Emotions of body and psyche

Crisis, what crisis? In the eyes of the most free-thinking economists, the downturn is an opportunity for new business ventures, for the emergence of new professions that in turn generate new opportunities. One example is the rise of emotional trainers, professionals who focus on the body and the psyche in search of the unconscious causes of pathologies such as depression and other disorders deriving from a frenetic lifestyle and the many commitments and distractions of daily living. And of course even an emotional trainer needs somewhere to work.
GetFIT is a trend-setting space that opens up an utterly new market, generating needs that in turn create new roles. It is the brand name of a fitness club organisation set up for the purpose of creating highly specialist spaces with special equipment and personnel trained to promote overall well-being. GetFIT’s mission is to create special programmes that help people feel at ease with themselves and others, avoiding the stress generated by excessive physical exercise and instead using multifunctional spaces where fitness rooms coexist with a thermarium and relaxation zone. The GetFIT organisation now has thirteen clubs, including ten in Milan, one in Monza, one in Gallarate (province of Varese) and one in Lugano in Switzerland. However, it is not sufficient to rely solely on a simple brand marketing operation or the predictable appeal of a new frontier of well-being. Instead it is necessary to create truly special spaces, places that stand out for unique colours that foster a certain kind of relaxation. In short, what is the concept behind the GetFIT project? “Our firm’s philosophy,” explains architect Franco Scaglia, “can be summed up in three points: offering our now long-term experience in the wellness sector in terms of organisation of spaces, sizing and flow management; decontextualising the Club’s image so as to take it as far away as possible from the classic gym concept of sweat and hard work, creating spaces that are naturally inclined to make people feel better; and never losing sight of the fact that someone who makes an investment does so with the aim of getting some kind of return, not simply to enhance the figure of the architect: in other words, if a lot of funds are available you can do great things, but it takes skill to do a good job for the right amount of money.” Built a couple of years ago in a space converted from a former auto workshop, the Club has a restaurant facing directly onto the road and a fitness area located above the restaurant. It is organised on three levels: the ground floor houses the entrance, the offices and the restaurant; the intermediate floor the changing rooms and swimming pool; the first floor the course rooms and fitness area. The basement spa is directly connected to the changing rooms via a stairway. One new feature of the Club is the fact that Florim ceramic tiles have been used for the first time as an alternative to wood, including in the course rooms.
This unconventional choice by architect Livio Leardi (owner of GetFIT) has given excellent results from the standpoint of maintenance. Porcelain tiles with a strongly non-slip surface were used in the wet areas and the swimming pool.