news

Sun Herald (October 22, 2009) "Kids Triathlon to Be Held Saturday" By Doug Barber
Sun Herald (December 6, 2007) "Wellness Done Well" By Kat Berergon
WLOX--Ribbon Cutting (November 5, 2007)
WLOX--Ribbon Cutting News Story November 5, 2007 (Quicktime MP4 File)

press releases

January 15, 2008
January 13, 2008
January 11, 2008
January 10, 2008
January 8, 2008
December 31, 2007
December 17, 2007
November 12, 2007
November 5, 2007
October 2, 2007
September 28, 2007
September 27, 2007


Jan. 15, 2008
e-quatics Competes is GPAC Winter Invitational

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness’ e-Quatics swim team competed in the GPAC Winter Invitational Swim Meet in Pensacola last weekend, turning successful results.

Kelly Edwards recorded two victories for the competitive team, topping the 13-14 Boys 50-yard Freestyle and the 13-14 Boys 50-yard Butterfly events. He also notched a second-place finish in the 13-14 Boys 100-yard Freestyle.
 
Ashley Moore also gave the team triumphant representation, besting competitors in the 9-10 Girls 50-yard Breaststroke and placing third in the 9-10 Girls 200-yard Individual Medley.
 
Both Edwards and Moore landed in the overall highpoint rankings for their respective age groups at eighth place.
 
“The team swam well,” Head Coach Randy Simon said. “We had a good meet and saw some solid improvement in our strokes and our times. I’m very proud of the effort our team put into this meet.”
 
The annual event drew approximately 750 swimmers from 17 teams and four states.

 

Jan. 13, 2008
e-Fitness & Wellness Holds Grand Opening Extravaganza

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness held its Grand Opening Extravaganza, yesterday, bringing approximately 1,500 local Gulf Coast residents into the facility for tours, fun and food.

The day kicked off with a competitive 5K run/walk, which brought 225 participants. Partnered with the Gulf Coast Running Club, the event was open to members and nonmembers as well as children, who could participate in a one-mile kids’ fun run.

The “final-e!” began at 6 p.m., featuring entertainment by The Revealers. Attendees had the opportunity to try the unique tastes of several local restaurants, including e-Fitness & Wellness’ “the eatery,” Phoenicia Gourmet Restaurant, Strami’s Italian Cafe, Southern Grounds, Bayview Gourmet, Paul’s Pastry Shop, and Mosaic Tapas Bar.



Jan. 11, 2008
e-Fitness & Wellness Scheduled to Offer “multimedia meditation” Classes

BILOXI, Miss. – Beginning Jan. 20, e-Fitness & Wellness will offer 7-week “multimedia meditation” classes, exclusively instructed by David M. McAfee, M.D., President & Medical Director.

This non-traditional meditation class is centered on self-evaluation and introspection in the “present moment” and is a multi-media approach to exploring the foundations of your thought patterns and their accessibility to change for the better.

Class dates will include Sundays, Jan. 20-March 2, at 6:30 a.m. and Wednesdays, Jan. 23-March 5, at 7:35 p.m. The class fee is a $75 donation to the Mississippi Wellness Foundation.

For more information, please contact e-Fitness & Wellness at 228-396-3200 or online at www.efitwell.com.



Jan. 10, 2008
e-quatics Swim Team Travels to Florida for GPAC Winter Invitational

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness’ e-quatics swim team, headed by Coach Randy Simon, e-quatics program director, will travel to Pensacola, Fla., to participate in the GPAC Winter Invitational, Jan. 11-13.

e-quatics participants include Alayne Chapman, Kiana Chapman, Ashley Moore, Pieper Niolon and Kelly Edwards.



Jan. 8, 2008
e-Fitness & Wellness Begins “education series” with Diabetes Seminar

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness is set to hold a diabetes seminar on Jan. 17 from 6 p.m.-8 p.m., as the first segment of their “education series.”

Entitled “Journey for Control,” the seminar features speaker KC Arnold, a board certified Adult and Acute Nurse and owner of the Diabetes Center in Ocean Springs. She also is certified in Advanced Diabetes Management and is a member of the American Diabetes Association, Sigma Theta Tau and the American Association of Diabetes Educators.

Throughout her career, Arnold has received numerous prestigious honors, including MNA Nurse Practitioner of the Year 2007, American Academy of Nurse Practitioner Mississippi State Award for Excellence 2007 and Honorable Mention Advance Practice NP Entrepreneur of the Year 2006. She also was named to the dLife Top 10 Making a Difference for Diabetes in 2006.

