URBANFITNESS London Marginal Gains List

Throughout your journey at URBANFITNESS London you will hear us talk a lot about our ethos and approach to an active and healthy lifestyle. You will see the phrase ‘marginal gains’ frequently discussed, and indeed how this concept can be transferred from the performance arena into other walks of life.

We are the first health & fitness group to truly embrace this aspect of performance training and weave its key messages throughout our URBANFITNESS concept. To us, the concept of marginal gains is entirely transferable to your daily lives. We aim to inspire you to make small changes and improvements which can make a huge positive influence to your daily lives – just as they do in professional sport.

How have we achieved this? Well, we don’t just talk a good game – we are all about providing the evidence.

So here it is… our list of marginal gains that we have devised for you to experience from the minute you walk into an URBANFITNESS club…

A carefully recruited team, selected based on their commitment to helping and inspiring others to achieve their health and fitness goals. ‘The components of a team.’ United Nations Staff coaching system – 2015.

A sympathetically designed urban interior with period features, embracing our unique no ‘one size fits all’ approach to every facility. ‘The impact of design on productivity.’ Journal of Public Affairs vol 3, iss 1 – 2009.

On trend colour and finish scheme throughout with base palette, plus one accent colour delineating our concept and representing the URBANFITNESS London ethos; we aim to create a ‘blueprint’ for success for each one of our members.‘Environmental factors.’ World of Sports Science – 2015.

Throughout there are wash and strip lighting effects to ensure no unsightly glare and the mood is conducive to positive personal performance. ‘The stimulating effect of light on Performance.’ Public Library of Science journal, July 11 – 2012.

Cybex strength equipment. ‘The Cybex Bravo functional trainer, with progressive stabilization, promotes strength gains that are twice as great as comparable exercises performed in a free-standing posture. Increased strength along with total body integration, may lead to enhanced functional outcomes.’ Strength gains from a partially supported vs. free standing position using a cable resistance machine, Univ of Mass, Dept of Kinesiology – 2015.

Cybex cardiovascular equipment. ‘It was demonstrated that subjects exercised with significantly lower perceived exertion and body discomfort on the Arc, as compared to popular elliptical trainers, even when at the same level of metabolic exertion. Thus, if they set their workload according to their perceived effort then they would naturally work harder and burn more calories on the Arc.’ A comparison of physiological and physical discomfort responses between exercise modalities, Univ of North Carolina – 2015.

Wattbikes. “British Cycling played a vital role in the development of the Wattbike and we are delighted with the final outcome. We will continue to use the Wattbike for talent identification, rehabilitation and training with all our athletes over the coming years.” Ian Drake, Chief Executive Officer, British Cycling – 2015.

Octane lateral trainers. “The Octane LateralX is about as unique a piece of cardio equipment you can find bar none.”Cardiovascular equipment review. Treadmill.com Nov 1 – 2013.

Water rowers. “We have recently investigated all indoor stationary rowing machines and believe the WaterRower to be the best on the market. This machine uses a patented WaterFlywheel almost the identical movement of a sliding seat rowing shell… producing a smooth, rhythmic motion and an impact free work out for any level of fitness or age.” C Koop, Former US Surgeon General, November – 2011.

Olympic platforms. ‘An 8 week study was done showing the capability of the Olympic lifts to improve sport performance and vertical jump ability. A study was performed and a group of lifters did various Olympic lifts (High pulls, Power Clean, and Clean and Jerk), and were compared to a group using vertical jump exercises (Single and Double Leg Hurdles Hops, Alternated Single-leg Hurdle Hops, etc) and after the 8 weeks of training the Olympic weightlifting group had significantly increased their 10 meter sprint speed and their standing jump over the control group using standard vertical jump exercises. Similarly a 15 week study was also performed using football players and compared a powerlifting program to an Olympic weightlifting program for athletic performance. After the 15 week study was over the Olympic weightlifting group had a significant improvement in the vertical jump and 40 meter sprint over the powerlifting group.’ Stone, M.H., et al. Cardiovascular Responses to Short-Term Olympic Style Weight-Training in Young Men. Journal Applied Sport Science vol 8 iss 3 – 1990. Stone, M.H. Muscle conditioning and muscle injuries. Medical Science & Sports Exercise vol 22 iss 4 – 1990.

Performance based programming options at all levels. ‘The Development and Maintenance of Expert Athletic Performance: Perceptions of Champions.’ Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, Vol 14 Iss 3 – 2002.

Carefully selected Functional equipment. ‘Functional fitness training: Is it right for you? Exercises which train your muscles to help you do everyday activities safely and efficiently.’ Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research – 2015.

Les Mills group exercise programmes containing EPOC & HIIT aspects. ‘61% of regular exercisers are currently doing ‘GYM’ type activities which is therefore the worlds biggest sport. Of those, 36% participate in class activities and this number is growing.’ Les Mills Global Consumer Fitness Survey – 2013.

Indoor Group Cycling. ‘The benefits of group exercise and indoor cycling.’ American College Sports Medicine, Jan 20 – 2012.

Carefully selected atmospheric music based on various performance factors. ‘Music in sport and exercise.’ The Sport Journal, July 7 – 2008.

Uniquely designed locker rooms (with simple tools to help your day go smoother such as irons/ shoe cleaners/ flip flops) in turn helping encourage our community focus alongside a healthy environment policy (as seen in all professional sports clubs) ensuring something as simple as your daily walking tools (your feet!) are always at the forefront of our thinking. ‘How do I handle performance?’ About Health, Dec 15 2014.

‘Industry leading nutrition, with the most up to date thinking for supplement provision via our various partners’ Sports Nutrition org 2015.

Support and guidance on the leading Health, Wellbeing and Fitness apps to encourage exercise adherence in all of its forms. ‘The biophysical foundations of human movement.’ Abernathy et al 2013.

The opportunity to join or form clubs within clubs at URBANFITNESS London, we are here to help you engage in lifelong friendships in fitness and health. ‘The benefits of group exercise.’ American College Sports Medicine Jan 20 – 2012.

Benefit from exclusive and carefully selected brand partner offers chosen for their ability to contribute to a balanced active lifestyle. ‘Closing the gap between values and behavior.’ International journal of behavior, nutrition and physical activity, Aug 31 – 2011.

Exclusive performance clothing and apparel for those members who wish to proudly show they are part of the ‘blueprint’ for success at URBANFITNESS London. ‘Does what you wear effect your athletic performance?’Livestrong.com, Aug 1 – 2010.