FAR NORTH DALLAS BODY SHOPS

MERCIFULLY, winter has come and gone, spring has sprung and, here in Texas, summer could be upon us tomorrow. Which sounds great, but for some of us, the ecstasy of that first dive into the pool brings the agony of flashing flabby thighs and untoned flesh. Unless, of course, you’ve been faithfully working out for the past few months and are fighting trim.

We’ve all let things slide a bit, so the time is ripe for the annual pep talk on excess fat and where to get rid of it. Getting in shape is big business these days, and there is a variety of classy body shops to choose from in the area north of LBJ Freeway. You can find just about anything – from spas to dance studios, Nautilus to Universal. Hard-core enthusiasts may crave Jane Fonda-type workouts while other less fanatical types may just want to bounce around to some good music. For moms with babies, there are exercise classes equipped with baby-sitting services to allow total concentration on pectorals and deep knee bends without the patter of little feet.

Shopping around is a good idea. It’s the smartest way to find the program and schedule that will best suit your needs before you make the commitment to an expensive regime at a fancy spa. Aerobic dancing, Jazzercise and other dance/exercise classes are fun ways to dip your toe into the great ocean of fitness disciplines without getting in over your head.

Whatever style of workout you choose, you’ll be promised a firmer torso and a healthier psyche -provided you put some time and energy into it. So it’s not too late. Perhaps you too may sport a svelte new shape in time for the first big splash.

EXERCISE/DANCE CLASSES

Jazzercise. Jazzercise is a nationwide franchise offering dance routines set to music. The idea is to promote increased cardiovascular fitness, better coordination, overall muscle toning and endurance. Piano’s Jazzercise classes are located in new facilities, where instructors Susan Shelley and Rosemary Southern talk their jampacked classes through a variety of routines. Southern stresses that Jazzercise is a workout you can literally walk into; the routines are simple to pick up and don’t require the same gradual buildup that aerobic dancing might. The instructor faces the class on a raised platform for easy viewing and talks a steady patter of encouragement to keep the class from flagging. The class mood seems excellent despite some crowding, and everyon seems to have a good time. Jazzercise classes cost $15 for four weeks of eight classes or $2.50 per session. A full roster of classes is offered, and baby-sitting for toddlers is available on the premises. Parker and Alma, Piano. 424-3744.

Jacki Sorensen’s Aerobic Dancing. Aerobic dancing consists of dance routines that are simply choreographed and are designed to gradually increase cardiovascular fitness. Sorensen’s aerobic dance centers are nationwide; the facility in Addison is spacious and well-organized, staffed by fully trained instructors. This kind of workout really pushes the heart muscles to bring in more oxygen to the body. The routines are fairly easy, but it’s hard to come in and pick them up in one session. You need to enroll in a class and attend regularly to master the routines and get the most out of the program. A babysitting service is available at the center, and a variety of classes is offered. Aerobic dancing is an excellent choice for someone who wants the cardiovascular stimulation of jogging without the tedium. 4841 Keller Springs Road, between Dallas Parkway and Addison Road. 248-9806.

The Workout. The newest of Terry Coit’s studios, The Workout on Preston Road is targeted to the far North Dallas trade. Intermediate and advanced classes in aerobics, stretching and toning are offered at $5 per single class or a monthly rate of $3.75 per class. You won’t find any machines here -you’ve got to do it all yourself. The 20 staff instructors are all trained in physical education and rotate among the three Dallas Workout locations. Dance wear is sold on the premises. 17390 Preston Road. 380-1355.

Slimnastics. Jeri Haggard’s Slimnastics is the perfect class for someone who wants a good overall workout. Haggard offers a bit of everything -stretching, some modest work with weights, aerobics and floor exercises. The class is not too large for some individual guidance, but more importantly, Haggard’s pace is ideally suited to the needs of those who have been away from a regular exercise program for a while. Her routines are strenuous but not painfully so, and her goal is to build up the body and condition it, as well as to increase cardiovascular fitness. Haggard’s class at Willow Bend is open to nonmem-bers; the sessions are eight weeks long, $30 per session, and classes meet on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9 to 10 a.m. Willow Bend Polo and Hunt Club, FM 544 between Dallas Parkway and Preston Road, Piano.

The Studio. If you’re ready to get serious about stretching and body toning, this one’s for you. Instructor Linda Yakel offers a workout session that leaves you wringing wet and physically wrung-out, but, boy, does it feel good! Yakel believes that stomach exercises are the most important ones you can do. “The stomach is the girdle for the body,” she says, “so you’ll have fewer back problems if your stomach muscles are strong enough to give proper support.” Yakel’s studio is small but fully mirrored; and her classes are small, too, so she can give more individual attention. The routines vary, but count on a lot of stomach, leg and thigh exercises, plus some work with weights. “No machines, no contracts” is her slogan, and she believes that doing all the work yourself without exercise machinery makes for physical well-being and a psychological high, which she says is essential to a good workout. Yakel stresses that any well-rounded exercise program should include aerobics, stretching and weight resistance, but says that her 36-class schedule meets most of these requirements. The Studio offers classes for pregnant women, mothers and babies, husbands and wives and has just started one for adolescents. Fees range from $3 per class to $2 a class five times a week. 3239 Independence Pkwy., Lancers Square, Piano. 596-7282.

