Some of you may have noticed that I have been writing a few posts on my time as being a member of the Edge Hill Sports Centre.
Main Building
I thought that today I would let you all know about the different memberships available – also members of the public can also become members, not just students!
You can have either a casual membership where you can just turn up and pay for the facilities you would like to use that particular day. Or, you can buy a contractual membership on either a monthly payment or a quarterly payment. Students can get a 3 month membership for £55 or if you live on campus you can get a discount rate and pay £45!
All standard memberships include; a wristband, equipment hire, and access to the swimming pool, running track and fitness suite. Premier members also have extra access to; badminton and squash courts, sauna and steam room and also personal training!
I think that as students are on a budget, these prices are so reasonable and brilliant to maintain your fitness levels whilst at university. Also, the facilities that these memberships allow you to access are incredible!
If you have any questions about sports memberships please let me know by commenting on this post!
Hello all, I hope you’re having a great week and end to June!
I wanted to talk about something that’s been a huge part of my University life; Aerial fitness. Some of you might not know exactly what this is, but if you’re a performer like me, or just into dance, acrobatics, or all things fitness then keep reading.
At the Performing Arts Freshers’ Fayre, there was a stall for Inversion Pole Fitness, and they had a sign up sheet for Pole Fitness, Aerial Hoop and Aerial Silks taster sessions. I thought it would be great to try something, but I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do Hoop or Silks then as I hadn’t done anything like that before, and to be honest I was nervous about doing Pole, but I put my name down- after all, it would be a new experience!
I didn’t know quite what to expect, but the taster session was super fun and I enjoyed every minute of it. The session was led by a lovely lady named Lucy, who runs Inversion, and is probably one of the nicest and most supportive people I’ve ever met. She made sure everyone felt like they could take on the pole and succeed from the minute we started the session and helped anyone who needed the help. I had a terrible sense of coordination in that first session, and I struggled with which limbs went which way, but Lucy came over and made sure I got the hang of it and 9 months on I’ve come so far with her help and support.
Pictures from lessons! I never thought I’d come so far, but Lucy and the team are so supportive and amazing!
In January, I felt like I wanted to give Aerial Hoop a try. The Pole lessons are in the Base Dance Academy building a short walk out of the Ormskirk town centre, but the hoop lessons are in Unite Health and Fitness, which is just on the way in to town. There is also another lady who teaches hoop lessons called Aimee, who is just as lovely and helpful as Lucy. If ever I need her help she’s right there to give me guidance or spot me!
Some of the hoop moves I’ve learnt since January!
Come the end of February I thought I might as well give Silks a go too since I love Pole and Hoop so much. Silks is by far the hardest thing I’ve tried, but the most rewarding! Aimee teaches the beginner students’ Silks, and Lucy teaches the more intermediate students’ Silks.
Some Silks moves!
One of the extra lessons that I took part in were aimed at helping you become more flexible through stretches that were aimed at different body parts in different lessons; for example there’d be a lesson focusing on the back one week, legs the next then arms the next. If you like yoga or just want to see how far you can push your body, then the Stretch and Flex classes are definitely for you!
These progress pics are only after a little while!
One of the amazing things that was put on by the Inversion team was a showcase of all the students’ and instructors’ wonderful talent. I performed a hoop solo alongside the Inversion team and it was one of the biggest achievements of the year, especially as performing is my passion. Even if performing isn’t your passion, if you just fancy the sound of any of the things I’ve mentioned in this post, I’d say definitely try it! It could change you so much, it’s definitely changed me. And not only is this a great thing to do in your spare time, but it’s one of the wonderful things that are in Edge Hill’s resident town of Ormskirk!
Click here if you would like to see the Facebook page for Inversion Pole Fitness if you are interested, or if you want to ask me anything at all about what I’ve mentioned just drop me a comment!
Hello all, I hope you’re having a wonderful start to the week!
Edge Hill resides in a small town that can sometimes cause confusion. People either know it, or they don’t, but it’s a shame for those who don’t because it’s such a wonderful town. There’s something for everyone to enjoy and do:
Shops: not only is there a great selection of shops for grocery shopping, but there are also some cool shops around Ormskirk for your enjoyment. Probably the most well known shops are New Look, Superdrug and Waterstones, but there are also some more independent shops such as Aladdin’s Cave, a fancy dress shop, and Sweet Memories, a traditional and American candy shop.
Cafés: there are both well known and independent cafés in Ormskirk, so however you like your coffee there’ll be something for you! There’s a Costa and Starbucks, and there’s also Cobble, which do the most incredible hot chocolates and milkshakes.
