Life Time In Brookfield Is 'Rolling With The Punches'

"We aren't here just for a couple of years but for the long haul," John Dahman, general manager at Life Time said.

Life Time, a luxury athletic resort, wants to become an integral part of the Brookfield community and build relationships. Dahman told Patch the facility strives to have something for everybody.

A reader nominated Life Time as Brookfield Patch's Business of the Year.

"Life Time is as far as I am concerned the best thing Brookfield did! Life Time not only promotes wellness it is family-centered. It is the resort of workout centers. The people that work there are friendly and professional. It is the place you want to go to relax and work out. The day is facilities for the children are top-notch They even include classes and homework help for children. The spa and café are all extra perks to a wonderful center. I am so glad it is in Brookfield. A BIG asset to the Brookfield community," the nomination said.

Dahman said it warmed his heart to hear the reader's remarks. The club's focus is having a family-centered culture. The general manager explained in the past, people may have hit a roadblock in their fitness goals due to childcare challenges. Challenges include paying for someone to watch a child while they worked out.

"Life Time realized there was a gap in the industry and wanted to make sure it was a one-stop-shop," Dahman said.

Members receive up to 2.5 hours of drop-off care daily for toddlers and up. As a father of three young children, Dahman said it is great to workout with his wife and have the kids taken care of.

"Our kids are learning, developing, and growing in the child center while we are still achieving our goals," Dahman told Patch.

Dahman said besides the child center, members should understand the variety of things the club has to offer.

Life Time Brookfield, 17585 Golf Pkwy, offers a broad array of amenities and services including:

• Indoor aquatic center with lap pools for recreation and lessons.
• Leisure pools and a whirlpool.
• Kids Academy for children of all ages including activities such as language, dance and art lessons.
• Group fitness classes such as Yoga, Pilates, cycling and core conditioning.
• State-of-the-art cardio and weight-lifting equipment and machines, personal training, nutrition consultations and health assessments.
• LifeCafe, a healthy alternative to fast-food providing meals and snacks to supplement your workouts.
• LifeSpa, a full service salon and spa with hair, skin and body services.

"We want to make sure if folks had three stops after leaving our club, now they will only have maybe one-stop," Dahman said.

Modifying workouts

The pandemic has caused the fitness industry to shift and adjust to keep members safe.

"Some of our members are still training with their trainers but doing it virtually," Dahman said.

Others may do a hybrid approach such as doing virtual workouts and physically coming to the club.

A trend staff sees is fewer intensity classes and more strengthening classes due to wearing a mask. Dahman said using a mask while working out is difficult at first but people get used to it.

"Working out with a mask takes practice and effort and focus. Understanding that the mask is an important feature of what we need right now to keep the facility open," he said.

Dahman added there is also an heightened awareness of nutrition.

"The overall ability to keep the body healthy and build immunity and longevity is what people are more centered on due to COVID," Dahman told Patch.

He said staff is hearing questions about what people should be eating and what workouts will provide them with helping to fight an illness. Fighting an illness is not necessarily related to the pandemic but also to warding off the common cold and the flu, Dahman said.

'Rolling with the punches'

Members are returning to Life Time depending on their comfort level, Dahman told Patch.

"We are still seeing good traffic and members who are happy," he said.

Life Time uses the following to keep people safe: a peak usage tracker, extensive cleaning protocols, hospital-grade air filtration, online class reservations, virtual training and class options, touchless check-in, temperature screening, and spacious clubs offering ample social distancing.

The pandemic has also challenged how to attract new members. Dahman said the club still offers a one-day pass but now it comes with making an appointment. Members can still bring in a guest.

Many new members come from "word of mouth," according to Dahman. He added they feel Life Time is doing everything to stop the spread of the coronavirus and making sure people are staying healthy.

Dahman said the club is starting to get employees back to their pre-pandemic hours.

"This is a good sign for us," Dahman said.

Overall business is doing well, he added.

"We are rolling with the punches. We are doing a nice job of continuing to bring members back and showing people the club and helping them feel more comfortable," Dahman told Patch.

For more information on Life Time visit the website at www.lifetime.life.