By Michele DeLuca

michele.deluca@niagara-gazette.com

It has been said that the best action you can take against illness is to put on a pair of sneakers. However, once you put the sneakers on your feet you have to move them.

Moving sneakered feet creates exercise. Exercise not only prevents illness, it increases longevity, reduces stress and makes humans feel strong and vital. So, why aren’t more people doing it?

Really? Can exercise really compare to a few hours on a nice soft couch and a crazy reality show like “Hell’s Kitchen.” Local fitness experts say yes, absolutely!

With summer just a few months away and the possibilities of summer clothes beckoning, there are a multitude of opportunities for working toward a healthier, stronger, better looking body. It might even be fun. So, read on. Then go find your sneakers.

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Advanced Care Aquaticand Fitness Center, 924 Main St., Niagara Falls, 282-2888

Most work days, over at the brand new Advanced Care Physical Therapy Aquatic and Fitness Center on Main Street, about a dozen or more employees of the Unifrax work out on their lunch hour.

The brand new facility is a sleek and contemporary expansion of a long-time local physical therapy office which recently moved to Main Street and added a fitness and aquatic center with membership open to all area residents.

Unifrax has a corporate account there and pays nearly 80 percent of the membership fees for its employees. Many are competing in their company’s “Biggest Loser” contest.

“After you leave here you feel so much more productive,” said Tarra DeAngelo, a technician at Unifrax who was working out there one recent afternoon.

The fitness director, Todd Schifferle, said the facility has all the programs people have come to expect from an upscale gym membership, including Zumba classes, Family Hip Hop classes, water conditioning classes and personal trainers.

The facility is also one of only a handful of U.S. clubs that has a “Techno Gym,” a wall of mechanized equipment that provides an intense workout on all planes of movement in as little as 15 minutes.

All the gym equipment links to a user’s key which allows both the equipment and a central computer to track user effort and results.

That key “is pulling you along and motivating you,” Schifferle explained.

In addition, all the cardio equipment has flat screen televisions with 40 cable channels and headphones so that each user can watch the programming of their choice.

The fitness and aquatic center offers a three month trial membership for $79 and then a regular membership for $99 down and $29 a month. A two-year contract is $19 a month.

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Niagara Falls Family YMCA,1317 Portage Road, Niagara Falls, 285-8491

The family seeking to work out together can also consider the YMCA on Main Street, where the fitness club has recently been renovated and updated.

Administrators at the YWCA say that those who haven’t been in their facilities for a while may be surprised at the changes inside.

The locker rooms have been painted and redecorated, and about $100,000 in new training equipment has been installed since the Y began its makeover about three years ago, according to director Greg Larson, executive director.

While the YMCA boasts a loyal membership from throughout the region, what makes it truly unique is a “financial assistance” component that provides scholarships of up to 50 percent for families and senior citizens on a fixed income, Larson said.

The Y has all the standard fitness club offerings, including an aquatic program, yoga, racquetball courts, weight room and aerobic machines. There is also a weekly Family Fitness Night and a Silver Sneakers program for seniors. Every member starts off with at least two sessions with a personal trainer, Larson said.

“We want to make sure they are coming in and working towards their goals and being successful,” he added.

A standard Y membership is $459 a year, with an $80 joining fee, but those costs can be halved with available scholarships for those who qualify.

Larson said the Y is “truly a community within a community,” and attempts to be truly inclusive with members ranging from teens to seniors.

“We’re still working hard on getting the word out so folks can come in and see the changes that have taken place here,” he said.

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World Gym, 1647 Military Road, Niagara Falls, 297-5107

Although the name World Gym sounds like a place where body builders gather, it may surprise some to hear that it is instead, a place that boasts a membership of nearly 80 percent first time gym users, according to Josh Steiner, manager of the gym.

World Gym, located on Military Road in the Wegman’s Plaza, is one of three facilities, with the others located in Hamburg and Williamsville.

Members at the Niagara Falls gym received privileges at the sister locations, Steiner said.

World Gym has a brand new “Women Only” section with cardio, free weights and nautilus equipment, to make first time exercisers feel comfortable, he said, adding about 70 percent of the clientele is female.

The co-ed gym, which is about four years old, offers every new member a couple of start-up sessions with a personal trainer to make sure the member is comfortable.

“Our memberships are as low as $10 a month,” which is something else that helps us to attract first time gym users,” he said.

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Curves for Women,2920 Grand Island Boulevard,Grand Island, 773-5955

“This is a social club,” said Sandra Preston, the owner of Curves Fitness near the north bridge on Grand Island.

The franchise is noted for its half-hour workouts, and the women go through a circuit of exercise machines placed in a circle. An overhead speaker plays workout music and directs the women when to change machines. The atmosphere encourages interaction between the women, which helps to pass the time.

There are games and contests and prizes, said Preston, who has owned the Grand Island franchise for nearly three years. Still, participants can get fit while they’re having fun.

“This is a really good workout,” she said of the circuit.

In January Preston moved the facilities to a new location at 2920 Grand Island Boulevard, and has added some new equipment as well.

Her current membership is all ages, she said, from early twenties and up. Many of her members have their fees paid for by their health insurance, including those in the Silver Sneakers and Active Anytime programs.

Regular membership is $34 a month, she said.

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Niagara Health and Fitness,734 Cayuga St., Lewiston, 754-4474

One unusual feature at Niagara Health and Fitness Center in Lewiston is personal trainer Chris Tybor’s Food for Fitness program. Tybor has created a meal plan for those who want to eat healthier. Personal meals are created fresh by fitness experts and delivered to several locations, including the World Gym in Niagara Falls.

Tybor said the meals are “perfect for individuals who need to add a few healthy meals a week, while keeping their health and fitness goals in mind.”

Niagara Fitness also offers a wide variety of fitness programs including spinning room, yoga, Pilates, kettlebell, powerlifting and Silver Sneakers programs.

The gym is running a special membership program of $299 a year, Tybor said.

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Cutting Edge Sports Training, 3067 Sheridan Dr., Amherst, 833-2100

For athletes and humans seeking a sharper edge, Niagara Falls native Joe DiPietro has opened Cutting Edge Sports training at the Northtown Plaza in Amherst.

DePietro calls his 4,200 square foot facility a “multi-sport athletic training facility.”

“It’s a results driven company,” DePietro said. “There’s no membership here. It’s really an exclusive training facility for athletes dedicated to enhancing human performance in sports or life in general,” he said.

DePietro is a strength and conditioning specialist, which he said is “a step above a personal trainer.”

He is also USA Track and Field certified, and said, “In WNY there are no track and field coaches who have certification I have.”

DePietro teaches at Daemen College and also works with members from area hockey teams and basketball teams, including the Buffalo Stampede and the Tonawanda Lightning.

“We are definitely a step above,” he said.

Contact reporter Michele DeLuca at 282-2311, ext. 2263.