I am going to address this again because so many people are not aware of the programs in San Jose that are available through the Parks and Recreation Department. Back in 2015 I wrote a post explaining the main difference of two of their programs. To summarize, there is the program that many of you are familiar with because many of us grew up with it, that is the program the city calls the Leisure Class Program. These are classes in the booklets the Parks and Recs Department prints and sends out. There are ALL types of classes – don’t let the name “Leisure” fool you. There are language classes, art and craft classes, music lessons, cooking lessons, dance classes, exercise classes . . . .and a lot more. They are set up in sessions where you register and pay for the entire session before the first class. The session consists of a set number of meetings and when you register you pay for all of them. You may be familiar with those types of classes . . you may have even signed up for one of those sessions and had it cancelled because not enough people signed up. That is always disappointing . . . that is why it is important to sign up early. Anyway . . . there is also another program called SJCITY Fit . . . it is a version of Group Ex which was discontinued in 2015. But it is somewhat the same in that it is like a gym membership. You pay monthly and you have access to all the classes that are in the SJCITY Fit program, PLUS the gyms at three locations. The SJCITY Fit Program classes are exercise classes.
There are a lot of people who are not aware of this program that the city offers. I talk to people all the time that think the exercise classes through the city of San Jose are just the leisure type of class. I teach both. I teach some SJCITY Fit classes and I teach some Leisure Classes. There are benefits to both, so it really depends on what works for you. But it is nice to know that you have options.
There are some people who like to go to a class everyday. For the people who just want to have a class to go to every day, the SJCITY Fit program is great. The SJCITY Fit classes are offered at three of the community centers in San Jose; Camden, Almaden, and Bascom. Some people like the convince of going to the community center that is closest to their house, so they might join the Leisure Classes. There are a lot more community centers that offer the Leisure Classes. It all depends on what works for you.
The SJCITY Fit classes are on-going . . . meaning there is no end. Yeah, sometimes there might be a cancelled class if the teacher has an emergency and can’t get a sub in time, but the class is scheduled to just go on and on.
I have all of my classes on my website, but since I teach for BOTH programs it might be confusing sometimes. I think it is important for you to know the difference so you can decide what class you want to take.
At the time of this post, under the Leisure Program, I teach two yoga classes. One class is at the Cypress Community Center and the other one is at the Willow Glen Community Center. You register for the session. Although Cypress is unique and will allow you to drop in. But typically, with Leisure classes, you need to register for the entire session.
At the time of this post I teach THREE NIA classes under the SJCITY Fit program and one stretch class under the SJCITY Fit program. So for one monthly fee you can take all four classes a week. PLUS attend all the other classes that are offered through the SJCITY Fit program PLUS go to the gyms. If you don’t want to join the monthly membership you can drop in for $6.00 per class.
Usually . . . although I can’t say for sure . . . but usually . . the city has a special at the end of the year. They offer an annual membership for a great deal and you just buy that and you are set for the year. But they do not offer the annual membership all year. It is usually for a limited time. After that time is up any membership purchased is only monthly. We will see what they do at the end of this year. I will keep you updated.
I just wanted to share – trying to get the word out there – and try to clarify that there are two ways you can exercise with the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of San Jose: SJCITY Fit and Leisure Classes. These are GREAT programs – hopefully you will take part in what the city has to offer!
Did you know that the City of San Jose has something akin to a gym membership? Did you know that “Leisure Classes” include EXERCISE classes, too?
