2021 fitness resolutions made easy.
2021 fitness resolutions made easy.
If there is a year to live your very best life, get healthy, fit and feel the greatest you have ever felt, it is 2021. For obvious reasons but mostly because you deserve it!
Which is why we thought it would be a fun idea to put together a list of gyms on the Gold Coast who have created New Year offers for that exact purpose. You’re welcome and good luck.
Macro Gym
Macro Gym is a community-based gym where everyone comes together with the common goal of bettering themselves. No ego, no judgement, all abilities, shapes and sizes are welcomed as equals. The freshest new gym on the Gold Coast has opened and is looking to fill its doors with amazing members who are sick of busy, soulless commercial gyms. Boasting a fully kitted out, open 24/7 gym, 20 weekly epic group fitness classes run by talented personal trainers, an in-house massage therapist and home to the ONLY Macro Mike supplement store. For the month of January Macro Gym will be running discounted membership prices for members of the community. Pop into the gym and talk to the friendly staff about what deals are on offer to help reach your ‘new year, new me goals’.
Find out more here.
LOCATION: Unit 11/2 Prosper Crescent, Burleigh Heads
Strength Collective
The Strength Collective is a boutique gym based in Burleigh, striving for consistency and quality through movement, while creating an atmosphere that’s inclusive, supportive and engaging. They run Strength Based Group Training that prioritises science as the base to all methods and programming. Strength Collective’s gym culture is extremely important, the team works hard to create an environment where you instantly feel at home. The coaches are dedicated to members’ progress, performance and happiness. They know each and every one of their members inside and out and are not just there for your fitness, they are there for you. If YOU are invested, they are invested. Kick start your year off right with Strength Collective’s Transform Challenge. Learn how to effectively build lean muscle mass and sustainably drop body fat mass. They take the focus off the aesthetics and place a greater emphasis on building muscle and teaching your body to efficiently process food (hint, that means more food) The next challenge begins on 23rd January 2021.
Find out more here.
LOCATION: 3/63 Township Drive, Burleigh Heads
Elevation Fitness
Walking through the doors of Elevation Fitness, the rustic and timeless fit out immediately gives a feeling that this is a gym like no other. Embrace the warmth of the timber, iron and the people who live and breathe this space. With daily access from 5am to 10pm the boutique gym boasts a plethora of options including a variety of classes, functional training room, world class cardio and strength equipment, personal and small group training, two altitude rooms and an infrared sauna. The trainers are all incredibly knowledgeable and experienced and genuinely want to see you reach your goals. Everything is designed to keep you motivated with loads of options on offer to ensure time efficiency in a truly beautiful environment. To top it all off Sparrow Coffee Co and their amazing baristas offer a little sanctuary inside Elevation to pause and enjoy a post-workout coffee. Family owned and operated, you are surrounded by an amazing team and members who value the friendships and beautiful community that is the Elevation family so you know you will be well looked after. Elevation is offering $200 off their Six Week Reset to kickstart 2021. It includes a variety of classes, full gym access, two x 3D Body Composition Scans, a one-on-one :1 PT Session with Program, 10 Infrared saunas, weekly accountability, goal setting and nutritional guidelines.
To find out more contact Ali on 0422 205 752 or email [email protected].
LOCATION: 2/151 West Burleigh Road, Burleigh Heads
Electric Fitness
Unlike other gyms where you feel out of place, at Electric Fitness staying active is the main priority. Classes are capped at 12 people to maximize the quality coaching you receive. Chris, the founder of Electric Fitness was a business owner for over a decade and struggled with running a successful business along with his family life and his own health. He wasn’t getting the answers he was looking for from traditional gyms and functional fitness programs so he setup Electric Fitness to help clients like him get the results they are really after. The result is life-changing transformations, increased happiness, a stronger mind and body and an easier life.
Head here for your free consultation.
LOCATION: 35 Lemana Lane, Burleigh Heads
EMF
What started out as a bootcamp on Broadbeach, is now one of Australia’s most respected fitness facilities in Australia. Regarded as a “one-stop shop” for all your fitness needs, EMF is based on the concept of providing military ideals such as professionalism, impeccable hygiene and presentation, as well as excellent customer service to the wider community. Whether you are going to the gym to attend a weekly group fitness class, follow a specialised program or “do your own thing”, their facilities offer members a training experience that they have never tried before in a safe, supportive and community-driven environment. Their aim is to provide an environment where members can explore a variety of training options to achieve the results that a high-level performance athlete would.