Members will be admitted at no cost, while nonmembers are invited to attend with a $20 donation to the Mississippi Wellness Foundation.



Dec. 31, 2007

e-Fitness & Wellness Set to Hold grand opening extravaganza

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness, Biloxi’s new 140,000 square-foot state-of-the-art facility, will hold its grand opening extravaganza on Saturday, Jan. 12, beginning with a 5k run/walk and concluding with the “finale!”

The 5k run/walk, which begins and ends at the e-Fitness & Wellness facility, will start at 9 a.m. and is open to both members and nonmembers. To get the entire family involved, a one-mile kids’ fun run will start at 9:45 a.m.

The “finale” is set to begin at 6 p.m. It will feature entertainment by The Revealers, and dinner will showcase several local restaurants, including the facility’s own eatery.

Attendees trying to fill the hours between events are invited to take exclusive tours of the facility to see all that is offered.

For more information on the grand opening extravaganza, including 5k entry forms, visit the facility or log onto www.efitwell.com/event.



Dec. 17, 2007

e-Fitness & Wellness Officially Opens Doors

BILOXI, Miss – e-Fitness & Wellness, Biloxi’s new state-of-the-art 140,000 square-foot facility, opened its doors at 5:30 a.m., today, after obtaining its Certificate of Occupancy on Friday, Dec. 14.

Residents of the Gulf Coast are welcome to receive a personal tour of the facility and catch a glimpse at the future of health and wellness in the community.

Members have access to one-of-a-kind programs, including the following:
e-trition (nutritional services)
group exercise
e-seniors
Parisi Speed School
e-kids & wee kids
personal training
e-quatics

The facility also features approximately 90 pieces of cardio equipment, racquetball courts, an indoor running track and “the eatery.”

To set up a personal tour of e-Fitness & Wellness, please visit the facility or call the sales office at 228-396-3200.

 

Nov. 12, 2007
e-Fitness & Wellness Names Denmark and Simon as Program Directors

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness, Biloxi’s new state-of-the-art 140,000 square-foot facility, has named Jaime Denmark and Randy Simon to its staff as Group Exercise & Senior Program Director and Aquatics Director & Risk Management, respectively.

Denmark joins e-Fitness & Wellness, following eight years of fitness experience with World Gym Super Clubs where she began as the primary aerobics and group fitness instructor.

“Jaime’s enthusiasm and passion for fitness are contagious. She will enable us to become the Coast’s premier location for top-notch group exercise, Mind/Body, and senior programming,” said Bryan Stednitz, General Manager of e-Fitness & Wellness.

In 2003, Denmark expanded her duties at World Gym, managing and coordinating all of the group fitness programs and staff. Since that time, she has helped increase the group fitness staff by 50 percent; certified 100 percent of the group instructors; implemented a mandatory certification program, a shadow training method for the instructors, an orientation for new hires, a hosting site for training courses and an instructor evaluation program.

Prior to moving her occupational interests to fitness, Denmark served as the
Business/Marketing Account Manager at Bellsouth in Biloxi, where she managed the business’ customer network.

A St. Martin, Miss., native, Denmark received a general associates degree from Perkingston Junior College before graduating from Delta State University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a minor in marketing.

Simon joins the e-Fitness & Wellness staff with lifelong aquatics experience. For the past two years, he has served as the head coach of the YMCA Hub Fins Swim Team and program director and owner of Simon Aquatics, while working as the ground radar systems maintenance technician for the Mississippi Air Nation Guard since 2002.

“Randy brings to us a myriad of expertise in facilities and risk management and years of coaching swim teams. I’m excited to have him on staff and know that he’ll lead our aquatics programming to be the best on the Coast,” added Stednitz.

Founding Simon Aquatics in 2005, Simon became Mississippi’s only licensed program director for the SwimAmerica Learn-to-Swim program.

Besides his stint with the YMCA, he has coached numerous aquatics teams both as the head and assistant coach. Some of these squads include the South Mississippi Surf Swim Team (head coach), Ripon College (head and assistant coach), Ripon Community Swim Club (head coach), Shaw Air Force Base Swim Team (head coach), Sumter YMCA Swim Team (assistant coach), Buckeye Wheelers Swim Team (assistant coach) and Columbus Public School System-Northland High School (assistant coach).

Simon has shared his extensive aquatics experience, speaking at seminars such as the United States Aquatic Sports Convention, the ASCA Southeastern Coaches Clinic and the ASCA East Coast Age Group Coaches Conference.

He currently is pursuing his associate’s degree in electronics from the Community College of the Air Force at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama.




