Fitness center marries medicine and sports science.
By: David Campbell
MONTGOMERY The Medical Center at Princeton Fitness & Wellness Center, which is celebrating its grand opening this weekend, is more than just about working out.
As the name suggests, the new 46,000-square-foot facility, housed in the former Grand Union supermarket site at Princeton North Shopping Center off Route 206, is a state-of-the-art marriage of medicine and sports science.
The center is a joint venture of the Medical Center and Fitness and Wellness Professional Services, which has engineered similar ventures across the country.
According to Gwen McCullagh, the Medical Center’s director of rehabilitation services, whether you’re undergoing medically supervised rehabilitation or are an all-out fitness buff, the center offers an integrated model.
For example, the Olympic-swimming and therapy pools are housed in the same location, which Ms. McCullagh said is good for the morale of patients undergoing water therapy.
Similarly, she said, patients at the onsite hospital rehabilitation center with the addition of it, the Medical Center runs six outpatient rehabilitation facilities are not isolated from the rest of the fitness community.
Instead, patients’ regimens use the whole gym and workout rooms, and have the option of phasing into the general workout population after their therapy is complete.
"It’s doing rehabilitation in a healthy environment," Ms. McCullagh said. "To the community here for rehab, even people with chronic disease, you can still be part of an upbeat, motivating, supportive environment."
The roster of grand-opening events includes a reception with community leaders held Thursday night; a reception for the center’s employees, volunteers and doctors all day today; and on Saturday, a community health fair at the facility from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The health fair will feature tours of the new center, free health screenings, prizes including a free six-month membership, refreshments and family activities.
Also, hospital President and CEO Barry Rabner and Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand, who is an avid runner, are slated to participate in a fitness challenge at 10 a.m. Saturday, according to the hospital.
Touring the facility with Professional Services’ partner Gary Reidy, one has a sense that education and safety of members is a key element of the business plan.
The center offers 120 to 130 different classes, a dizzying array of activities, including low-impact aerobics, kick-boxing, Pilates, group cycling, tai chi, even belly dancing.
When they join, members are given full fitness evaluations and exercise plans, which are updated about every four to six weeks as members advance in their workouts, Mr. Reidy said.
"It gets people back to having physicals, which is all about prevention," he said. "It’s not just about signing somebody up and throwing them out there."
Six to 10 trainers are on the floor at any given moment, all of them highly trained and certified, and member exercise plans and confidential medical records are available on the workout floor.
There is a community-education station with computer terminals for guided health searches, as well as a classroom for up to 80 people, complete with a demonstration kitchen, for educational lectures and programs on health, nutrition and a variety of disease-management courses, among others.
Then there’s the hardware and plenty of it. The center’s exercise room offers the full complement of free weights and the latest in high-tech exercise machinery.
There are stair-steppers and upright bikes with personalized monitors for television viewing, DVD watching and, with the press of a button, parents can check in on their children in the daycare center, which is outfitted with cameras for that purpose.
The list goes on. A full-service spa. Sauna. Workout rooms, café and pro shop. A customized stretching room "It’s so important to stretch," Mr. Reidy said a youth exercise studio, private family changing rooms.
As part of its hospital-based approach, the center has a 40-doctor physician advisory board that sets the agenda for community education and oversees medical issues as they arise, said Dr. Harvey Smires, an orthopedist on the board.
Work began on the more than $6 million project last fall. With presales, the membership is about 3,000, with a targeted membership of about 4,000, Mr. Reidy said.
The Princeton North Shopping Center has been struggling since its former anchor store, the Grand Union, closed in 2001 after its parent company went bankrupt. Merchants there have said they hope the wellness center will help to spur revitalization.
"Variety is the key," Mr. Reidy said of the new facility. "People come here, and they stay."

