Finnish health club operator HealthEx is set to open three new clubs during March, doubling the size of its portfolio.

The new sites will open in the cities of Lappeenranta. Rovaniemi and Kotka. The company currently runs two clubs in the metropolitan area of Helsinki and one in the northern town of Oulu.

The openings are part of an ambitious expansion programme, which will see 15 new clubs open in Finland during 2008 and up to 40 new clubs by 2010. Plans also include rolling out the concept in neighbouring Sweden by the end of this year.

Each HealthEx club operates a concept offering members a 30-minute healthy exercise programme, combining resistance training with a cardiovascular programme.

The clubs aim to attract people of all ages and the concept’s emphasis is heavily on wellness and improving individual health, rather than building up muscle mass. Each club is kitted out with Hur and Precor equipment and none of the clubs has any free weights.

Each club is around 240sq m in size and is operated using a staff of two – a club manager and a physiotherapist.

According to Jouni Herranen, HealthEx’s chief executive officer, the company aims to partner with companies, occupational health care operators and public institutions to attract members who would not normally visit a gym.

“The resident physiotherapist will outline a personal ‘fitness map’ for each member,” Herranen said. “An exercise programme is then designed based on that assessment to ensure that it is both personal and effective.”

Each 30-minute session begins with a warm-up, followed by one-set resistance training and ends with a stretch out routine.

Each member has their information fed electronically into the machines so that each station is automatically programmed to match the schedule designed by the physiotherapist.