Gym’s fixed it

A women-only gym has opened in Oldham town centre.

Gymophobics has taken space above the Bradford and Bingley building society, vacant since a legal firm left three years ago, in High Street at the junction with Clegg Street.

Owner Michele Saville, who has spent a career in the public health sector, is a Royton girl now living in Castleton.

Keen to work for herself and stay in the health area, she has invested £50,000 in her venture which offers a 30-minute workout to women of all ages.

“My youngest member is 14 and I can’t say the age of my oldest, but we have some pensioners,” said the 48-year-old, who has been open since the start of August and is already up to five part-time staff.

The gym, which has 10 pieces of apparatus, each designed to tone women’s bodies and muscles, offers a 30-minute workout designed to promote weight loss and figure improvement.

“I recommend visits every other day, but obviously the programme has to suit each individual so there are variants,” says Michele, who previously worked for Oldham PCT as co-ordinator of the Stop-Smoking campaign and prior to that was involved in a drug and alcohol charity in Manchester.

She added: “The idea is to tone the body while having fun, not to get super-fit. Many gyms are dominated by men and they can be intimidating for women.”

Michele is nothing if not determined.

She identified the premises, which need to be in a town centre she insists, in 2006 but complications over the lease led to a delay until May, this year, when she finally got the keys.

A huge transformation has taken place, removing lot of offices and internal walls, to create an open ambience which has obviously struck a chord with the health and fitness women of Oldham.