You really can do it all, with group fitness classes specialising in a realm of styles including aerial yoga, functional training, spin, yoga, dance, Jiu Jitsu, altitude training, aqua fit, Reformer Pilates and more. As well as gym facilities, EMF is home to an EMF Supplement Store and Cafe located in the heart of the GC, as well as their very own play centres for the littlest ones of your family. EMF Jnr is a club where the kids can run wild in their giant play area featuring trampoline bounce zone, fun obstacles, slippery slides and more with both supervised and unsupervised sessions available. EMF Jnr caters for all kids with separate play zones for toddlers and bigger kids.
Find out more here.
LOCATIONS:
EMF Performance Centre: Coomera, Nerang and Robina
Platinum by EMF: Pacific Fair
EMF Fitness Centre: Bundall, Harbour Town, Pacific Fair and Surfers Paradise
EMF Jnr: Nerang and Pacific Fair
SPONSORED STORY
Hands up if you’re in a toxic relationship with Uber Eats? You want to bite that hand feeding you, even though, technically, that hand is yours. So maybe this is a self-restraint issue? Don’t worry, this isn’t a therapy session- just a list of healthy takeaways that don’t require any restraint at all! Because, well, they’re healthy, obviously?
Here’s your cheat sheet for the best healthy takeaway eats on the Gold Coast.
As wholesome as it gets, Dalas Kitchen is a gourmet salad bar with two Gold Coast locations, online delivery and catering. They’re known for the most deluxe salads, but also serve sangas (on house-made focaccia), bagels and sodas too! Ran out of time to meal prep? Just order’ Dalas At Your Desk’ via their website!
Our pick: the vegan and dairy-free Bangin’ Cauli’ with panko-crusted roasted cauliflower, Asian slaw, mint, coriander, shallots, crushed peanuts and a creamy maple sriracha dressing!
Where: 2247 Gold Coast Hwy, Mermaid Beach and 6 Fifth Avenue, Palm Beach
Voted Gold Coast’s best healthy vegan eats, Govindas is not just a restaurant, but a mission. They’re a non-profit serving up feel-good, budget-friendly, and ethically made vegetarian fare. Every dish is as soul-nourishing as the next, with curries, salads, sides and more. They also run specials daily!
Our pick: Thursday’s Shepherd’s Pie– a classic!
Where: 20 James St, Burleigh Heads and 72 Griffith St, Coolangatta
This place is a plant-based paradise; every dish is a visual and nutritional masterpiece. If you’re yet to experience the best of vegan cuisine, let Cardamon Pod be your gateway! It’s as decadent and exciting as vegan dishes come- from raw cakes to globally inspired mains.
Our pick: Vegan Madras Chicken Tacos with tamarind popcorn ‘chicken’, bhuja, BBQ corn chat salsa, madras mayo and jalapeño cheese pakoras.
Where: 3/3 Brolga Ave, Brickworks Ferry Road, Southport
Quick, healthy and tasty- Just Fresh Made is your go-to for mouthwatering salads, spuds, wraps and fresh juices. Whether you’re craving something light and refreshing or a little heartier, Just Fresh Made has you covered every day of the week.
Our pick: Classic Fresh Veg Spud loaded with your choice of protein, smashed avo, tomato salsa, kale mix, sour cream and herb butter.
Where: Shop 1/84 Scarborough Street, Southport
They’re the Asian-inspired salad bar shaking up the fast-food game with zingy Asian bowls and rolls full of flavour and crunch. Banana Blossom is an East Coast favourite, serving in locations from the Sunny Coast to Bondi Beach. Their salads, rice bowls, and rice paper rolls are a fast, healthy and flavourful way to get your takeaway fix.
Our pick: Satay Salad with chicken, tofu or beef, plus pineapple, rice noodles, bean sprouts and a mouthwatering Malay-style dressing.
Where: Shop E117 Oracle East 6 Charles Ave, Broadbeach
Come for the poke, stay for the roti wraps and smoothie bowls. This Mermaid Beach gem dishes up generous, customisable bowls with all the toppings your taste buds could desire. They offer plenty of vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free options to suit all!
Our pick: Nacho Bowl with chilli con carne, smoked sour cream, guac, habanero jam, and crunchy wonton chips.
Where: 2375 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach
Plant-based yum cha? What about take-home banquet packs?! Hell yeah! This little vegan restaurant in Mermaid Beach serves up mind-blowing Asian yum cha and meals that are so damn good it’s earned them a 92% recommendation on Facebook! This place is a not-to-miss, with insane hot pots, soups and noodles, and even vegan ‘meat’ and ‘seafood’ dishes.
Our pick: Any noodle dish (seriously, you can’t go wrong)- but don’t skip the entrees.
