Gold's Gym holding Saturday burn-a-thon for diabetes
By Staff Reports
Published in News on November 5, 2009 1:46 PM
In honor of National Diabetes Month and the launch of the American Diabetes Association's new "Stop Diabetes" campaign, Gold's Gym in Goldsboro is hosting a first-of-its-kind calorie "Burn-a-thon" to promote diabetes awareness on Saturday.
The idea is simple. Goldsboro residents are invited to Gold's Gym to "donate" their calories to the cause. Whether it's 5 minutes on the treadmill, 20 minutes on the elliptical machine, an hour-long group exercise class or 30 minutes of lifting weights, all calories burned by exercising will count as a donation to the cause.
A special calorie guide will be available to show approximately how many calories are burned by each activity, and fitness professionals will be on hand to demonstrate all of the equipment and activities in the gym, and help consumers utilize the calorie burning charts so they can decide how many calories they would like to "pledge."
The event is part of a worldwide effort by Gold's Gym to set a world record by burning 180 million calories in 24 hours.
Until then, consumers can visit Gold's Gym Goldsboro for a free workout and make a donation to the ADA by purchasing special "Burn-a-thon" pin-up jerseys. In addition, a special Web site has been created, www.diabetes.org/tour-golds burnathon, where people can make donations directly to the ADA online. The site also features the Gold's Gym calorie burning charts.
"We are proud to invite people everywhere to join us as we work to promote diabetes education, research and awareness," said Jeff Merrick of Gold's Gym Goldsboro in a news release. "By setting a new record for the most calories burned in a single day, we are hoping to both generate awareness and demonstrate the pervasiveness of diabetes. This event will also generate important funds for diabetes research."