Empowered Women’s Fitness Center

Encouraging women to reach their optimum fitness levels

By Judith Shabram

Most of us struggle with balancing life and maintaining an acceptable level of physical fitness. For women, this is especially challenging due to dual roles in the family. Many women work outside the home but are still expected to maintain a stable family dynamic. Lydia Nixon, a woman who has balanced a career and a family, understands that women have special needs, especially in fitness, and that time is often a consideration. In joking, she says, “I started the Empowered Women’s Fitness Center because I had four hours left in my day”

Another consideration for Lydia was, “When I worked out at a gym, I felt uneasy with just men.” This desire to help women find a comfortable and safe environment to pursue fitness has prompted Lydia to open Empowered Women’s Fitness Center. She shared that she had reached a point in her life when she felt encouraged to go after her dream. “It was difficult to find women to go to the gym with you.”

Her awareness of the need to help women find the confidence to get back into a healthy lifestyle prompted Lydia to open Empowered Women’s Fitness Center in Bertram with a second location in Burnet at 805 W Buchannan Drive Suite B. The trend is shifting nationwide in this direction for several reasons. First, women-only gyms and

fitness centers promote a more holistic approach provide a safe place to network, mingle and make new friends as they encourage women with classes that fit individual needs and age groups. Lydia prefers the smaller community aspect of her fitness center, decorated in bright colors of green, pink, and orange and walls framed in positive affirmations.

Empowered Women’s Fitness Center classes are suited to all fitness levels and age groups. Traditional classes include Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, H.I.I.T. (High-Intensity Interval Training), and a Strength and Agility Bootcamp that emphasizes a combination of high-intensity strength and conditioning exercises alongside calisthenics. Other classes include Barre a workout technique inspired by elements of ballet, yoga Pilates, and strength training. Barre focuses on low-impact, high-intensity movements designed to improve agility and flexibility while strengthening and toning muscles.

In addition, Empowered Women’s Fitness Center offers Pound, a high-energy cardio session that utilizes Ripstix, lightly weighted drumsticks developed especially for exercising. This unique total body workout designed for all fitness levels combining cardio, conditioning, and strength training with yoga and Pilates moves is the perfect atmosphere for reducing stress as you exercise the entire body. If your goal is to improve overall coordination and burn a massive amount of calories, try Kickboxing, a high-intensity upbeat exercise program offered in Burnet, and two days a week in Bertram.

Finally, Empowered Women offers a wide array of classes for our Seniors and beginners that focus on stretching and using low weights, small balls, and resistance bands as you give attention to balance, coordination, and stability. That includes Athletically Aging, Stronger by the Decades, Boom Muscle and Zumba Gold. Instructors Michayla Jude, Katrina Friesen, Laura Murray, Jennifer Anderson, Amanda Jaynes, and Cassey Allen, Training Coordinator and Personal Trainer/Nutritional Coach, all share the same goal; empowering women to live a healthy life through physical exercise, socialization with other women to bring the mental support necessary to feed mind and body. In addition, every other month in the spring and summer,

Empowered Women’s Fitness Center offers “Mommy & Me” events, and there are free 30-minute classes at the Bertram Library each month. Contact the Fitness Center for specific dates and times each month for the free classes. For Lydia Nixon, owner of Empowered Women’s Fitness Center, it’s about motivating women to feel empowered to take control of their health in an environment that would encourage them to stay with a fitness program. Her journey taught her that she couldn’t do it at home on her own; she needed support and socialization with other women

Empowered Women’s Fitness Center accepts the following insurance, Renew Active and One Pass by United Healthcare, ASHlink, and Silver Sneakers. For more information, visit the website at www. empoweredwfc.com.