Save Money With Duke Fitness Club

Tim Dotson had never set foot in a fitness club.

That changed last year after he took Duke's online health risk assessment and learned his weight, blood pressure and body mass index were too high.

"I figured it was time to stop making excuses," said Dotson, 54, a clinical pharmacist at Duke. "It just wasn't logical to throw out the numbers because I didn't like what I saw."

Recalling that Duke offered gym discounts, he put aside his skepticism about the exercise industry and looked into the Duke Fitness Club offered through Duke's employee wellness program, LIVE FOR LIFE. He liked that Duke screens all gyms and that he could stop membership anytime after the first three months.

That flexibility is a hallmark of the Duke Fitness Club, which offers discounts at more than a dozen facilities in nine cities, said Liz Grabosky, fitness program manager for LIVE FOR LIFE. "We want to break down barriers that keep people from exercising and make it easy for them to try something long enough to make it a healthy habit," she said. "The fitness club is a tangible way that Duke partners with its employees to improve their health."

Dotson is among nearly 2,800 Duke staff and faculty and family members enrolled in the Duke Fitness Club program, which is open to Duke University and Health System faculty and staff and their spouses, same-sex partners and dependents.

After Dotson decided he wanted a regular exercise regimen to lose 70 pounds, he joined a gym near campus so he could exercise after work. He soon found it wasn't a good fit. "I didn't like those long, sweaty drives home," he said. Last summer, he switched to Fitness World near his home in Durham.

Dotson and his wife, Barbara, pay $53 a month for membership, a savings from the regular $66 monthly fee. He exercises three weekdays after work and on weekends. His routine includes 30 to 45 minutes on a treadmill and a series of squats, curls, presses and crunches on weight machines. He pays extra for a weekly session with a personal trainer.

Dotson said he has more strength and stamina, resulting in more confidence when he climbs stairs or carries heavy items. He has run two 5K races in the past year, improving his time from 38 minutes to just over 31. And, he has lost more than 50 pounds.

"It's a moral victory every time I throw out another pair of fat pants," he said. "I haven't worn such small clothes since my freshman year of high school."

Learn more about Duke Fitness Club facilities or learn how to enroll.