based fitness center, which has 70 freelance fitness instructors. It is usually attended by 900 people every day, but this Ramadhan numbers have dropped to 700. Fitness First front of house manager Indra Syafnir said that the low turn out was noticeable, especially, in the mornings and at noon. "I'm certain the scarcity affects the (guests). If you used to have a gym partner who accompanied you daily, and then this month he's nowhere to be seen, that would influence your mood and make you exercise less," he said. The training coordinator at Fitness First, Robbi, said that the gym instructors would adjust the program design during Ramadhan by slightly changing the classes of those who are fasting. "We simply move those who are fasting to the higher level classes. As a result, they can switch to more mind and body workouts, like yoga, instead of doing a lot of cardio workouts during Ramadhan, " he said. Not everyone sees Ramdhan as hindrance to exercise. Ferry, a regular at Fitness First Plaza Semanggi Branch, says the fasting month is a blessing in disguise for his health. "Working out while fasting is actually good for your body, because it helps you detoxify. I actually feel lighter during the day," he said. Ferry has decided to continue exercising throughout Ramadhan by adjusting the frequency of his visits from the regular five times a week to three times a week. source: thejakartapost.com 
|
Linear Mode
