Tokyo and tech through the eyes of a split pea

Fitness

The fitness craze in the U.S. has been going on for a few years now, and it’s clearly starting to trickle into Japan. One of the first major chains to open up is Gold’s Gym, with centers in most major parts in and around Tokyo. Some are even conveniently open 24 hours. I checked one out near my neighborhood about 10 months ago using their 2-week pass which has since increased in cost 50%. If you want to meet foreigners, Gold’s Gym is definitely a watering hole. The problem with Gold’s Gym though is that there are too many aspiring Mr. Universes.

Thankfully the fitness craze has inspired a few other entrepreneurial ventures, and I finally found a choice gym — Tipness. It’s a Japanese copy-cat of an American franchise — much like Excelsior and Dutour — but copies well. Patrons are of a more normal physique, and the employees are extremely friendly. But the best part is location — there’s a Tipness near my office in Gotanda, and another one less than 10 minutes walk from home. They’ve done a good job opening satellite gyms in major locations, and are trying hard to appeal to the English-speaking clientel as well. Having busted my knee from running too much, I decided to sign up last night and used the facilities for the first time this morning (there are benefits to jetlag :). Overall, I’d say it’s above average. My main peeve is their choice of music — they were streaming cheezy classical tunes this morning, hardly the fist-clenching, buckets-of-sweat-inducing, shake-your-booty, yes-I-really-do-love-to-inflict-pain-on-my-body inspiration. But I was happy to see they provide soap and shampoo (although towels are 120yen).  One nice perk is that there’s a pool at almost every Tipness — sure to be appreciated as the weather here is warming up dramatically.