The Italian Job

Well, not much fitness going on so far in the traditional sense anyway. I found that in Bologna no one was really concerned with working out. Although, I did see a couple poster sized ads for the institute naturale. It seemed this place had yoga, meditation and some healthy workshops. That was really the only thing I found. Again, there was a lot of walking done by all. My general observation was that Bologna was a much fatter city. The most disappointing fact was that the there were at least three McDonalds in a 1.5 mile radius and they were always packed. I wish I could say it was only tourists, but this time, it seemed it was a little bit of everyone. I get that it is inexpensive but so is pasta! It really showed on the children of the area. They were all overweight and borderline obese. This inspired me to go to our hotel's "fitness center" and get a work-out in. Well, not much working out happened. I don't know why I thought when the hotel said they had a fitness center it was going to actually have fitness equipment. It turned out to only have an arm bike, which was good considering my foot. However, not much of a workout. The rest of the room consisted of a lounge chair because after the strenuous arm bike one must lay down. Then if you've really exhausted yourself, you can take a nice steam and/or shower. This fitness center had more spa amenities than fitness equipment. Ha, ha, ha...my mistake, what was I thinking? Why would anyone want to actually workout in the fitness center? :-0

The next area of Italy we visited was Cinque Terre. This is where I saw a lot of non-traditional exercising. All the locals were carrying something up and down stairs all day. They were out fishing or rowing boats. None of the locals seemed to be overweight. Cinque Terre fit all my expectations of Italy. All the locals were working hard and constantly cleaning. The only time they stopped was 1-5pm everyday for their siesta. This is a well deserved rest! Then they wake up and continue until 10-11pm. It starts all over again the next day. Even with all this hard work no one seems to complain. They are always saying ciao to one another and seem to be in a cheerful mood. Cinque Terre encompasses a particular lifestyle one that would be an adjustment for me but seems to be the only place the locals could imagine living.

Next, I will be observing Rome. I am hoping to find a yoga studio or gym to explore.

To be continued…

Paris part duex

I decided to observe the Parisians as we were walking around. I have discovered that their daily lives entail a great deal of exercise. Of course there is plenty of walking, which tends to be the case in many cities. In addition, they have a bicycle rental program that is widely used by everyone; Parisians, tourists and tipsy people post bar hoping. I also saw some swing dance classes being held along la seine (river). The coolest form of exercise I observed was the Friday night rollerblading. I was told that they meet every Friday and Sunday. I was able to look up more information on their website, www.pari-roller.com. I looked at the course and it ended up going right by where we were staying, which was quite convenient. I believe the course is typically about 18km and gets fairly aggressive toward the end. It is suggested that you have some rollerblading experience. I didn’t realize that rollerblading was so big in Paris. Apparently, it just never went out of style like in the states. I remember my rollerblades and how much fun I used to have in them. It was a great form of exercise but didn’t seem like you were working so hard. This is probably why it has done so well in Paris. Maybe they will make a come-back in the states.

I would like to touch on the rumor that Parisians are so healthy yet they eat heavy food and smoke. Well, from my experience there are a couple differences. They are not obsessed with fast food like Americans. However, there were McDonalds, which was disappointing but they were typically full of tourists. It seemed that the meals were very different than I had expected. I was expecting what I had heard…heavy creamy food. What I found was small breakfast, which consisted mostly of bread, juice, tea or coffee. Lunch was a salad, cured meat and/or cheese and a baguette. Dinner almost always included mixed greens and was an appropriate proportion. Of course there is always wine with dinner but our wine glasses in the U.S. are HUGE! We can typically finish a bottle of wine with 4.5 glasses in Paris it took us 8 glasses. It seemed most Parisians ordered a half carafe with dinner. In the end, I think they do a better job of the cliché, everything in moderation. They also take their time eating and really enjoy their food and company. Dare I say it…maybe we could learn something from the French.

Bonjour from Paris!

We visited The Dailey Method today and met with Kelly Dailey-Vinoche. The studio has a quality of exclusivity because of its location. It is in a neighborhood that is very elite. The actual studio is a re-designed horse stable in the back of this enormous and gorgeous property. It seemed like it would have been someone's mansion at one time. I imagine there were different quarters... those who lived in it, the staff and the horse stables. What amazing artchitecture! Today it is used for different businesses and of course, The Dailey Method.

When we arrived the class was in session so I was able to see the end of the class. They were holding their lunch express class, which was an hour, normally class runs for 90 minutes. It seemed everyone really enjoyed class by the relaxed expressions on their faces upon exiting the studio. Kelly taught a really nice stretching and relaxation series toward the end of class. I was standing outside thinking I could use that, which means it even worked on me! That is a sign of a good class when observers want what the participants are getting.

The Paris studio is smaller than the Chicago location I recently visited. This is completely understandable because real estate and space is hard to find in Paris. I think, it is just the right size and it has everything you need. At first, I thought the location was tough because it was all the way in the back and had no window/store front on the sidewalk. However, after speaking with Kelly and learning more about the culture in the neighborhood I think it may be a good thing. Paris still has a strong class system. This means word of mouth is basically the only way to grow a business in this particular area. Unless of course you were born into the families. So, with the location being so hidden it creates exclusivity, which works well when trying to break into the system.

One difference we spoke about, french women keep themselves looking good with products and pampering not necessarily exercise. This can be a challenge when opening a studio that is prodominently focused on women. Although, for all you men out there I guarantee if you took a class you would get your butt kicked! Another interesting note, it seems France is about 10 years behind the fitness trends in the US. Just to give you an idea, when Kelly decided to open the studio about 6 years ago pilates was just becoming popular. So this means that The Dailey Method in Paris is cutting edge...so next time you are in Paris it is must try!

For more information go to the website: www.thedaileymethod.fr

London Trends

Well, the Gymbox was not all I had hoped it would be. It turns out the "human weights" were a promotional gimmick the bank location did around January. Apparently, there was a mixed review from the current members. The gym put it on to promote membership, which when all said and done, they did. However, they also lost members who were offended by the hiring of "little people." I find it strange that one would stop their membership to a gym because they contracted with "little people." It makes me wonder if people know that Disney employs "little people." Who do you think plays Donald and Daisy Duck? People never cease to amaze me! Or maybe, I have more of an open mind because I thought the "human weights" sounded so cool I wanted to lift them. Would lifting a person little or not offend you? If yes, please tell me why because I clearly don't get it...

Eventhough, the gym didn't have the "human weights" it did have some redeeming qualities. They have the only MMA fighting octagon cage in London and a full size boxing ring, which is all in a seperate room so if you don't want to work out next to sweaty fighting men and women you don't have to. Their weight room is actually built inside an old bank vault. This has a coolness factor to it but if you like natural light this is not the place for you. The other awesome service they offer is the group classes, which were so similar to Crunch Fitness that I had to ask if the owners had any connection to Crunch. It turns out that one of the owners lived in New York City and was a member of Crunch Fitness and brought the concept to London and called it, Gymbox...anything goes. Sound familiar? It should because Crunch's slogan is...no judgements. Competition in the market place keeps businessses on their toes and from what I saw Gymbox may be doing a better job.

In addition to visiting the Gymbox, I wanted to get a general feel for fitness in and around London. When exercising happens, it seems it is mostly done in a gym verses outside, which makes sense considering London gets something like 2 weeks of hot nice weather. However, when I passed by the gyms they weren't packed with people. The place that was packed was the pub where many people were doing 16oz curl exercises. It seems this is how London gets its exercise :-)

Next, on to Paris where I will be meeting with Kelly Dailey-Vinoche who opened The Dailey Method studio.