Chicago Athletic Clubs offer a variety of classes plus ‘everything else’
By Vanessa McClure
It can be a bit overwhelming: walking into a new gym, seeing rows of exercise equipment filled with runners and lifters looking confident in their workout, while you wander in search of the drinking fountain. Or at least it can be intimidating for a yogi used to a small, dimly lit neighborhood studio.
During a trial week at various Chicago Athletic Clubs (CAC) locations, my initial hesitation soon morphed into an appreciation for the yoga program and a desire to try the other fitness classes the clubs offer.
CAC began with the Evanston club in 1980, and expanded to six additional Chicago-area locations (Bucktown, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square, West Loop and Wicker Park).
“We are known for our variety,” says Sarah Ruhl, CAC’s director of fitness, who has spent the past eight years developing the more than 900 fitness classes offered per week across the seven clubs.
CAC offers plenty of yoga classes at each gym. The Vinyasa Flow class was similar to most vinyasa classes, but that familiarity was far from boring, as the class was filled with interesting pose combinations and and transitions that were new to me. Power Flow was definitely a core challenge. Although I tend to shy away from weights, I enjoyed Yoga Sculpt, which offered a balanced blend of yoga, strength training and cardio. (Katie Hochberg’s class Saturday mornings at Bucktown Athletic Club is invigorating and fast-paced. You’ll feel the burn along with the yoga flow.) Other yoga options at the CAC locations include Pre/Postnatal Yoga, Hatha, Ashtanga, Hot Room Yoga and Meditative Yoga.
“We strive for that boutique yoga studio feel, where we can offer variety within yoga, with everything else at your fingertips,” says Ruhl.
That “everything else” at my fingertips was nice. I ran a few miles on the treadmill before
or after class and explored some of the cardio and strength classes. In the Step Aerobics
class, I enjoyed the concept of building small movements into longer sequences, similar to the way yoga poses build into a flow. The difference is you’re on a step instead of a mat, and the cardio intensity level is pretty high. Live DJ Spin felt like a party (a difficult, sweaty party). And the CXWORX class, a nationally trademarked strengthening class, offered 30 intense minutes of core, stomach, butt and oblique work—which I definitely felt the next day. Yogis might want to give it a try as a way to strengthen poses like plank and side plank.
Ruhl has observed others like me, people who are hesitant to pick up a pair of five-pounders and then discover yoga can be a pathway to new forms of fitness. She also sees those on other side of the spectrum, who think yoga isn’t for them and then realize it can become a meaningful element of any exercise regimen. That’s why CAC offers so many options for classes as well as private yoga lessons and intro classes open to all levels, she says.
“We aim to break down that intimidation factor,” Ruhl explains. Ruhl’s experience in the yoga community has allowed her to bring in teachers with diverse backgrounds from well-known yoga studios including Moksha Yoga, Yogaview and Bare Feet Power Yoga. She credits that network for helping her keep a finger on the pulse of the ever-changing fitness demands of Chicagoans. For example, Ruhl just finished an aerial yoga training in March.
“I try to stay current, but at the same time I don’t jump on every new thing out there,” she says. “I want it to have legs, enough to stay around for two to three years.”
CAC will expand its reach with the opening of an eighth location, Webster Place Athletic Club at Webster and Clybourn. The new club is scheduled to open this spring and will offer Aerial Yoga as well as Hot Room Yoga and Yin, along with the yoga classes currently offered at other CAC locations.
CAC’s membership fees vary based on single location memberships or all-access memberships with promotional pricing available. For more information on each location, pricing and group fitness schedules, visit chicagoathleticclubs.com.
Vanessa McClure is a business development manager at ATI Physical Therapy. She enjoys exploring Chicago and growing her practice by visiting the area’s many yoga studios.
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