Where: 90 Market St, Mermaid Waters
Three words, well, dishes; donburi, okonomiyaki and sushi. Does healthy takeaway get much better than Japanese soul food? Okazu does it best- fast, fresh and in two locations. They also do poke bowls, burgers, bento combo meals and plenty of options for the kiddies.
Our pick: Teriyaki Beef Okonomiyaki with a side of miso soup.
Where: 1/2223 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach and 90 Markeri St Mermaid Waters
Don’t let the same put you off because this famed franchise is single-handedly making salads great again! They taste so damn good you forget you’re getting your entire daily intake of veg in one bowl! Build your own or pick from a menu of stacked bowls.
Our pick: The O.G. Chicken with poached chicken, kale, beets, crispy shallots, seaweed salad and roasted sesame dressing.
Where: Soul Boardwalk Shop T120B/4 Esplanade Surfers Paradise, Shop/4252 Robina Town Centre Dr, Robina and 2 James Street Burleigh Heads
Your servo snack stop just got a serious glow-up. Fox’s Pantry is a gourmet grocer/café hybrid (also a servo) serving fresh and fab whole eats, including sandwiches, salads, soups and more. Whether you follow a vegan, gluten free, dairy free or, keto lifestyle or diet….they have something ya!
Our pick: whatever you get, just don’t leave without a smoothie!
Where: 468 Golden Four Drive, Tugun
This Currumbin spot is a treasure trove of health-conscious delights. While catering is their main gig, their in-house and takeaway eats are at the next level. They use only the highest quality ingredients to make only the best-tasting eats that will fill your belly and warm your heart.
Our pick: the Organic Handcrafted Tofu Burger
Where: Shop 2 – 30 Currumbin Creek Rd, Currumbin
Words by Chelsea Ipsen
Seems like 2020 isn’t a total bust after all.
Gold Coasters, we have been saved by the humble potato – a beautiful, versatile vegetable that brings us happiness in oh so many ways.
The latest of which is that Mr Potato has opened up in Palm Beach so you can eat life-changing, loaded roast potatoes every day forever. See, things are looking up.
The newbie can be found on the Gold Coast Highway opposite Balboa, all white with pops of bright pink and orange, greenery of course and a sign that reads like the story of our lives with unchecked boxes next to single and taken and a ticked one next to the words ‘eating potatoes, getting fit, setting goals, hustling, building an empire, loving life and being grateful’. Check.
If Mr Potato says it’s okay, we’re going with it.
The premise of the place is fresh, fast, healthy loaded potatoes and could there be anything better? We think not.
It’s the work of South Australian gal Shanay who now calls Palmy home and we are very happy about it.
Now, to the potatoes.
There’s a menu from which you can choose pre-thought out potato toppings but first, you must decide whether you want an IQ spud (25% less carbs than your average white potato) or a sweet potato.
Then there are topping options like The Lady Peeler with a choice of protein, spinach, bacon, roast capsicum, quinoa, tabouli, avocado and salsa and The ‘Aussie’ Tator with beef ragu, bacon, kale-slaw or coleslaw, beetroot, carrot and pineapple and The Medi-tator with tofu cauliflower, peas n corn, red onion, kale-slaw, avocado, salsa, vegan sour cream and vegan cheese.
All of which we tasted and all of which are absolute taste sensations.
Of course if you’re more of a choose-your-own-adventure type, you may opt to load your own with protein, healthy toppings, cheese and sauces. What a time to be alive.
To drink, there’s organic kombucha, cold pressed juices and soft drink and yes, it’s all on UberEATS if you’re in the area.
Looks like summer is going to be spent eating so many potatoes we turn into a potato. How good.
LOCATION: Shop 2, 1136 Gold Coast Highway, Palm Beach
HOURS: 10.30am until 9pm daily
Words and photos by Kirra Smith
Okay so the vegan eats movement has totally blown up on the Gold Coast, and we’re loving the ever-increasing variety of restaurants proving that plant-based fare is anything but bland-as-bruh.
If you’re looking for a list of local nosheries that can convert even the most passionate meat and meat by-product enthusiast into a bona fide vegan fare fan, read on friends….
Kuan Yin Tea House
If you’re one of those peeps who thinks eating vegan is all about tasteless rubbery tofu, get yourself down to Kuan Yin Tea House immediately! The ultimate IYKYK, this place is fast becoming a local institution with some of the best vegan eats in our ‘hood. Serving the most insanely delicious Thai inspired vegan food, do yourself a flavour (not a typo) and order the BBQ Pork Fried Rice. Now open Monday to Sunday, see you there every day and twice on Sundays!
