by Emily Smith
The weather is heating up and now your exercise sessions can too with the newly opened Hotworx fitness studio. Local franchise owners Monte and Gail Porter began the process of opening the studio at the beginning of the year. The Hotworx company was started by Stephen P. Smith in 2014, and currently has over one hundred franchise locations throughout the nation.
Located at 2030 Oakheart Road in the The Shoppes at Forest Square, and neighboring Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, it is the first of its kind in Horry County. Along with Planet Fitness around the corner, and Burn Boot Camp a few doors down, Hotworx is one in a number of new additions in the Carolina Forest area providing workout options for the community.
The concept behind Hotworx is the combination of yoga and low-impact exercise in an infrared sauna. Multiple small saunas make up the fitness studio, plus an added (and unheated) room for lifting weights. Inside the saunas are screens where a virtual instructor guides users through 30-minute sessions, or a High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) course for 15 minutes.
Adding the infrared heat to a workout has many benefits, according to the Hotworx website (hotworx.net). The heat increases the temperature of the body, which speeds up a person’s metabolism and decreases the amount of time needed to warm up. Using isometric workouts such as yoga and pilates is also meant to accelerate the detoxification of muscle groups and increase circulation.
Working out in these saunas is supposed to replace the need for longer sessions, but help people see the same or similar results. The heated rooms are smaller as well, typically fitting only three people at the same time, and each can be adjusted to find the best temperature for your workout.
Our local Hotworx location began accepting memberships a few months ago at about $60 per month. A membership here allows 24-hour access to the saunas, plus with virtual trainers and no set class times, a workout can be whenever you want it to be.
Interested parties can call 844-446-8979 to get in contact with a representative and learn more about this steamy way to workout.
Open all the time for members, and staffed Monday through Thursday from 11am to 8pm; Friday from 9am to 6pm; and Saturday from 11am to 4pm.
