Life Time Fitness Starts New Senior Partnership
On this first week of 2019, gyms are packed with people looking to shed a few pounds.
“Yeah, actually by a long shot, it’s our busiest time of the year by double,” said Ryan Chapman, senior director of corporate sales for Life Time Fitness.
Chapman says the clubs are busy this time of year due to Minnesota winters keeping people indoors. But mostly, it’s because people have made a commitment to get in shape for the new year.
“New Year’s is a great time to kick that off,” he said.
However, Minnesota seniors on Medicare have yet another incentive to sign up for a membership at the state’s largest health club chain.
“In the state of Minnesota now, almost all insurance carriers have an option for that 65-plus population to get either a free or 50 percent off membership at Life Time,” Chapman said. “Which, for a lot of those Medicare recipients, has been unheard of in the past.”
In the past, Life Time Fitness had partnerships with several Medicare programs that gave people access to their clubs, but Life Time wasn’t part of the biggest one: SilverSneakers.
That all changed on Jan. 1, 2019.
‘Free Membership to Life Time’
“As of Jan. 1, 2019, if you’re insured by Medica, UCare or HealthPartners in the state of Minnesota as a Medicare recipient, you now have a free membership to Life Time,” Chapman said. “All you have to do is come in and activate it.”
So far, people have been doing just that.
“Just in the first two days, here in Minnesota, we had 150 new people enroll in our SilverSneakers program,” Chapman said.
Chapman expects that number to grow in the coming months, considering the number of amenities that Life Time clubs offer. But more importantly, the seniors will have access to staff members who can help get them started on a healthy lifestyle.
“People have been asking for this for a long time,” Chapman said. “So we’re really excited that the doors are finally open at Life Time for that demographic, and so far they’re loving it.”
The SilverSneakers program only works for Life Time’s bronze and gold clubs, which include New Hope, Plymouth and Maple Grove.
