New Auckland North Shore gym the largest digitally connected Snap Fitness club in New Zealand

Combining state-of-the-art technology and visual stimulation to create a unique gym experience, Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay has opened on Auckland’s North Shore.

Described as “the largest digitally connected Snap Fitness health club in New Zealand”, the two-level 900 metre facility combines metrics offered by high tech digital technology - customers can connect using their own devices - along with a visually stimulating experience in settings such as the cinema-like dedicated spin studio.

It also includes and infra-red sauna, which can aid sleep, assist muscle recovery and improve joint pain and stiffness.

Club co-founder, Lolesh Sharma advises that, as New Zealand’s fitness industry continues to be impacted by the pandemic, gyms now more than ever have a significant contribution to make to supporting the physical and mental health of our communities.

Sharma, stated "the gym industry must change from how they did things before the pandemic. We have a duty of care to do so.

“The new Snap Mairangi Bay facility does that by creating a unique sensory, digitally-driven experience that significantly improves health and fitness outcomes. This gym will not be a chore. It will be an experience."

Opened last month, co-founder, Jeremy Tevaga, says the new studio caters from the complete fitness spectrum of gym users, from heavy lifting to functional and cardio zones, with all conceivable equipment, noted “(we) also have a dedicated recovery area complete with massage guns and stretching machines. Spin, pump, yoga, HIIT training or boxing, the new facility has it all.”

The club uses the TeamBeats platform and TechnoGym equipment, combined with the MyWellness App, which allows users to scan the QR code on any piece of equipment to record, store and track their fitness data on their phone - as well as access their brand of entertainment, such as YouTube or Netflix, while training.

The facility's combination of metric and visual stimulation, along with an extensive menu of group fitness options, is shown to increase user motivation, participation and performance significantly.

With the ability to choose from more than 30 fitness classes a week in the dedicated group fitness studio - over and above the Technogym Group Cycle Programme - users will be able to join a class at any time, plug in their heart rate device for real-time feedback and track progress.

Brie Tawhai-Tevaga, co-founder and facility manager also explains "group fitness classes are the way forward because they are social and inclusive, which not only creates community but social accountability that improves both attendance and performance.”

Having engaged Cultural Flow Director, Hone Heke Ngapua-Rankin, Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay is the first gym of its kind in the country to adopt the philosophy of te ao Māori right across the business.

Not only will all signage be in English and Te Reo, the gym aims to use the traditional values of Tikanga Māori to inspire performance, etiquette, ethics and communication between members, the staff and the local community.

Tawhai-Tevaga adds “we are a multicultural business partnership and we are all on a journey of self-discovery of who we are and we want to develop deeper connections to te ao Māori in a modern world.

“It makes sense to bring who we are into our business, but we also believe that the culture, values and philosophies that Māori have to offer can add real value to the mental and physical wellbeing of our diverse community. It connects all of us.”

In association with Swolefoods, Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay also offers a café called, Café Oilei - which in Fijian means ‘oh gosh or ‘wow’, and will offer healthy food, supplements, coffee and drinks. As a nod to co-founder Sharma’s Fijian roots, the new Snap Mairangi Bay will have pure Fijian product in all the showers.