Newark, DE Health and Fitness

Doctor of Chiropractic Stacy Cohen founded First State Health & Wellness shortly after he received his degree from New York Chiropractic College in 1984. Since then, his center has expanded to seven locations and welcomed aboard 12 other chiropractic physicians.

Each location features traditional adjustment techniques, mainly x-rays and Activator tools that rapidly and gently prod trouble spots. A few locations feature specialty techniques such as the Newark location’s high-tech subluxation scanning and the Wilmington location’s adjustable Thompson Terminal Point table made up of several different cushions that help it morph into an even more therapeutic surface: a ping-pong table.

Dr. Cohen and his staff complement their chiropractic touch with acupuncture, massage, and nutritional counseling services, which are overseen by the center’s own licensed acupuncturists and certified massage therapists. Together, the team’s collective efforts have been awarded The News Journal’s Reader’s Choice Award for Best Chiropractic Office in 2010, 2011, and 2012, as well as the BBB’s Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics in 2009.

At Physique Pole Studio, enthusiastic instructors extol the sensuality of pole dancing alongside its inherent fitness perks, helping students unearth their confidence, define muscles, and burn up to 500 calories per hour. Seven brass poles stand staggered throughout the spacious studio. In addition to dynamic classes, instructors lead pole parties to get women in a sassy mood during bachelorette parties or before defending a dissertation.

Anytime Fitness accommodates night crawlers and day denizens with 24-hour access to endless rows of equipment, group fitness classes, and personalized training. Custom regimens rounded out by nutritional advice from a certified trainer make each client feel special, like a diamond the size—and shape—of a horse. Group boot camps, alternatively, promote camaraderie and help participants stave off boredom by presenting a mixed array of drills. The gym's rows of TV-equipped treadmills, ellipticals, and stationary cycles with stair climbers help prepare legs for marathons and broken escalators. Weight machines, dumbbells, and kettlebells enable gym-goers to crank up muscle mass, and an unwinding experience on a massage chair or high-powered tanning bed sends clients off with a sense of relaxation.

Chiropractic physicians John and Jimmie Glenn helm a family-friendly facility where they seek to not only eliminate their patients' pain, but help them keep it away. Chronic aches can emerge out of anything from misaligned vertebrae to simple muscle tension, so the husband-and-wife team performs thorough examinations and x-rays to locate the exact source of the problem. Instead of masking symptoms with medication, they then delve in to treat the cause with a series of chiropractic adjustments and certified massages. The doctors also educate their patients about other natural remedies, therapeutic exercises, and secret handshakes they can use at home to maintain a comfortable, low-pain lifestyle.

As head trainer at CrossFit Riverfront, Gia O'Keefe's presence isn't always eagerly anticipated by her pupils, but she does get them to sweat. During more than 60 classes each week, O'Keefe ond the other RivFit coaches motivate participants through jumping jacks, lifting, jogging, squats, rowing, push ups, sit ups squats, kettle bells, and jumping rope. CrossFit Riverfront also offers Crossfit-a high intensity, whole body, muscular endurance workout, indoor rowing, yoga, a barbell club, seminars on nutrition and mobility, and even classes for kids.

Since 2006, the staff at Fusion Fitness Center has fostered a welcoming space for their members to come and find fitness, challenging and encouraging them along the way. Rows of elite Precor cardio machines fill the floor of the main room, including treadmills, elliptical trainers, and bikes. Tucked around the corner in the group fitness room, trainers challenge members with 45-minute F.I.T.—functional interval training—classes, where exercisers toss medicine balls, swing kettlebells and heavy ropes, and stretch TRX suspension bands until they cry uncle. The trainers limit F.I.T. classes to six people so they can dole out ample individual attention.

The staff also helps members hone in on individual fitness goals, such as losing weight or running a marathon, during personal-training sessions. To fuel sweat sessions, staffers mix up smoothies filled with nourishing ingredients to help bodies recover or add resistance to tongue-curls.