November 10, 2020

Virginia Center “Not So Common”s

When you approach the doors of American Family Fitness Virginia Center Commons for the first time, the first thought that runs through your mind is, “The gym is in the mall?”. From the outside, it may appear that way, but as soon as you step through its double doors AFF VCC welcomes you to an entirely different world centered around fitness, wellness, and your success. (And it’s not a mall entrance, just so you know 😊 ).

American Family Fitness found a home at Virginia Center Commons in 2014 after moving from its original home on Brook Road. With a non-traditional location to start fresh (it used to be a department store!), AFF VCC made its mark in AFF history as a unique location with one-of-a-kind features and amenities.

Located on Route 1 off of I-295, AFF VCC is 81,000 square feet of cardio equipment, weight machines, free weights, studio space, and 3 pools. It’s one of only two clubs that are entirely on one level. And while there isn’t an indoor track at this location (check out our sister locations AFF Midlothian and AFF Short Pump for that), you can use the walkway around the perimeter of the inside of the club as a walking track. Fun fact about this walkway – 7 laps = 1 mile! 

VCC It is the only location with 4 Group Fitness studios, and the only location with a top of the line Hot Yoga studio that feels worlds away from the rest of the facility — the comfy Zebra fitness flooring does wonders for your body and Yoga practice as the room temperature can climb as high as 105 degrees Fahrenheit. In November 2017, VCC was one of the first two AFF locations to launch our most recent cycle programming Coach By Color, a power-based cycling experience that is interactive and pushes you to work hard by making your bike light up different colors.

VCC is home to the largest lap pool of all of our locations in addition to a Kids Pool and Hot Tub. And did you know that the lap pool at VCC is the warmest AFF lap pool? It remains a comfortable 84 degrees Fahrenheit year-round because VCC doesn’t have a separate teaching pool for Aquatics Fitness classes.

The Kid Zone at VCC has all the things that you’d want your child to enjoy while you work out. But what makes our Kid Zone unique? We have the largest space maze of all 9 locations, so your kids have plenty of room to move and play!

As the most central location to all other clubs, VCC is the hub for AFF staff to further their professional education. VCC is the primary host location for our NCEP Personal Trainer Certification Workshops and recently shared hosting responsibilities with AFF Midlothian for our 200hr Yoga Teacher Training, in addition to hosting several Group Fitness certification training like Barre Above, Mossa Group Active, and Hot Yoga Training. VCC also hosts frequent CPR training for staff and members.

VCC is often used as the backdrop for marketing photo shoots and video shoots. Remember that Go-Pro commercial for AFF? That was shot at VCC!

So, as you can see, AFF VCC is not so common when it comes to what you can expect from a full-service gym. And you’re sure to see several familiar faces at VCC that you’ve also seen at our sister locations, including Short Pump, Mechanicsville, Fredericksburg, Midlothian, and Chester. That’s what’s great about being part of the AFFamily — it’s the bonds between our staff and members across locations that make VCC part of something so much more. AFF is more than a chain of gyms – it’s a place to find your fitness family. And that is something that’s not so common at other gyms.

Article contributed by Lauren Rinker

Lauren Rinker is the Group Fitness Manager at Virginia Center Commons and teaches a variety of classes, including POWER®, CORE®, BLAST®, Yoga, and Fusion small group and team training. She started her Group Fitness career in 2012 after her childhood dream of being a storm chaser didn’t work out due to the immense fear of tornados, and accredits Group Fitness for transforming her life. She loves how Group Fitness and Social Media share the same impact of making and maintaining meaningful connections between people . When she’s not teaching or taking pictures for the VCC Facebook page, you can find her working out, reading, checking off her To-Do lists, drinking coffee, or eating her favorite foods. A self-proclaimed cat lady and night owl, Lauren loves to recharge in the evenings by watching Netflix with her two Instagram-famous cats.

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