A NEW gym has opened its doors in Kendal, promising a ‘welcoming and friendly’ atmosphere for its prospective clients.

Joe Robinson, a former rugby player and qualified personal trainer, is the man behind the new CoreWorx Gym on Sandes Avenue.

Set over three floors, the gym is set to offer standard gym equipment as well as a room dedicated to yoga and pilates, a room for ‘functional fitness’ and classes that are set to be tailored around the gym’s new client base.

For Mr Robinson, 27, the new gym is a dream come true.

“I’ve been a personal trainer for six years and I’ve always wanted my own gym,” he said. “As a personal trainer I just love helping people. It’s always been a passion of mine to be fit and be healthy.”

Originally from Derbyshire and now living in Penrith, Mr Robinson said that from a young age he had spent time in the Lake District and his had been an ‘outdoors family’.

And although Mr Robinson first used the gym as a way to lose weight, relieve stress and build muscle, in recent years he has become more interested in utilising the gym in a way that allows him to perform better in all areas of his life.

“It’s more about functionality,” he said. “Being able to go running and living a healthy lifestyle.”

He hopes that the new gym will offer a welcoming environment for clients as well as helping people learn a bit more about their overall health.

“We’re not a specialist gym,” he said. “We’re not a huge commercial gym. We respond to our members with anything and everything. We offer a large scale personal training centre and we’re friendly. It’s about listening to what your member base wants.”

The gym currently has two full-time staff members and three freelance personal trainers.

“The key is to get personal trainers who are different to what you’d normally get,” he said. “We’re looking for people who want to help members, not impose the newest fad on the client.

“It’s great because in Kendal there’s an abundance of that; everyone has different hobbies. In this kind of place, it’s a hub for different tastes and interests and that’s really refreshing.”

The gym is open from 5.30am-10pm, Monday-Friday and 8am-4pm, Saturday and Sunday.