Not enough time for a full class? No problem!

If you need fitness, but do not have enough hours in the day to do a full group exercise class, fear not: Maties Gymnasium have you covered with their daily 30-minute express classes.The fitness team will host daily 30min express classes at 13:00 and 15:00 (Monday – Friday). Each day there will be a unique class with a different workout, taught by a different Fitness Instructor. See the Group Exercise Timetable on our website at the following link: Group Exercise Timetable

One of the newest and most intense classes is the “30-minute burn”, a high-intensity interval training session designed to burn calories and present a physical challenge at every stage during the workout. Following that is our “Tone & Target,” which is split into a lower body and an upper body focus; as the class states, we will be targeting selected muscle groups to tone and firm up those specific areas.

We have the “full-body workout”, incorporating some cardiovascular conditioning and full-body focused strength training for those who want an excellent all-around program.
We are also keeping our Express Uppercut class, a good mixture of boxing techniques, bag work, and general strength training.

It’s new! Rebound classes 

Rebounding brings the fun back into fitness, and it is also one of the best, low-impact exercises you can do for super-quick results. It is one of the quickest ways to rebuild muscle mass and improve overall strength and fitness levels. These exercises impact every cell, muscle, and organ in the body. This is because the body works twice as hard to defy gravity (as well as the forces of acceleration and deceleration) when bouncing on a mini-trampoline.

When: Wednesday 18 May 2022 @ 08:00
Where: Blousaal, Maties Gymnasium

Make sure to book online on the Maties Gymnasium website

Only ten slots are available for this demo class.

Out the old…    in with the new!

   

As part of a more extensive rebranding process of Stellenbosch University, Maties Gymnasium boats a brand new logo.

Within this new logo design is two prominent features. The first is the ‘S’ of ‘Stellenbosch’, expressed in rhythmic lines that resound the warmth and vibrancy of the African continent. The lines also form streams that flow continuously within a ‘U’ for ‘University’. Together with the counter spaces in between are a reminder of entopic symbols that span across cultures and languages.

The logo also has the words ‘Stellenbosch’ and ‘University’ in each of the three South African languages used by the institution.

Watch this space as we will be introducing our brand-new uniform soon!

Updated National Health Act Regulations

As most of us are aware, the South African National Government has issued new COVID-related measures in the updated National Health Act.

How will this affect Maties Gymnasium?

The Regulations that will stay are:

• Wearing a face mask when entering and exiting the building, as well as when not participating in vigorous physical activity
• Sanitizing at the gym entrance and our request for members to sanitize all gymnasium equipment before and after use.
• Keeping a social distance of at least 1 meter from fellow gym members always.
• Please ensure that you adhere to these regulations to ensure that we all remain safe.

The Regulations that will no longer apply are:

• We implemented the gym booking system to allow for contact tracing at the outset of the pandemic and ensure we do not exceed our maximum usage capacity. Although bookings will no longer be required from Friday, 20 May 2022, we may, at our discretion, limit usage numbers when we see that the gym gets too busy and a social distance of at least 1 meter cannot be observed. The booking system for group exercise classes will remain in place, though, as members requested this before the pandemic.
• All water fountains are operational, but please bring your own water bottle.

Jacques makes sure our numbers stay healthy too

Jacques Pretorius’s (photo above) job is to ensure that Maties Gymnasium’s financial affairs are healthy.

For Jacques, who joined Maties Gymnasium in June 2021, being fit is part of having a healthy balanced lifestyle. “There’s no need to give up on things that may be considered bad habits. It is perfectly possible to balance healthy living with eating ice cream or enjoying some wine with dinner,” says he.

Jacques believes you will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret to success is in your daily routine.

If he were to market the Gym to his friends, he would highlight the wide variety of offerings catering to whatever a person’s fitness goals might be. “The friendly atmosphere makes everyone feel right at home and ready to start a great workout,” Jacques says.

The best part of working at Maties Gym for Jacques is the energy and positive work environment. “There is no workplace drama or grumpy co-workers at Maties Gym

Commonwealth GAPS training camp at Maties Gym

Maties Gymnasium will welcome more than forty athletes and their coaches to complete the Commonwealth GAPS Training Camp in the gym’s state-of-the-art High-Performance area over the next two weeks. The athletes will also use the Maties Sport and the Department of Sport Science facilities.

The GAPS Programme camps are a unique opportunity that allows athletes and their coaches to experience high-performance coaching and performance support services that are not readily available in developing countries of Africa.

The programme’s expansion is ongoing and is working towards bringing GAPS to Africa in collaboration with Stellenbosch University, to the Americas and the Caribbean with the University of Western Ontario, and to Europe with the University of Birmingham. Griffith University will lead Oceania and Asia’s expansion in Australia.

GAPS is for emerging athletes and coaches from the Commonwealth. It aims to support the development of inclusive sports pathways, removing barriers to participation for people with a disability and women and girls to become actively involved in sport.