Fitness: Gyms Go Designer

Mood Lighting: Milan's Younique gym and spa pays attention to the details
By Tiffanie Wen NEWSWEEK

Those seeking a gym worthy of their Stella McCartney exercise clothes are in luck. A new wave of luxury fitness centers allows exercise lovers to work up a sweat in high-concept spaces designed by brand-name architects.

London's trendy $10 million Gymbox even resembles a high-end nightclub. Created by Ben Kelly and the award-winning firm Light and Design, the space offers neon lighting, film projections, split-level flooring and a "floating" dance studio that can turn into a nightclub at the flip of a switch (www.gymbox.co.uk).

The 1,700-square-meter Younique fitness club and spa in Milan features a downstairs spa area that includes a Swarovski-crystal-studded sauna, Turkish bath and warm-massage waterbeds (yhc.it). Famed design firm Conran and Partners transformed an old glass factory in Cambridge, England, into Glassworks, a sleek new health club that preserves the original timber roof and exposed-brick walls. It also boasts a ground-level Jacuzzi, where members can view boats passing on the river through one-way glass (theglassworksgym.co.uk).

New York's Equinox gym chain features the by-invitation-only E Club, which is limited to 200 members. Entrance to the gym on Columbus Circle is gained through an iris scan. The $2,000 monthly membership includes access to private changing cabanas and Frette robes, an elite group of personal trainers and Olympic-quality training equipment (equinoxfitness.com).

For complete privacy, the Technogym Kinesis Personal Heritage home machine allows for more than 200 resistance-based exercises but takes up just one square meter of space. The limited-edition gold model is completely hand-covered in gold leaf, guaranteeing that even those who slack off from their workout routines have something pretty to look at ($19,950; www.technogym.com).

© 2008