Health & Fitness in Winston-Salem

Students should bring: Towels, bottled water
Average class length: Less than 30 minutes
Number of Staff: 1–5 people
Class location: Indoors only
Established: 2013
Registration required: Yes
Good for beginners: Yes
Guests allowed: No
Parking: Parking lot
Pro Tip: You will be in complete control of when you rest during the workout.

Q&A with Monte Reid, Owner/Trainer

Exercise is challenging, and people frequently give up on their fitness routines. How do you keep clients motivated?
We keep clients motivated by tailoring each workout to fit their needs, and this simple gesture allows participants to feel in-control of their workouts. This motivates them to take ownership of their results and keeps them fully engaged in the process of training.

Do you run your gym according to a particular exercise philosophy?
We create an environment that is conducive to camaraderie, self-importance, and personal achievement. We make sure that no client leaves without feeling a sense of accomplishment. Our style of training is based around encouragement, and we are opposed to the military-style of motivation, which lends itself to berating and other demeaning forms of motivation.

When and how did you first develop a passion for fitness?
I first developed a passion for fitness 24 years ago, when I was in high school. It developed through my participation in sports—primarily basketball.

Is there anything else you want to add that we didn't cover?
We conduct our group training in a way that individualizes the workout for each person. Simply put, we turn our group classes into a semi-personal training experience.

It's hard to get out rock climbing regularly. Basketball courts don't fit in the average home. The facilities at The Rush Fitness let everyone get in an exciting workout, though, with climbing walls, pools, athletic courts, and more. At 23 locations in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Dalton, Asheville, Greensboro, Winston Salem, High Point and Greenville, skilled trainers preside over those amenities. They also lead more than 500 group exercise classes, which might touch on everything from yoga to Zumba. Those classes, as well as the requisite array of free weights and cardio equipment, have helped the chain win a range of "best gym" awards.

Yoga Gallery of Healing Arts' experienced instructors foster flexibility in yogis of all ages and experience levels with a variety of limb-limbering classes that target physical and mental stress. In the serene studio, pupils perk up postures bent from manning the helm of warring starships with an alignment-based class, or bend, balance, and headstand with a vigorous power-flow session. Yoga Gallery of Healing Arts' wall-suspended straps help refine postures and improve flexibility, and expecting mothers and seniors, as well as those recovering from disease or illness, can all select classes from a bustling schedule to suit their needs and activity level. After classes, the vibrant downtown arts district and innovation quarter beckon and tease imaginations.

Clanging weights and whirring bikes have unendingly echoed throughout Kraze Fitness and American Martial Arts Academy since 1998, when the 24-hour gym first opened its doors as 24/7 Fitness. With the help of the facility’s ultramodern fitness and strength-training equipment, the personal trainers enthusiastically motivate clients to drop pounds and lead healthier lifestyles without the hassle of transplanting their brains into fitter bodies. The club is run by an MMA black belt, who shows his stuff in martial-arts classes for youths and adults. Intense cross-training sessions incorporate Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics, and kettlebell drills, and rhythmic Latin beats underscore energetic Zumba classes, providing an upbeat alternative to meditative yoga classes and cathartic kickboxing sessions.

Stand Up Martial Arts and Fitness devotes its programs to helping clients discover their ideal body type. In a noncompetitive yet challenging setting, martial-arts instructors might helm private lessons or workouts geared toward sports performance. During group classes, guests perspire together toward their wellness goals, and women-only boot camps compile intense drills to burn calories. Trainers welcome participants from all fitness backgrounds, coaching professional fighters, stay-at-home moms, and dedicated seniors with the same amount of devotion and the Hulk's pair of magical hand wraps.

Certified massage therapist Deb Lazer utilizes a multidisciplinary mélange of therapeutic and relaxation techniques to ease the muscles of the neck, arms, and back. With a thorough knowledge of musculoskeletal anatomy, Deb delves into the creaky corners of the body, plying areas marred by scar tissue and chronic pain, and sussing out stress built up from worrying about the sun running off with another family of planets. After a spell on Deb's massage table, forms will feel relaxed and relieved of the everyday aches that come with sitting in a chair all day or standing on flag pole all night.