A new gym is heading to town, but it’s not what you might expect.
Air Locker Training, which simulates training at high altitude, has attracted a cult following since Newcastle-based founder Roman Brady developed the idea in 2019.
With studios in Bondi, Newcastle, Kotara and Maitland, Mr Brady is now partnering with dozens of franchisees to open up Air Locker sites across Australia.
And now, a local family has lodged a Development Application to bring the franchise to the Penrith Homemaker Centre, with plans to occupy the former Beds n Dreams site.
Mr Brady, whose background is in mining, said he wanted to create a product that was different to what was on the market.
“The Air Locker journey, it’s altitude training so it’s a lot more efficient training, you can lose fat quicker, build muscle a lot more efficiently without the heavy load, and a lot of high performance athletes use it to get a competitive advantage in sports. However, it’s never been really available for the general population and we’re really passionate about trying to make something like this, that’s generally been high end, accessible for everybody,” he said.
Workouts are circuit-based and class-based, lasting about 50 minutes including meditation at the end.
“We do a lot more neural exercises in our workout like hand and eye coordination drills, so we try to get you fatigued and then get you to make good decisions or be reactive under a fatigued state, which translates to everyday life,” Mr Brady said.
He said it usually takes about five or six sessions for the body to adapt to the reduced oxygen levels.
“Our coaches will make sure our members’ blood saturation levels are within a range, and if they go under our range, they’ll be told to back off,” he said.
“After about five or six sessions you’re able to cope with those conditions better, but in everyday life everything is easier because your body is used to doing it with decreased oxygen.”
Mr Brady hopes the Penrith franchisee is just weeks away from getting Council’s all clear to occupy the site.
Alena Higgins is the Weekender’s Senior News Reporter, primarily covering courts and Council issues.
