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WANTED 20 PEOPLE WANTEDFOR A FREE HEARINGAID TRIAL $79 Over 120,000 satisfied custOmers 9 Locations to serve you better Heating & Cooling www.aireonewest.ca high efficiency central air & furnace *Call for Details *Call for Details FURNACE DIAGNOSTIC SPECIAL *Call for Details $49$49 * Starting from Starting from $2799$2799 * 10 Year Factory Warranty 10 Year Factory Warranty $1/DAY OAC* AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE!AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE! FURNACE CLEANING SPECIAL 95.5%EFF. 95.5%EFF. $59 /MONTH OAC* NO PAYMENT, NO INTEREST!* $4999 *$4999 *Call for Details 79$79$79 * OAKVILLE 905-849-4998 1-888-827-2665 $1000 Off hi-efficiency furnace 10 Y We are eSSential & are OPen tO SerVe yOu! The Town of Oakville has launched virtual fit- ness classes to get mem- bers of the community up and moving during the pandemic. The classes, which started on Monday, Jan. 11, are currently held about twice a day, Monday to Fri- day, through the Zoom platform and can be ac- cessed through the town's website. "These are actually live fitness programs. They are not pre-recorded," said Colleen Beswick, program supervisor with the town's recreation and culture de- partment. "Participants will be do- ing it live with the instruc- tor." The program is aimed at residents 14 years old and up and includes high-in- tensity classes like circuit training and Zumba, as well as more specialized classes such as yoga and Pilates. The classes are taught by certified fitness instruc- tors who are employed by the town. "I think we can all recog- nize it has been a very chal- lenging few months and it is really important that we keep people active and en- gaged," said Beswick. "With the fitness clas- ses, not only do they play an important role for the community's physical health, but they also have a huge impact on mental health and well-being." Residents who feel com- fortable to do so can leave their computer camera on so the instructor can see them. Beswick said this will allow the instructor to give live feedback about the participant's form and technique and provide en- couragement throughout the class. She noted these are es- sentially the same classes the town was previously holding at its recreation centres pre-COVID-19, just now in a virtual format. The cost of attending a virtual class is $7.55 plus tax. Beswick said that so far, the classes have been well received, noting town staff have been impressed with the participation and the registrations so far. One of those partici- pants, Chris Lore, talked about his own experience with the program. "It was really good," he said. "It's nice to have a change from the sort of canned classes. With You- Tube, you pick the class and sometimes you pick the same things that you like and maybe not some- thing that you find hard to do. But when I do these classes with the Town, I don't know what the in- structor is going to do and that's probably a good thing." Lore said he also enjoys the live and interactive as- pects to the classes, noting that if he turns his comput- er's camera on, the instruc- tor can give him advice about whether he is doing an exercise correctly. He said another plus is that when he works out, he knows other people are participating, which beats working out by yourself in this lockdown vacuum. "I would much prefer a live in-person class, but un- der the circumstances ... who knows when things are going to go back to that now," he said. Lore says he plans on at- tending more classes and hopes other residents will do the same, so that the town keeps them going. Those who plan to at- tend one of these drop-in classes must register at least a day prior, and town staff note that spaces are limited. For more information, visit www.oakville.ca/cul- turerec/registered-virtu- al-rec-programs.html. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: The Town of Oak- ville has launched virtual fitness classes and we thought the public should know more about them, given the importance of physical activity and com- bating isolation during this latest COVID-19 lock- down. We also wanted to get participant feedback about this program. KEEPING COMMUNITY ACTIVE Fitness instructor Hala Hafar leads a workout for the Town of Oakville's new virtual fitness program. Nazia White photo DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com NEWS TOWN LAUNCHES VIRTUAL FITNESS CLASSES