Up & Coming Weekly

January 18, 2022

Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.

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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM JANUARY 19 - JANUARY 25, 2022 UCW 17 e right fitness center is a place where you look forward to exercising, socializing and a place you can un- wind. ere are many reasons people join a fitness center, and your reason should be that it meets your needs. A fitness center can be the perfect choice for those that like to engage in group activities, specialty fitness, extensive use of machines, special- ized training and fitness centers with specific amenities for seniors. Joining a fitness center is not only a monetary investment. It is an invest- ment for you. It should be a place where you look forward to working out and making new friends. Selecting a suitable facility is much like building a new relationship. A good center is aesthetically pleas- ing, has quality equipment, is clean, safe and has friendly and knowledge- able staff. Fitness centers vary in amenities, equipment options, group fitness classes, services and monthly pricing. Defining what type of center you are looking for will help you make the right choice when visiting facili- ties. You are investing your time and money and need to be confident that your choice is the right fit for you. Look at the center's website or social media pages and ask your friends if they like the center at which they are members. Making a fitness center checklist will help you in making the right deci- sion. On this list, answer the following questions. What is the main reason you are interested in joining a fitness center? Is it for weight loss, strength training, toning, specialty training, cardio activities, weight lifting, circuit training, water aerobics, personal training or overall fitness? Is the cen- ter convenient to your home, has good parking, and you feel safe there at night? Do you like amenities such as a pool for exercise, sauna, dry sauna or whirlpool? Do they offer group fitness classes that you may be interested in, and are the times the classes available right for you? Are the hours of opera- tion convenient to your schedule? If you are a weight lifting enthusi- ast, are there a diversified number of machines and free weights to target the areas that you are interested in working? Do you like a more boutique center with one-on-one training? Do you want a center with a coed room or a separate area for women? Are you interested in joining a facility that offers a program for Silver Sneakers or a center oriented towards an older or younger clientele? Are you interested in a center that meets a set budget? It is essential that you visit the center or centers you are interested in joining. Make an appointment for your visit and ask questions from your list. Make your visit count and take a good look at the surroundings for cleanliness, overall age of equipment, and the staff 's knowledge. Did you find the staff friendly and feel that you are selecting a facility that could be your new fitness home? Make the time and take a close look at your contract because it is binding and a monetary commitment. Be sure you are comfortable with their membership terms. Joining a fit- ness center is a commitment beyond just a signed contract. Your commit- ment should be to attend regularly and set goals for your fitness journey while making new friends and achiev- ing your goals. Live, love, life, and health! FITNESS CYNTHIA ROSS, Personal Trainer. COMMENTS? Editor@ upandcomingweekly.com. 910- 484-6200. DAN DEBRULER, General Manager, WCLN. Comments? Editor@upandcomingweekly. com. 910-484-6200. Choosing the right fitness center by CYNTHIA ROSS Do you ever just long for peace? And I'm not talking about the ab- sence of war; that's too far above my pay grade. I'm talking about the kind of peace that finds us calm and content in the middle of even the worst imaginable sce- nario. at kind of peace is pos- sible, but for many, it completely eludes us. In a world where seemingly everything we do and say is contested, the stress of making what would once have been the simplest of decisions comes un- der scrutiny. e preconception that we can't be 'for' one thing without being 'against' another gets in the way of relationships of every kind. As a Christian in today's world, our charge is the same as it has always been, be peacemakers. Some interpret that as a call to roll over and accept what- ever comes next, but I believe it means – maybe now more than ever – to step up and step in. Time after time in the Bible, we are told not to be afraid. You can interpret that to mean there will be plenty of opportunities to be afraid, but that we shouldn't be. One such instance is found in the Gospel account given by John. Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27) Not long afterward, Jesus tells his disciples that the world will hate them. "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first." He went on to say, "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. at is why the world hates you." (John 15: 18-19) is statement doesn't sound very comforting. Hey, those people you'll see later today. ey hate you. And so will the ones you meet tomorrow. Yet Jesus said these words to those close followers with both peace and conviction. e comforting part is that he tells them not to sweat it. at he's telling them in advance is perhaps the most remarkable thing Jesus could have done. Knowing that to believe and follow the things Jesus taught is setting myself up for rejection seems a fair enough warning, but it still doesn't account for the pain and conflict we experience on a day-to-day basis. With or without God, stuff hap- pens. Friends die, people take advantage of us, and those we love the most might walk away without notice. I've said many times, the price of discontent is high. And it is. Very high. We find ourselves looking for more, better, faster, and we begin to stir up a little war within even ourselves. But there is peace. And it comes from a place far from here but is within reach every second of the day. What's better is that you can not only have peace, but you can extend it to others. Peace is possible, can be extended to others by DAN DEBRULER FAITH Photo courtesy of Pexels Photo courtesy of Pexels

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