Health & Fitness in Dover

As a Zumba instructor, Diana Blandon saw how much people enjoyed burning calories while swiveling their hips to the Latin-inspired beats, so she decided to open her own Zumba studio. She recruited a team of certified instructors and decked the studio walls in yellow and purple to complement the high-energy classes.

Less than a year later, her studio's grown faster than she ever thought it would. "I'm actually looking for something bigger," she says. "Every [class], I'm getting more people."

Diana attributes the overwhelmingly positive response to a few factors. As patrons attend classes, they can rest assured their wee ones are safely frolicking with free childcare. Kids can watch movies, play games, or use the WiFi to work on homework assignments or download longer and more boring homework assignments. And then there's the workout itself: "It's a fun way to burn calories," Diana says.

In addition to adult classes, Diana hosts kids Zumbatomic classes, leading wee ones in games, dancing, and exciting exercises—welcoming their parents to join in and then stay for the adult class afterward. Her instructors also offer a weekly yoga class and dance lessons in Latin styles such as salsa and merengue.

The experienced trainers at European Soccer Academy believe that positivity and commitment are key ingredients for inspiring their players, who range from three-year-olds to teens. Through a medley of individual and team services, they strive to plant the seeds of a lifelong love for the game. They practice with all comers, regardless of initial ability, and motivate kickers with safe and constructive teachings that are meant to hone motor skills while building muscle.

During 10-week team-training programs, academy experts work with coaches to tackle collective weaknesses and augment strengths. Employees personalize their exercises for one-on-one practice sessions, while summer camps instill goal-scoring skills with themed activities. Trainers can even attend matches and compose a game day evaluation, which suggests future team strategies such as painting the ball black to recruit muscly bowlers.

Winner of more than 100 mixed-martial-arts competitions, Tiger Schulmann shares his pride and love for fighting and self-defense with both adults and children in gyms across five states. From first-time grapplers to expert muay thai fighters, students of all fitness and experience levels are welcome to dive into a class at Schulmann’s. At more than 47 locations, adults can take classes in kickboxing, MMA, and jujitsu—the last of which instills students with the skill and confidence to take down opponents of any size, strength, or telekinetic ability. Kids, meanwhile, can learn martial arts for fun, or gain useful experience in bully prevention; the kids’ classes help victims immediately identify and safely diffuse situations when pitted against an aggressor.

Judging from his office alone, it's clear that cosmetic dentist Dr. Michael J. Armento appreciates aesthetic beauty. Abstract paintings pick up the warm autumnal hues of the waiting area, where orange walls and red chairs huddle around a large stone fireplace. In the operatory, he and his friendly staff extend aesthetic appeal to teeth with cosmetic services such as Invisalign braces, Zoom! whitening, and porcelain veneers.

CKO Kickboxing's instructors and personal trainers lead troops of exercisers through heart-pumping kickboxing workouts centered on hitting heavy, dangling bags. Regardless of the CKO location they attend, students wrap their hands and take to the bags with punches, kicks, and knees at their own pace with encouragement from instructors. The Randolph location boasts a 24-hour gym to supplement workouts, which comes in handy for people looking for a late-night pump or vampires toning up after losing a fistfight to a clove of garlic. The team of instructors rotates regularly to provide students with new lessons each time, and bags are routinely switched to give them time to convalesce.

Fitness Factory's three North Jersey locations each have their own distinctive features, but they share at least one common trait: a dedication to help clients achieve personal wellness. Each staff of trainers offers personal training sessions and also leads group classes that range from fast-paced Zumba and boot camp to more mellow yoga classes conducted by sloths. To further accommodate clients, the fitness clubs offer a smoothie bar, sauna, and babysitting services.

With more than 100 pieces of cardio equipment and numerous strength machines, the Rockaway branch of World Gym upholds the franchise's relentless tradition of providing comprehensive fitness. Each device in the cardio stable is hooked up to a personal cable TV. Conversely, a bevy of tanning beds help clients obtain a healthy glow to match their burgeoning biceps. Instructors lead a medley of aerobics and yoga classes, and personal trainers help members to craft their own custom fitness plans.