Published: June 28, 2009 08:36 pm      

A healthy start: Tazewell YMCA sees thousands in first week

TAZEWELL, Va. — A week ago the doors of southwest Virginia’s newest health and fitness center opened to the public, recording thousands of visits during its first days of operation.

The Four Seasons YMCA now has 2,585 members, said Membership Director Shanna Kitts. More than 2,100 visits were tabulated during the center’s first week. Two pools, a walking track, weight rooms and other facilities are now serving the public.

“We have a warm water pool for therapy and lessons for kids, and we’ve got standard six-lane pool,” Kitts said. At least three lanes will be open for laps, and there will be water aerobics classes as well.

“We have upstairs on our top floor a walking and jogging track. Twelve times around the track equals a mile, so it’s pretty big,” she said. “Surprisingly, we’ve had a lot of people coming out and walking on the track. Usually those are used the most during winter. Since we’ve opened, the track has been used quite frequently.”

The center has a “free weight room” where visitors add weights themselves, and a “pin weight room” in which weight machines allow visitors to add or subtract weights by using a pin system. A cardiovascular room offers treadmills, exercise bikes and other equipment, and there is a full size gymnasium for basketball, volleyball and large group exercise classes.

“It’s 38,000 square feet,” Kitts said when describing their YMCA’s size. “It’s huge.”

The Four Seasons YMCA is open Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.

“We wanted a wide range of hours to people working different shifts would have the opportunity to come out here,” Kitts said.

The center can be contacted at 276-979-0280.

— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com