Portland Health and Fitness

Today’s Groupon gets you five conditioning gyrokinesis and/or Pilates mat classes with Geometry Pilates for $35. Mix and match your classes and prepare your body to become capable of contorting into letters and spelling out words from the 2006 National Spelling Bee.Lovable Bears defensive lineman William “The Refrigerator” Perry is generally considered the Godfather of American Pilates due to his memorably rapped couplet: “You’re lookin’ at the Fridge / Pilates focuses on the core to improve strength and posture.” The Fridge continued to influence the popularity of Pilates in America when he guest-starred in an episode of the The A-Team, playing the deceased German founder of Pilates, Joseph “The Refrigerator” Pilates. The memorable episode is re-run every July 4th to celebrate Independence Day.

Pilates strengthens core muscles through isolated movements and controlled breathing. From the luxury of its open and peaceful studio, Studio Blue’s certified staff of Pilates instructors will guide you through a repeated series of strengthening and stretching maneuvers. Studio Blue offers a variety of class styles, ranging from breath-focused exhale Pilates to progressive-resistance-focused Pilates Reformer, designed for all levels, from beginner to ender. Though some movements and breathing techniques may be difficult to master, each class will give you individualized instruction that helps you maximize results.

Moving Moxie Pilates believes in the power of the human form and the acts of fitness it can achieve through proper encouragement and practice. The studio's Pilates Method Alliance–certified teachers operate from the beautiful confines of Moving Moxie's spacious space, located near Hillsdale, where taupe walls complement smooth wooden floors, creating an environment of zen comfort and physical awareness. Whether Pilates is an old friend or a mysterious new neighbor unloading its moving truck into your exercise-garage, the combination of one hour-long private lesson and six 55-minute mat classes will instill the strenuous values of repetition into the muscle-fibers that stretch like taffy until the body builds a tight, lean core made out of firmer taffy. Hearts grow healthier as workouts become easier through practice.

From her days in the Navy to a love for yoga, Terri Chadney has always been into fitness. In 1994, she and her husband, Jay, opened West Coast Fitness to share that passion with her old neighborhood, which until then did not have a gym. "She wanted to reinvest in the neighborhood," Jay says. Here, the duo leads a staff of experienced trainers, who do everything from one-on-one training to group fitness classes such as yoga and spinning. As the yoga director, Terri requires that each yoga instructor have at least five years of teaching experience, thorough training, and a perfect letter B imitation. The rest of the staff boasts similar credentials, such as the Zumba instructor who has been dancing professionally for most of her life. And because they're not contractors, the trainers care about every aspect of the gym, not just making a sale. "They really invest themselves with the members," says Jay, "Our [trainers] come in, hang out, take classes, bring their dog."

For Jay and Terri, the most rewarding part of owning West Coast Fitness has been "seeing changes in the members," says Jay. He sees members who are in better shape than when they first joined 15 years ago—and Terri loves to see the seniors in her yoga classes up on their feet and doing strength-training exercises after coming in with crutches or walkers.

The St. John's location's spinning studio includes a 6-foot screen, sending riders on virtual trips via instructive DVDs even when a class isn't in session. Members can also log in to ActivTrax online or at the clubs' kiosks for custom workouts based on their goals and experience, as well as meal planning and progress tracking. The staff members engage parents' little ones with baby-sitting services in a colorful playroom. They have also stocked the gyms with tanning booths, and massage therapists help soothe stress and exercise-induced aches; the saunas and HydroMassage beds also help members unwind.