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Resolution bump felt in Burnaby

Burnaby rec centres see rise in attendance around new year

Planning to get in shape in the new year? You’re not the only one, according to Burnaby’s director of parks, recreation and cultural services.
“People want to get fit after eating shortbread and all that stuff during the holidays,” Ellenwood said, adding the city’s recreation centres see a 15 to 20 per cent increase in pass sales in late December, and about a 10 per cent increase in drop-ins in January.
But many of those who make the commitment in early January don’t stick to it for more than a month or two, he said.
“It usually drops off after, the staff tell me, mid-February or March. I’m surprised it’s that early,” he said. “But it usually drops off to normal levels after six weeks or so.”
The city’s yoga and pilates classes are particularly popular, Ellenwood said, and Zumba classes are in high demand.
“The combination of the Latin music and aerobic fitness and dance moves with traditional fitness seems to have touched a nerve, particularly with females,” he said. “It’s a really fun and active way to keep fit.”
And this month, Burnaby is introducing TRX suspension classes, Ellenwood said.
“You use straps suspended to overhead apparatus,” he said, “and it’s using your body weight in different positions to get a core workout.”
Other than the new-year rush, attendance and program registration stay relatively level, even during December, according to Ellenwood.
“You have, you know, a dedicated core group and then you have drop-ins that remain pretty steady,” he said.
That constancy runs contrary to the findings of a study commissioned by Fitness Town and conducted by Ipsos Reid, which stated 39 per cent of Burnaby and New Westminster residents claim they exercise less during the holiday season.
The top five reasons given for not exercising were, in order: festive socializing, bad weather, feeling lazy and less motivated, don’t have time, and prioritizing eating and drinking, according to the poll.
However, 44 per cent of Burnaby and New Westminster residents surveyed said they work out at home the same or more during the winter.
The poll also asked about new year’s resolutions – 31 per cent of Metro Vancouver residents polled said they don’t set fitness-related resolutions and 15 per cent said they’ll set them but most likely break them.
Ipsos Reid conducted the online poll, which polled 987 adults from the Lower Mainland.