Nov. 5, 2007
Mississippi Wellness Foundation Holds Ribbon Cutting
Click here to view pictures from the ribbon cutting

BILOXI, Miss. – The Mississippi Wellness Foundation held a brief ceremony and reception at the e-Fitness & Wellness Center, today, at 3 p.m., announcing its new plans for increasing the knowledge and awareness of wellness in Mississippi. Representative Michael Janus, Connie Rockco, Supervisor of Harrison County, and Mayor A.J. Holloway were among the 75 guests. “You’re pressing one of the most important challenges we face, especially here in Mississippi, and that’s healthy living,” Mayor Holloway said of the Mississippi Wellness Foundation’s flagship e-Fitness & Wellness Center. Brian Picou, acting Executive Director of the Mississippi Wellness Foundation, began the ceremony before announcing Holloway, Rockco and David McAfee, M.D. as speakers. “As Director of the Wellness Foundation, I’m proud to say that e-Fitness will serve as the flagship, the tool and the canvas of what we are building and trying to do together,” Picou said.” Upon the close of the ribbon cutting ceremony, guests took a walk through the center, followed with a reception and champagne toast.




Oct. 2, 2007
e-Fitness &Wellness Partners with Parisi Speed School

BILOXI, Miss. - e-Fitness & Wellness announces its partnership with Parisi Speed School, an industry-leading performance enhancement training program. Parisi Speed School, which occupies 4,400 square feet within the grounds of eFitness & Wellness and offers services to athletes seven years old all the way to the Pros, has provided the guidance needed for athletes to improve their overall athletic performance and develop a better feeling about themselves. The Parisi experience is comprised of the following programs: Performance Evaluation, Jump Start, Total Performance, Reach Your P.E.A.K., NFL Combine Training and Preparation, Team Training, Speed Camps and Nutrition. Former clients include Phil Simms (Super Bowl MVP and CBS Lead NFL Analyst), Roman Oben (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Terry Witherspoon (Dallas Cowboys), Langston Moore (Cincinnati Bengals) and Adrienne Johnson (Connecticut Sun – WNBA).




Sept. 28, 2007
e-Fitness & Wellness Partners with Subway

BILOXI, Miss. – Upon opening its doors to the Mississippi Gulf Coast this fall, e-Fitness & Wellness is partnering with Subway to promote a healthier way of living. Beginning Monday, Oct. 1, coupons offering a $25 discount for e-Fitness & Wellness initiation fees will be available at your local Subway stores. These coupons will be accessible through Oct. 31, and may be utilized at e-Fitness & Wellness through Nov. 30. Don’t miss this opportunity in working towards healthy living by visiting one of Subway’s 26 participating locations along the coast.




Sept. 27, 2007
e-Fitness Introduces Corporate Wellness Programs

BILOXI, Miss. – e-Fitness & Wellness, under the supervision of a professional staff guided by local physicians, strives to provide its members and their families with a place to get fit, have fun, learn healthy eating habits, or just relax. It also strives to help corporations introduce fitness and wellness to their employees.

Besides providing a discounted membership fee for employees, e-Fitness & Wellness is establishing a comprehensive corporate wellness program, which includes wellness programming, fitness assessments, educational seminars, insurance evaluations, and on-going corporate consulting to promote better health habits among employees.

According to a recent study published in the September issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, employees offered incentives in corporate health programs are more likely to participate than others; while at the same time, their employers are able to cut health care costs.

General Manager, Bryan Stednitz, has affirmed that these new programs are performance-based and individually customized for each company. e-Fitness & Wellness targets, in particular, the employees who could most benefit from its programs—thus impacting a company’s health care costs over time.

e-Fitness & Wellness will offer state-of-the-art workout equipment and programs including: comprehensive weight loss programming, nutrition programs, sports rehabilitation, personal fitness training, and other preventative, rehabilitation and medical education programs. Additionally, e-Fitness and Wellness will offer more than 100 pieces of cardiovascular equipment with flat screen TVs, three weight rooms, two racquetball courts, group fitness classes including Yoga, Pilates, Spinning, indoor wet areas that include a lap pool, therapy pool, whirlpool, sauna, steam room, cold dip pool, and a courtside cafe. Other amenities will include an outdoor eight-lane competition pool, recreational pool, and poolside Marlin Murph’s Cabana. 

For children, there will be numerous recreational activities, including gymnastics, martial arts, childhood obesity programs, dance, swimming lessons, exercise classes, an outdoor playground, an outdoor kid's splash pool, childcare facilities and much more.