Singapore boutique gym Ritual proves a hit with 30-minute, ‘no excuses’ workout Passionate about cars and motorsports, Cheryl Tay is a familiar face in prominent local, regional as well as international automotive titles. More of her at CherylTay.sg. She also happens to be a recent gym and fitness convert. Here, she gets her heart racing at Ritual. Ritual opened its doors in January 2013 (photo courtesy of Ritual). Too busy to exercise? Heres a Singapore gym where you can book a slot online, slip on the provided workout attire when you arrive, smash the high intensity interval (HIIT) workout of the day, shower and grab a protein shake to go -- all within 30 minutes. That, in a nutshell, is whats on offer at Ritual, a boutique gym with a clever concept tailor-made for the working types and their hectic, fast-paced lifestyles. Efficiency Ritual opened its doors along North Canal Road in January this year. The institution is powered by the idea of getting the full effects of a total body workout in the shortest time possible without having to experience much inconvenience. Often enough, you get caught up at work or overrun a meeting and end up having to skip that Body Combat class at the gym or cancel on your personal trainer. Brad Robinson, 34, CEO and co-founder of Ritual, faced such problems while he was attempting to balance working out with a high-level job in a security systems company. He was training with fellow Ritual founder and programme director Ian Tan in preparation for his professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) debut last year when Tan, 26, called out the inefficiency in Robinsons training methods. The latter was spending too much time on weight training in the gym and hours of running in a quest to lose weight. Tan, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, ex-Muay Thai instructor as well as kettlebell sport athlete, managed to convince Robinson that 20 minutes of HIIT at least three times a week was all he needed to lose weight more efficiently. [READ IAN TANS STORY HERE] Though skeptical, Robinson took heed and eventually cut weight from a hefty 140kg to 85kg for his debut fight. Brad Robinson, at 85kg, winning his professional MMA debut (photo courtesy of Brad). Bowled over by his own experience and success, Robinson saw the potential in an increasingly saturated local fitness market. He left his job and worked hard with Tan to set Ritual up in just three months. Excuses One aim of Ritual is to quash the myriad excuses that people might have in order to not work out. Sessions are booked online or through a smartphone app and if you cant make it, just cancel without any penalty and choose another slot. There is no need to lug your gym bag and shoes to office as they provide attire, and no footwear is required. You dont have to worry about doing the laundry either. All first-timers get a free seven-day trial to experience and understand the Ritual concept. They also undergo a fitness assessment for Ritual trainers to determine a suitable level of workout intensity, which can range from beginner to Level Three. The workout of the day at Ritual on my visit there. Each class is limited to only 10 people, and you each have your own space and own set of equipment. Spacious shower areas await at the end of a session closely watched over by Ritual trainers. And to top off the time-saving efficiency, the in-house bar offers yummy protein shakes for lunch. Endorsement The challenge, according to Robinson, is to convince customers that such a short workout can produce results. “20 minutes is all you need, really. The afterburn effect of HIIT is far more efficient than steady state cardio which stops burning calories once you end the exercise, explained Robinson, who revealed plans to open more Ritual branches in Singapore as well as around the region. The most common question I get is the number of calories one session can burn. But it’s hard to put a number to it because after HIIT, you are still burning for the rest of the day or longer. Channel NewsAsia presenter Steve Lai is one famous face at Ritual. He joined in January and after training two to three times a week, managed to get back to his weight at the age of 18. “I don’t have an hour to work my way through a normal gym, waiting to use equipment, said Lai, who frequently posts about his Ritual sessions on Twitter (@stevelai) and Instagram (@st_evel_ai). And I like that at Ritual... Its not about getting big.” The modern setup and aesthetics of Ritual may seem intimidating to some, like Suria actress Haryani (Hani) Othman. Her first impression of Ritual was, in her own words, “is this gym only for tough macho men?” But she “was proven wrong” and now goes to Ritual three to four times a week. Combined with a healthy diet, yoga and stair-climbing, Hani (Instagram @hanidiva) says she has lost about 11kg in just 5 months. Ritual is at located at 11 North Canal Rd, #03-01. +65 6536 7291/ ritual.sg. Membership prices depend on the type of package but as a reference, it is about $369 per month for a one-year membership.
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 10:23:24 +0000
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