It has been 12 months since the brand new BH Live Active gym opened at Pyramids, Southsea. And city residents have been snapping up the new facilities to help them get active and enjoy better wellbeing.
The team has recorded a successful year attracting close to 2,000 new members which is a phenomenal achievement. And with seventy group exercise classes taking place inside its purpose-built studios every week it’s no surprise there have been more than 120,000 attendances to exercise classes over the last 12 months.
“Pyramids is so much more than a gym. We are a thriving hub at the heart of the community enjoyed by people of all ages and abilities,”
said centre manager Sam Roberts.
“We’ve spent a lot of time this year getting out into the community to share the benefits of being regularly active and how we can help those who might not have considered stepping inside our doors before. We’ve encouraged customers and staff to take part in fitness challenges who have, through exercise, helped raise much-needed funds and smiles for other local charities including Macmillan, Sudden Cardiac Arrest UK, the British Heart Foundation, Naomi’s House and Jacksplace hospices.”
Over the year, the BH Live Active team has supported lots of community events too including the Love Southsea Fitness Festival, Victorious and Race for Life. And working with local colleges and education providers, the fitness team is encouraging more young people to get into regular exercise for better physical health and mental well-being. There are family yoga sessions to promote exercising together. And for those living with long-term health conditions such as COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), there are lots of guided sessions at Pyramids to help improve health and manage symptoms. There is an exercise referral scheme which offers discounted access and there are classes such as low-impact circuits which gives all the benefits of a challenging exercise routine but without the stress on joints.
Sam adds,
“To enable more people to use the facilities we have worked closely with the council to get free customer parking for 90 minutes, something which wasn’t available before. And we also offer free one-day passes so people can come along and see what we’ve got going on here, and try out a gym session and class.
“We are so proud of what has been achieved this year. Our thanks to our customers who make every day so rewarding, the BH Live team who give care and support to so many people with such enthusiasm, and of course Portsmouth City Council and our community partners, without whom we would not have had such a wonderful facility and encouraging year.”
Pyramids is managed by registered charity BH Live in partnership with Portsmouth City Council.
The new gym facilities formed part of a Portsmouth City Council investment to transform the ageing Southsea facilities into a brand-new attraction for community benefit.
On behalf of the council, Councillor Steve Pitt, Cabinet Member for Culture, Leisure, and Economic Development said,
“We’re pleased to work in partnership with BH Live to provide the gym facility at Pyramids to support people to live active, healthy lives, in line with our priority to create a happy and healthy city for our residents.”
Over the next twelve months, there are plans to grow the facilities and activities at Pyramids further. BH Live will be launching a brand new HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) programme, with new classes in Pyramids’ dedicated HIIT studio. A new café area with refreshments and hot drinks will open. And there will be new classes too including Les Mills’ CORE™ and BODYATTACK™, plus more functional fitness and gym classes.
Ceri with friends at the Great South Run
BH Live Active member Ceri said:
“I have been a BH Live member for seven years & love attending the wide variety of classes. Since the refurbishment at Pyramids, I have been using the HIIT studio which has improved my fitness so much. And a group of ladies who met at the gym have run the Great South Run twice now… something that if you had asked me a few years ago I could never have imagined doing!
“I have made friends for life at the gym, it keeps my spirits up when life gets tough & the trainers are encouraging & approachable… I consider them friends now too.
“BH Live (Pyramids) is a friendly, fun & modern gym with a wide range of clients. There is something for everyone & I miss going when I am busy with work/life.”
BH Live Active members can also access the gyms, pools and classes at Mountbatten Leisure Centre and Charter Community Sports Centre.
The facilities and classes are also available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
A free one-day guest pass to try out the facilities is available online. Find out more at bhliveactive.org.uk
-ENDS-
Notes to Editors:
Photo-caption:
Customer Ceri with friends at the Great South Run
See the gym and facilities at Pyramids, Southsea – https://youtu.be/bvXYfHy2ppg
For more information about BH Live please contact:
Elizabeth Symmons, PR, Communications and Marketing Manager
E: press.office@bhlive.org.uk
T: (01202) 055562
About BH Live
BH Live is a leading operator of leisure and event venues; a registered charity and social enterprise that designs and builds engaging experiences to inspire people and enrich lives.
Our social objectives are to:
- Encourage more people to take part in physical activity – by providing leisure facilities to encourage active communities and improve health and wellbeing.
- Attract bigger entertainment audiences – with a diverse range of cultural and artistic events that appeal to a wide variety of tastes.
- Deliver economic benefit – by hosting major conferences, exhibitions and events that benefit the local, regional and international economy.
With more than five million visits a year we are changing lives and are at the heart of the UK’s growing social economy.
For more visit bhlive.org.uk.
Get social with us: LinkedIn and Twitter @BHLIVE_UK Facebook @SocialEnterpriseBHLive
BH Live operates the following venues in partnership with Portsmouth City Council:
- Mountbatten Leisure Centre – Portsmouth’s flagship leisure and event venue with swimming pools, a 150 station gym, eight-court sports hall, squash, spin and dance studios, a cycle velodrome, athletics track, function suites with bars, a café and soft play facility.
It is also home to a Clip ‘N Climb leisure attraction which opened in 2018.
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk.
Get social with us: Twitter and Facebook @mountbattenlc
- Pyramids Centre – one of Portsmouth’s leading leisure venues overlooking Southsea beach and the Solent. It has state-of-the-art Technogym fitness equipment in a spacious gym with functional fitness, strength and cardio zones. There is a dedicated area for health assessments and people who are new to exercise, plus fitness tracking technology to help support people in reaching their activity goals.
Four activity studios provide a variety of daily exercise classes including Group Cycling, HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), Yoga, Pilates and the Les Mills programme.
The centre is also home to Exploria, a themed play and bounce attraction which opened in 2021. A range of exciting experiences stimulate play and challenge children agreed from 6 months upwards. A bounce zone includes a diving tower with air bag, interactive games, themed slides agility parkour, battle beams and foam pits. The play zone includes ball pits, spider’s web and cargo climbing features, a rope bridge skywalk, bash bags, tunnels, rollers, beams and dodge ball shoot out. And the baby and toddler zone has all things Exploria, but downsized for little ones. There is also a range of interactive games, a dedicated sensory room, four themed party rooms and a café serving snacks, light bites and drinks.
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk and exploria.org.uk
Get social with us: Twitter @PyramidsCentre
Facebook @Pyramids.Centre
- Portsmouth Gymnastics Centre – gymnastics hall with physiotherapy and meeting room.
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk.
Get social with us: Facebook @PortsmouthGymnasticsCentre
- Portsmouth Tennis Centre – Situated in the north of Portsmouth consisting of four indoor courts and six floodlit outdoor courts. A comprehensive coaching programme caters for all ages and abilities. Sessions are available for tots, juniors, adults and also includes variations of the sport such as cardio tennis and touch tennis.
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk.
Get social with us: Twitter @PortsTennis and Facebook @PortsmouthTC
- Wimbledon Park Sports Centre – sports hall with badminton and basketball courts
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk.
Get social with us: Facebook @WimbledonParkSportsCentre
- Charter Community Sports Centre – 20m swimming pool, 20 station gym, sports hall and an outdoor multi-use games area.
For more visit bhliveactive.org.uk.
Get social with us: Facebook @CharterCommunitySC