Richard Simmons’ Anatomy Asylum. This place is all aerobics, with four levels to choose from: beginner, intermediate, advanced and a special class geared to the seriously overweight. The new facilities will offer 200 classes; membership entitles you to unlimited usage. Trained instructors coax participants through some vigorous aerobics and floor work accompanied by Richard Simmons-style patter. A fully supervised nursery and a pro shop with exercise duds are available on the premises. Dal Rich Shopping Center, Belt Line at Coit, Richardson (231-5644); Prairie Creek Village, 15th at Independence, Piano (867-9510).

Elaine Powers. This is another nationally owned chain that offers exercise classes without the more glamorous accouter-ments of some of the local spas. Its “pow-ercise” classes, a combination of floor exercises and aerobic dance, are offered during the week, and there is some progressive-resistance machinery available for body buildup. Individual programs can be prepared for each member, and nutritional guidance is available. Village Square Shopping Center, Parker at Alma, Piano (424-8564); 1342 E. Belt Line at Piano Pkwy., Richardson (235-9591); 14902 Preston at Belt Line (980-8021).

Fretz Park Recreation Department. Some local recreational departments offer a variety of exercise classes, and Fretz Park has one of the better selections, including aerobic dancing, Slimnastics, Jaz-zercise and a stretching and toning class reminiscent of Jane Fonda’s Workout. Fretz Park also offers a “Moms and Tots” class that features coordination exercises for children ages 1 to 3 and their moms. A prenatal exercise class is also available, as well as a class for physically handicapped children ages 7 to 14; it features basketball, table games and stretching exercises, all done to music. 6950 Belt Line at Hill-crest, Dallas. 233-8921.

Vines Recreation Center. Vines offers several exercise classes with limited enrollment. These include Slimnastics (basic exercise done on mats), rhythm and fitness (aerobic routines for flexibility and stretching), expressions of fitness (aerobic dancing) and weight training. There is also an aquatics program for several age groups. Vines High School, 1401 High-edge, Piano. 596-4696.



SPAS AND HEALTH CLUBS



Cosmopolitan Lady. Here you’ll find ultraglamorous facilities, and a workout as serious as you want to make it. Body contouring (stretching and toning a la Jane Fonda), aerobics, prenatal exercise, yoga and a special water exercise program (aquacise) are all offered on a regular basis. Additional classes and seminars on nutrition, beauty -even the benefits of plastic surgery -are available. The club features an indoor track along with a complete series of Dynacame machinery for resistant weight work, body toning and general firm-up. Cosmopolitan Lady features a good-sized indoor pool with a Jacuzzi and cold plunge. Additional facilities include a steam room, sauna, zip-tanning booth, showers and lockers. And there is a full-time masseuse whose massages are the stuff of dreams. Manager Yvonne Kendrick believes that the club performs a vital service for women who need a health club of their own. Membership is available on a one-, two- or three-year basis, with a renewable option. The nursery on the premises is fully supervised and costs $1 per family for two hours of baby-sitting. 5511 Arapaho near Dallas Parkway. 980-8009.

President’s Health Club. The coed facilities of President’s Health Clubs (which are located throughout the Dallas area) may be more suited to singles, but the completeness of the clubs is unchallenged. The two clubs serving the far North Dallas area have many features in common, including a pool with Jacuzzi, steam rooms and saunas, plus extensive machinery for progressive-resistance training. The Richardson club offers separate schedules for men and women, so you don’t have to participate in a coed situation unless you choose to. It also features a zip-tanning room and a eucalyptus room. There is a fully supervised nursery for members and a separate aerobic dance floor at both locations. Camelot Shopping Village, 530 W. Arapaho, Richardson (231-8251); and Quorum Plaza, 5000 Belt Line (239-8110).

Mademoiselle Fitness and Figure Center. Mademoiselle Fitness Center prides itself on its service to the customer without a high-pressure sales pitch. This is a complete health club with facilities similar to Cosmopolitan Lady, such as an indoor pool and track, dry sauna, whirlpool, masseuse, steam room and tanning bed. There is a complete set of Dynacame equipment, as well as weights for lifting. The nursery is free, and the lifetime membership package includes full use of all facilities. In addition to a regular schedule of Slimnastics, aerobics and prenatal exercise classes, Mademoiselle also offers the complete Jane Fonda Workout class. This is the only spa in Dallas authorized to give the Fonda program in its entirety. A class in myotherapy (pain reduction through application of pressure at certain body points) is also available. Spring Valley and Coit, Richardson. 960-0966.

Spa Lady. The newest area branch of this national fitness chain for women, the spa features an individually planned program of exercise and weight resistance designed to help you lose weight, firm and tone, and build up muscular strength. Its Dynacame resistant weight machines are very much like Nautilus equipment but are better suited to the special body-building needs of women. Spa Lady is not as complete a club as Mademoiselle and Cosmopolitan Lady, (it offers a whirlpool without the full pool, sauna and tanning center). But what it lacks in frills, it more than compensates for in the interest and friendliness of its staff. There seems to be no hard-sell atmosphere at all, and the in-structors take time to set up your program and demonstrate correct usage of the machines. Classes in aerobics and slimnastics are offered daily, and several mothers voluntarily gave the nursery rave reviews. 3115 W. Parker at Independence, Piano. 867-8058.

Racquetball Resorts International. This new facility in Piano offers both racquet-ball and a complete fitness center to temptnew members. There are 14 racquetballcourts and separate wet facilities for menand women, including Jacuzzis, saunasand steam rooms. A pool will be installedsoon, and there is a supervised nurseryavailable for members’ children. Aerobicdancing and exercise classes are offered ona regular basis, and the center has a limitedmembership of 2,000. 6150 IndependencePkwy., Piano. 596-7808.