Falkirk fitness champs coin in cash for mental health charity

Members of Falkirk’s popular Engine Room gym came out on top of other fitness centres in an intense physical challenge that helped raise over £3000 for mental health charity MIND.
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Over 50 members of the Falkirk fitness facility took part in the MyzoneWars Challenge over the last five weeks and were were crowned as champions last weekend.

MyZone is a heart rate monitor system used in thousands of gyms worldwide and it monitors physical activity – heart rate, calories and time exercising – and then converts that into MyZone Effort Points (MEPS) with a focus on rewarding effort as opposed to fitness.

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The Engine Room certainly put in some amount of effort in this challenge – an epic battle with 11 other gyms, which covered the initial group stage, semi-finals and then the final, all while coining in over £3000 for MIND, which provides advice and support to empower anyone experiencing mental health problems.

Connor Russell, owner and head coach of The Engine Room, led a winnng effort by members in the MyZone challengeConnor Russell, owner and head coach of The Engine Room, led a winnng effort by members in the MyZone challenge
Connor Russell, owner and head coach of The Engine Room, led a winnng effort by members in the MyZone challenge

It campaigns to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding and promises it will not give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect.

An Engine Room spokesperson said: “Our members were delighted when asked to take part in the challenge, especially during another lockdown when they were unable to take part in their normal classes and meet up with other gym members.

"They were all still taking part in the gym’s online classes with trainers Connor Russell, Michelle Gallagher and Adrienne Jenkins, but it’s not quite same as participating alongside each other in the gym.

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"As part of the challenge, members and their trainers were completing multiple sessions per day for days on end. There were families working out together and couples spending their date nights on spin bikes.

"There was hundreds of miles put in on their outdoor cycles with one member cycling 100 miles on the first day of the final. There was also multiple marathons and half marathons run over the three-day final.

"We had one member run four miles every four hours for 48 hours, while another ran one mile every hour for 26 hours and yet another ran the gruelling 26.2 miles over four runs on the third consecutive day of intense exercise."

Leading up to the end of the competition, it was unclear who was going to take the crown.

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"Then Connor asked his team to put in yet another session on that last day, on top of what they had already done to ensure they stayed on top, they pulled another one from their already broken bodies.

"The challenge brought out the competitiveness in the members, even those who didn’t think they were particularly competitive and has shown many of them just how much they were capable of.

"Exercise plays an important part in our physical and mental health and the Challenge for many at The Engine Room has helped them through yet another period of unsettling times, gave them focus and by working together as a team achieved something they can all be proud of.”

Visit www.facebook.com/theengineroomfalkirk for more information.