San Luis Obispo is the first city on the Central Coast to open a National Fitness Court at Emerson park, which is a free outdoor circuit training area for the community.
From arms, to abs to box jumping to work on your lower body — San Luis Obispo has joined the National Fitness Campaign in opening a free outdoor fitness court.
The first court opened in San Francisco, and now the courts are popping up in cities throughout the nation.
“Financially not everybody can afford a fitness club or gym membership," said Greg Avakian, Director for Parks and Recreation for the City of San Luis Obispo. "It was a no-brainer to focus on outdoor fitness equipment.”
Avakian said thanks to a $25,000 grant, the city is the first on the Central Coast to offer this free circuit workout area.
“The idea is that you can do circuits and there is an app as well as the website for self guided as well," Avakian said. " We will also do some actual instructional courses out here.”
The fitness court app can be downloaded with no charge, and it allows users to watch videos with trainers who walk them through exercises on the court.
If you don’t have a smartphone, there are illustrations on the court itself to walk you through how to use the equipment. Avakian said soon, people will also be able to attend classes in-person on the court.
“Over the next 30 days, we will be trickling in some programs and signage, and some examples of workouts on our social media," Avakian said. "And then in Spring, we’ll be organizing groups and formalized classes for the community.”
Avakian said the fitness court at Emerson park is now open during park hours 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The SLO Parks and Recreation department does request no private lessons be conducted and for people not to use it as a children's playground.
“We promote healthy living and healthy lifestyles. We have a fantastic outdoor community," Avakian said. "This brings another opportunity for our community to be healthy — build that sense of community by socializing and working out together.”
