Year 2018 is coming to a close and we hope all our members found success with their annual fitness goals. As we prepare our New Year’s resolutions for 2019, let’s reflect on all the fun and excitement we had this past year at Elite Sports Clubs.
There was a lot of great moments at the clubs this year. Here are some highlights from each month:
1. Accomplishing our New Year’s Resolutions During TWLC 2018
Many people set New Year’s resolutions such as lose weight, eat healthier, and exercise more often. The Wellness & Lifestyle Challenge at Elite helps people do exactly those things. It was another successful 6-week program in 2018 and, as a group, everyone lost a total of 2195.1 pounds between all the clubs!
2. Learning to Love Ourselves
With Valentine’s Day being a focal point in February, we wanted the focus to be about love. But not just about loving a significant other, but more specifically on taking care of and loving yourself first. Treating yourself to a massage or Reiki healing might have helped you accomplish this. If you were trying to get closer to your partner, you may have attended one of our social events, exercised together as a couple, or learned how to cook meals together.
3. Making Our Own Luck
Genetics play a large part in determining our overall health and body types. In March, we took control of what factors influence our health for everything that we could. First, we had to actually learn what was out of our control, like our genetic makeup, and what choices we have. Then, we explored what we can do to create our own luck. And even though you might be at greater risk for things like diabetes or heart disease, you can actually influence genes with a healthy lifestyle.
4. Taking Pride in Our Hometown
For over 30 years, Elite Sports Clubs has been proud to call the Greater Milwaukee area home. In April, we wanted to celebrate our surrounding communities for 414 Day (Milwaukee’s area code), which is celebrated on April 14th. We embraced what it means to be a Wisconsinite (but in a healthy way of course). We discovered ways to exercise right in our own communities and even took a walking tour around the city of Milwaukee.
5. Becoming Superhuman
May was all about becoming “superhuman,” and how you could push yourself to your maximum potential. From workouts themed around your favorite super heroes to superfoods, we found a number of ways to bring out the superhuman in all of us.
Also, in this month we highlighted some of our “super” members who are over 90 years old and still active!
6. Enjoying the Beautiful Game During the World Cup
It only happens once every 4 years, and even though the United States didn’t take part, we still had fun celebrating the World Cup in June.
Soccer players are some of the fittest athletes on the planet. How you may wonder? They eat right and train hard. You may have even been surprised to learn that many of our own staff have experience playing professional soccer!
7. Making a Splash With Fitness
Once the summer heated up, it was time to make a splash with fitness! July focused around swimming and water. We featured a whole series of blogs to teach proper techniques for all of the major swimming strokes. Of course, if you don’t feel like swimming alone, Elite offers a number of aquatic exercise classes to get in shape. And now that the summer was in full swing, our Elite Kids had a blast swimming every week at SCAMP.
Elite also partnered with the Sierra Club in an effort to clean up and preserve Wisconsin’s waterways!
8. Setting Our Sights on High Goals
If you wanted to take your fitness level to new heights, August was the time to do it! We had a strong focus on setting stretch goals in a variety of aspects. Whether it was literally jumping to new heights, or just pushing yourself harder, we wanted to encourage everyone to challenge themselves and find a greater sense of self-esteem.
9. Aging Gracefully
September was all about aging gracefully, staying active as we age, and how to improve our functional movement. Since grandparents are able to add their grandkids onto their memberships, Elite provides opportunities for our members to pass on their healthy habits to younger generations. Another key aspect of healthy aging is staying social, which many say is one of their favorite things about the Elite Sports Clubs community.
For the cover story of the fall edition of Elite Life Magazine, we sat down with a multigenerational family, and how they grew up at the clubs.
10. Being Fearless
We put a fun twist on October. Given that Halloween is all about getting scared, we took the opposite approach! This month was all about overcoming fears and anxieties.
October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To promote good health, we featured a blog series related to how exercise benefits those diagnosed with breast cancer. We also raised money for ABCD: After Breast Cancer Diagnosis, who provides guidance and support for those affected by breast cancer.
11. Become More Mindful
In November, we provided a number of tips and ways you can be more mindful in the present. Some of them included:
- Turning off your technology
- Participating in group exercise
- Taking your time
- Bringing attention to your breathing
- Not eating while distracted
12. Not Letting Our Routines “Go Cold”
The cold weather of winter can derail even the most resolute exercise routine. We didn’t want anyone to lose the progress they made after all their hard work throughout the year, so in December we provided a number of indoor workouts that members can do during the freezing winters of Wisconsin. Holiday sweets and meals can also cause us to gain a few pounds, so we also provided tips on how to avoid temptation during the holidays.
We hope you had as much fun as we did this year! We’re proud of all the hard work put in by members and staff alike. If you’re looking to keep your progress going into 2019, we’d encourage anyone to sign up for next year’s TWLC!