When life gets busy, it is hard to stay connected with family and make time for activities for personal enjoyment. Clare Roney, who is a new counselor to SPA this year, has taken part in an activity that allows her to take care of herself and connect with her brother; she and her brother, John Cole, who also works at SPA, workout and compete at Orangetheory Fitness.
Orangetheory is a gym where members are able to exercise and compete in different workouts that are called benchmarks.
The benchmarks test speed on the treadmill and endurance on the rowing machine. Orangetheory workouts have benchmarks which happen two or three times a month that show progress made by participants and fosters healthy competition within the community.
On the days they are not performing benchmarks, the members workout in rotations that include the treadmill and work on the floor that consists of bodyweight exercises and weight lifting. Roney views the benchmarks as a way to compete with herself and others.
“I had heard about Orangetheory from friends that worked out there, but it was located in the suburbs, outside of where I live, and so I just wasn’t super familiar, because it wasn’t close by to my home,” Roney said. However, six years after her discovery of the program, an Orangetheory studio had opened near Roney’s home. “When I saw there was a studio opening, I immediately drove over,” Roney said.
In times of stress Clare and John work out together, which has made their relationship stronger. “As adults we get busy […] so it’s helped that a couple days a week, John will come and pick me up in the morning and we’ll go work out together. We kind of have that predictable time where we not only work out but get to catch up” she said.
Orange Theory has helped Ms. Roney stay connected with her brother and keep healthy habits through simple competition.