Restaurants/food places: if you fancy eating out one day there are a whole variety of choices. If you’re a fan of European food, there’s lots of places to try; TurQuaz is a Turkish restaurant just on the way out of the town centre, Passage to India is a brilliant Indian restaurant that’s just across from the bus station, and there’s the Peacock Inn Chinese Restaurant. If you’re not a fan of such food, there’s always the good old McDonalds, which is now 24/7 during the weekend, and Subway, which is open till 2am at the weekend! There’s also always lots of takeaways which give you every option you could dream of.
Fitness and Gyms: of course, there’s Edge Hill’s own sports centre which not only has a swimming pool and gym, but offers discounted prices for students, but there are also options in town. There’s Unite Health and Fitness which has superb gym equipment, and a brand new gym called Energie Fitness. There’s also the local swimming baths which is in Coronation Park, and Base Dance, which offers dance classes.
So, there’s so much variety in the town centre, not to mention how beautiful it is. Coronation Park has a little lake and forest which are lovely to walk around. The rest of the town is just as nice to walk around, even the shopping areas have such charm! One of my favourite parts of the town is the clock tower that resides in the very centre of the town, which has a beautiful compass in the paving stones around it.
As I’m sure you’re aware if you’ve checked out Edge Hill online or on any of our social media platforms, we have a brand new sporting edge, and I can promise it really is living up to all the expectations! Opened only a mere 5 weeks ago, it’s a lively hive for all things sport and fitness related, and I can assure it is even more impressive in real life than in the pictures.
For any info on prices, facilities and classes please check out the website here: SPORTING EDGE, but for today I thought I’d just share my thoughts and experiences on the all new and improved sporting edge…
During my first and second year, I got a gym membership at the Edge Hill Gym, and I found it was really good value and the facilities were great, so I can imagine they are even more amazing now! However being in 3rd year I was a bit unsure as to how much time I would have to hit the gym and therefore I didn’t renew. Additionally the new sporting edge initiative ‘Get Active Programme’ caught my eye and I decided I would give that a go instead. The programme puts on a range of activities each week for students to get involved in. They have everything from Jiu Jitsu, to Badminton for only £1 a week which I think is such amazing value! So far I’ve been to a few of the classes including Box Fit, Spinning and Abs Express and I thought they were so much fun, I am so pleased to see that the new sports centre are still thinking about student budgets and offering so much at such small prices! You can also sign up to the programme as an annual membership which is £30 to go to any of the sessions for free and to use the new pool, which again is amazing value and the facilities and quality of the classes are outstanding. I’ve been to the pool a few times since it has been opened and it really is great, and not too busy, and at £2 a session you really can’t go wrong.
I hope this gives you a little ideas of whats available on a small budget in the new sporting edge, obviously they have an amazing new fitness suite which you can check out on the website and a range of other classes on offer so definitely have a look there if you’re interested in what else they have to offer!
Before I came to university I don’t think i’d ever set foot in a gym in my life! I’d always been very into dancing, but when it came to sport and fitness I was useless! So one of the goals I had when I arrived at University was to join the gym, and with the university one being a short minute walk from my halls that seemed like the best option! I have now been a member here for a year and a half so I thought I’d let you in on a little insight of what its like…..
Fitness Suite
The fitness suite over looks the running track and offers a range of fitness equipment and machines. They also offer weekly 1- 1 personal trainer sessions, which is great if your new to the gym! You can also follow different fitness programme that are pre designed for you so you can get the most out of the gym!
Classes This is where you’ll find me more often than not, I LOVE the classes here, they literally offer everything from Zumba, Abs Express and Circuits to Jungle Body and Boot Camps! My favourites are Yoga and Legs, Bums and Tums, the instructors are so nice and its such a fun way of getting fit!
Get Active Programme The Get Active is our weekly social programme of recreational activities. There are a huge range of activities to choose from. It’s focused on providing a social environment, perfect for people who haven’t played for a while, complete beginners and people who’d like to add something different to their usual routine. Its only £1 per session so is amazing value and theres so many sports on offer!
And if all that isn’t enough were currently in phase 2 of a £30 million development to build a brand new state of the art indoor and outdoor sports complex! This will include top-of-the-range 3G football / rugby pitch, 6-a-side courts, hockey pitch and grass football pitches, as well as a 25-metre swimming pool and fitness suite incorporating the latest technology with 80 stations to exercise all parts of the body, an Aerobic studio and double sports hall to play badminton, basketball and squash courts!!
