'Bag-marathon' for gym

"Just come along, buy a sausage and enjoy watching the marathon." Gareth Wellington says he and his fellow trustees of the Eltham Community Youth Fitness Centre (Eltham CYFC) are looking forward to showing people what the Eltham gym facility can offer.

The Eltham CYFC and the Hydras Kickboxing Club are holding a sponsored "bag marathon" on Sunday, May 24, to raise funds for the upgrade of the facility, operating out of the Eltham Scout Hall on Bridge Street in Eltham.

The marathon will see entrants hitting the punch bags in two minutes rounds for a total of six hours. The bag must not stop at any point in the six hours.

Spectators meanwhile can enjoy a sausage sizzle, with all funds raised going directly to the gym.

The Eltham CYFC is the home gym of the Hydras Kickboxing Club. The Hydras was a kickboxing club in New Plymouth many years ago and member, Colin Smith, brought the club to Eltham in order to introduce a new generation to the sport. Colin, who was the 1993 New Zealand Muay Thai Champion, trains fighters at the gym, helping them prepare for upcoming fights, as well as working with Eltham youth, introducing them to the discipline and commitment of the sport.

While the Hydras Kickboxing Club has been running since the 1980s, "it used to be purely a fighters gym, whereas now we are a gym for everyone, by creating the youth fitness centre we can offer more. We still have fighters coming in and training, but we also offer excellent workouts for people not interested in fighting as well," says Gareth.

Gareth's wife, Adele, says she loves the workouts on offer at the gym. "The cardio is fantastic and it really gets me moving and pushing myself. I also like the fact it offers me some self defence training." Adele travels from Midhirst to attend sessions at the gym. "It is worth the travel to go to a gym which suits me. Quite a few of us come from out of Eltham, and choose to come here because it gives us the workout we want."

While kickboxing is currently the main sport the gym focuses on, this is always evolving, says Gareth. "We are looking at introducing other disciplines such as jiu jitsu in the future as the gym membership grows."

Gareth says he encourages people to come and look around the gym, or watch one of the sessions running during the week to get an idea of what is on offer.

"Everyone is welcome, at all levels of fitness and interest. We love what we do and are looking forward to introducing more people to the gym."

Eltham CYFC and Hydras Kickboxing Club: Eltham Scouts Den, Bridge Street, Eltham.

Email: usatelthamhydraskbc@gmail.com

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Bag Marathon: Sunday, May 24. 11am - 5pm. At the Eltham CYFC