Meet The Member - Darryl and Tracey

Can you confirm your names, occupations, and the town you live in?
Darryl Alford, Financial Accounting Manager for DPD, Tipton
Tracey Alford, Teaching Assistant, Tipton
Tell us about your fitness journey?
We have both been members post-covid and currently have a family membership, but only recently have we utilised the membership by attending the centre regularly.
Do you train together or separately? Are you competitive with each other?
We both started training together, the idea is for us to motivate each other to lose weight and improve our overall fitness and strength. I'm currently recovering from a recent serious knee injury and Trace has a slipped disc.
We are both competitive people by nature, especially at games, sports and in classes, but generally not while training in the gym, as we want to push each other but in the right way.
Who is more likely to say “Can we miss a session tonight?” & why?
I (Daz) would be the person who would easily miss a session due to using tiredness from work or that the footie is on as an excuse. But I have no excuse now as the season is almost over!
What SLT centres do you use & why?
We predominantly use Tipton as its conveniently located (5 min drive) and the times of classes suit our busy lives during the week! However, we would happily use other SLT centres and occasionally do so when booking tennis and badminton sessions.
What are your favourite classes / sessions and why?
We only just started to utilise the fitness classes as we're both getting back into the fitness regime, but we have already tried Zumba which is good fun, and Aqua Fit! One day we might muster up the courage to try out Yoga.
Do you have a favourite instructor?
We can't pick a favourite instructor as they are all so good at what they do!
We really enjoy using the centre as it feels like one big family, and we can always have some good banter.
How does SLT meet your needs?
SLT meets our needs as it has a great selection of varied classes across the week, a gym that is always available when we need it and a friendly and knowledgeable staff to greet and assist us.
What motivates you to keep going on those days when it’s harder to leave the house?
The current motivation is that we have a summer holiday booked in July to Kos and we want to look beach ready!
Favourite pre-workout snack or meal?
We don't really have any pre workout snacks. A simple banana or some blueberries would suffice.
Do you use and fitness apps to monitor your fitness progress?
Tracey uses her Fitbit and associated apps a lot. I previously used my Galaxy watch, but I am currently on the lookout for a new app/device to help supplement my workouts. We both like listening to music via our EarPods. Daz finds his rock music helps him workout faster.
What advice would you offer to someone who is thinking of becoming a ONE Card member?
If you plan on attending classes in the week and visiting the gym or pool at least once a week, then the ONE Card seems a no brainer. You get to pre-book well in advance and receive a monthly one to one session to make sure you are fully utilising your time at the centre.
What could SLT do better to help you?
Now that our boys are getting older and doing other things in life, it would be nice to have a couples membership option.
Other than that, we look forward to more fun and sweat at Tipton!