They've Got 'Curves'

Chances are there's a Curves in your neighborhood. The women-only gyms are popping up everywhere — with a new franchise opening every four hours.

There's now one Curves for every one-and-a-half McDonalds, and they're getting women who never would have exercised regularly.

Karen Holder had always avoided gyms — until a Curve opened.

"The old 'No pain, no gain,' it's really not true," she said. "You come here and you do this and it's not pain."

For Holder and her friends at the tiny Curves franchise in Waco, Texas, exercise was never a priority. But that's all changed.

"It's hard to say that you can't do something that takes 30 minutes to do," Holder said. "Plus, the camaraderie of the group here is wonderful."

The whole concept of Curves was the brainchild of one man — Gary Heavin.

"We have a fitness program that now is meeting the needs of over 2 million women in all 50 states and 11 nations," Heavin said.

And the business world is taking notice. Curves was recently ranked the fastest growing franchise in the world by Entrepreneur magazine.

Also, Heavin's book has been comfortably kicking around the best-seller lists for months.

But, he says what fuels him is very personal.

"When I was 13 years old, I woke up one morning and found that my mother, who had just turned 40, died in her sleep," he explained.

When Heavin himself turned 40, it all came into focus.

"I was teaching a group fitness and weight loss, which I had been doing for 20 years, and I caught myself subconciously scanning the crowd for the face of my mother," he said. "It was at that moment that I knew what had driven me all my life and really what my destiny was."

And women at Curves gyms everywhere may agree.

"Because it's so convenient and it's fun," Leslie Kinchen explained as the reason she stayed a member of the gym. "My daughter made me come and so I'm glad she did."

The decidedly low-tech equipment is a relief for some women who may be easily discouraged by the complex machines at traditional gyms. But, it's the atmosphere and the people that may keep Curves members coming back.

"We have a great time visiting and talking with all the other people that come here," said Curves member Sharon Barak.

Heavin says he's in tune with customers needs.

"These are women who, for the most part, had given up on exercise," Heavin says. "They didn't have time, they didn't have the discipline."

But, he said, Curves was able to create an efficient 30-minute workout for three times a week.

Heavin says the key to the program is easy-to-use hydraulic equipment that gets the heart rate up.

"So you're combining strength training with cardiovascular so you don't have to run on the treadmill for 30 minutes and then do weight training," Curves Waco, Texas manager Susan McKay explained. "You're getting it all at the same time."

Karen Holder says her membership at Curves has led to lost body fat after some weeks of working out for 30 minutes, three times a week.