Albuquerque Health and Fitness

At XPAC Fitness Center, even the bright-red walls are motivating. Inside those walls, a variety of equipment adorns the studio, and expert coaches use their extensive exercise education and experience to encourage students to try new athletics goals. They lead small groups through classes that include intense Cardio Boxing Boot Camp; Spin Ride Shack, which uses RealRyder stationary bikes; and Calisthenics on Fire, which uses body weight to engage various muscle groups.

Though they aren't event planners or the leaders of an overzealous fraternity house, Debbie Thomas and her staff schedule parties for every day of the week. These parties aren’t typical affairs, though. They’re actually workout classes with festive twists. The high-energy sessions allow guests to get their groove on and mingle while simultaneously burning calories. During Zumba classes, instructors demonstrate moves reminiscent of Latin-dance styles, including salsa, cumbia, and merengue. Turbo Kick courses, on the other hand, combine kickboxing techniques with other martial-arts actions and invigorating music. To make sessions even more fun and accessible, the instructors modify each routine to suit a range of fitness levels, which enables students of all abilities to attend.

Upbeat tunes are a theme of the curriculum—they guide the barbell routines of Les Mills BodyPump as well as the flexibility-enhancing stretches of PiYo Strength. Other classes, such as TRX and high-intensity interval training, might not mirror a dance performance, but they preserve the sense of camaraderie and encouragement that pervades the entire gym.

Dr. Lillian Jaime doesn't just help her patients perfect their smiles; she shows hers off, too. Known for her friendly demeanor, Dr. Jaime combines a gentle touch with the education she acquired at University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine. With the help of a caring staff, advanced laser technology, and an effective Tooth Fairy spray that keeps teeth with their rightful owners longer, Dr. Jaime skillfully extracts teeth, attaches veneers, and offers a range of other cosmetic services.

CedarFit's head trainer and founder, Cedar McCrary, successfully knocked off 75 pounds herself before disseminating her fast, potent method to all who flock to her training center. McCrary and a team of trainers lead 45- to 55-minute boot-camp sessions, which each can burn 500–1,000 calories and accommodate a roster of no more than 20 participants. Begin the 14- or 21-day program following an initial fitness assessment, held on the first Saturday of each month and additional weekdays, which examines your physical fitness, overall wellness, and ability to hogtie a runaway horse. The 14-day Fat Furnace boot camp incorporates strength, cardio, flexibility, stability and core exercises over a series of workouts offered six days a week, which typically can result in the loss of 2 to 5 pounds and a 1-percent body-fat reduction. The 21-day Rapid Fat Loss program couples the demanding workouts with Vitabot, a nutritional management plan that suggests menus based on nutritional value and the alignment of the planets in our solar system, potentially resulting in 5 to 15 pounds of weight loss and 2- to 3-percent reduction of body fat. Check the schedule online.