Viral Fitness News: Life Time Bans Chris Brown, Flo Rida Visits Gold's Gym, Equinox's Bold Campaign

Chris Brown was permanently banned from all Life Time Fitness facilities after the pop singer allegedly quarreled with a Life Time Fitness manager on Jan. 6 in New York City. Brown and his friends were accused of using vulgarity and playing loud music at an unspecified Life Time location, according to reports by TMZ and Mirror. They were asked to leave and, on the way out, Brown allegedly spit on the club door.

Technogym founder and President Nerio Alessandri was recently featured on an episode of “60 Minutes Sports.” During the 13-minute segment, Alessandri spoke about his passion for health and fitness and about developing an official Wellness Valley in his home region of Romagna, Italy. “We have many [health] risks,” he said in the feature. “It’s not sustainable. We need to do something.”

Trainers at a Waxahachie, Texas, Gold's Gym were recently surprised when musician Flo Rida joined them for a workout, according to CW33.com. Gold’s Gym was one of the first clubs the musician—a self-described exercise buff—ever attended. The club’s manager secretly arranged the visit. “In going out here today and working out with everyone here at the gym, I just wanted them to see how it is with me up in person, getting a chance to see that I’m really about working out,” Flo Rida told local media.

Cancer survivor Samantha Paige bared her double mastectomy scars in Equinox’s new “Commit to Something” campaign, People.com reported. Paige learned of the campaign after being diagnosed with thyroid cancer and testing positive for the BRCA 1 gene mutation, which can lead to other gender-specific cancers. After undergoing a mastectomy, Pagie received implants through reconstructive surgery. However, she later had the implants removed because she was concerned about developing further health issues. “Equinox’s message of ‘Commit to Something’ is about being able to look at yourself in the mirror and realize who you are and stand up to those values,” she told People.com.

Gold's Gym trainer James Fitzgerald made headlines in Ogden, Utah, for his unique area of expertise: Down syndrome. Fitzgerald, 37, was born with Down syndrome and leads a fitness class structured specifically for exercisers with special needs, KSL.com reported. Fitzgerald recently earned Gold's Gym's Legacy Award, bestowed to the most inspirational employee from Gold's Gym’s 700 locations across the globe.

Five women have filed lawsuits against a Planet Fitness club in Lincoln, Nebraska, claiming they were secretly filmed naked by a former employee, according to the Lincoln Journal Star. Police have alleged that former employee Jade Hawklen filmed 14 women at the club, for which he may face additional charges. Hawklen was first arrested on Dec. 1 on charges of unlawful intrusion. One woman accused Hawklen of entering a private room and filming her while she stood naked in a cylindrical light therapy machine.

The Garden City Park, New York, health department ordered an LA Fitness club there to close its aquatics area after on-site water sample tested positive for Legionella bacteria, which can cause Legionnaire's disease, CBS New York reported. Legionella bacteria spreads primarily through water sources. Testing of the club's water was done after two people who recently visited the club both came down with Legionnaire's disease. 

Conor Tisdell received a life ban from Go Health Clubs in Brisbane, Australia, after the body builder filmed an elderly woman who was using an exercise machine and posted the video to Instagram, according to Yahoo Beauty. The video of the woman had the caption "Epic bro gainz," and Tisdell commented on the video that he "never laughed so hard." A Go Health Clubs employee who commented on the video has also been made to apologize to the woman in the video. "GO is committed to helping the member in the video and we are attempting to work with her to support her moving forward," club officials said in a Facebook statement.

Club Industry's Viral Fitness News highlights recent popular stories about the fitness industry circulating on social media. Do you have news to share with us? Send your news, tips or story ideas to [email protected]. You can also connect with us on Facebook, on Twitter @clubindustry and on LinkedIn.