Where: 152 Scarborough Street, Southport
Greenhouse Canteen
One of the OG vegan restaurants on the Gold Coast, Greenhouse Canteen’s menu is as good as it gets. They’ve got a botanical bar so that you can order a selection of vegan cocktails, wine or beer and the space is always packed with good vibes. To eat, we’d go for the Jackfruit and Sour Cream Enchiladas or the Sweet n Sour Tofu Larb. Also, if you feel like eating at home, Greenhouse does takeaway and for a gastronomic gift, they even sell vouchers. Hint hint….
Where: 1916 Gold Coast Highway, Miami
Goodness Gracias
It’s vegan. It’s Mexican. And ‘nuff said #BetterTogether. An all-time vegan fave on the Gold Coast for many moons, Goodness Gracias serves up plant-based Mexican food in a vibrant Palm Beach space with mexcellent service to boot. Eat-in or takeaway and choose from delicious eats like burritos, tacos, nachos and plenty of tasty sides and salads. We’re regulars here, and it’s always top-notch nosh (say that after a few margis).
Where: 1114-1116 Gold Coast Highway, Palm Beach
Blendlove
Blendlove started with two gals just trying to make a difference to people’s health through plant-based food. Created with love, they blend only the finest ingredients to produce a collection of whole, nutritious treats that are vegan, and free from gluten, dairy, preservatives, artificial colours, and refined sugar. Basically free from everything….except flavour! A local fave, educating the GC that raw and whole foods can be a party in your mouth. An Insta-worthy one at that!
Where: 253 Ferry Road, Southport
Lord of the Fries
If there’s one thing we can get behind, it’s a fast-food venue made up primarily of potatoes. Well colour us happy because Lord of the Fries is precisely that. Finally fries that aren’t drowned in beef tallow and juiced up with gluten, aren’t cooked in cheap’n’nasty oil or smothered in watered down tomato sauce, and haven’t been sitting in a bain-marie since the beginning of time. Praise be! Slinging vegan fries a-plenty, Lord of the Fries is also serving up Veggie Burgers, Onion Rings, Vegetarian Nuggets and Vegetarian Hot Dogs. Plus, everything is kosher and Halal. Hallelujah!
Where: Paradise Centre, 8 Cavill Avenue, Surfers Paradise
The Hidden Cherub
Tucked away in our much-loved Miami, you’ll find laneway bar/plant-based eats venue: The Hidden Cherub. Decked out with a sleek, industrial-esque look and greenery dripping from the walls, this warehouse style restaurant is a Vegan Vibe! While the drinks here are the main event (as they should be!), the 100% vegan packed food menu is filled with delicious share plates, burgers, tacos, salads and sides. In terms of burgers, get stuck into The Californian (just trust us) and sharesies some Sticky Buffalo Wings and Beef Tacos. Mouth-watering goodness at its best.
Where: 2/29 Lemana Lane, Miami
Cardamom Pod
Cardamon Pod at Southport Is a favourite amongst Gold Coasters (and influencers), offering both mouth-wateringly yum vegetarian and vegan choices. All about clean eating, the menu is lit with Insta-friendly, tastebud titillating nosh so good it’ll knock the socks off even the most discerning vegan diner. We recommend the Mumbai Wrap, Life is a Berry Peach Pancake, and the Snicker Acai Bowl because duh – Snickers. There’s also plenty of raw treats, organic coffee and gluten-free options too. All dishes are almost too pretty to eat….emphasis on ‘almost’.
Where: 3/3 Brolga Avenue, Southport
Easy House Vegetarian Restaurant
Okay it’s vegetarian, it’s vegan….and it’s YUM CHA! Nothing pleases our palette more, and the fact that this place has been around for yonks it a testament to its deliciousness. Whether you dine in or takeaway, Easy House will send your tastebuds into a tizz with the likes of Deep Fried Wontons, Steamed BBQ Pork Buns, and Pan Fried Shanghai Dumplings. Not a yum cha fan? No probs, there is also a vast array of traditional (but vegan/vego) fresh, flavour-packed Asian dishes and banquet options.
Where: 90 Markeri Street, Mermaid Beach
Doko Demo V
The Bali-vibing Doko Demo V 2.0 is even more amazing than the OG, and we are here for it! Offering an entirely vegan wholefoods-based menu, Doko Demo V is the work of Head Chef Jared Peck. Whether you’re seeking an uber tasty plant-based breakfast, lunch or dinner, this little gem is bursting with beautifully prepared dishes that are both healthy and of the eyes-are-bigger-than-your-belly variety. The Spicy Pepperoni Pizza goes down a treat, as does the No Beef Lasagne with garden salad, and the Unreal Scallopini. Wash your feed down with the Dokodemo cocktail because one must stay hydrated….
Where: 2 Sunlight Drive, Burleigh Waters
Izakaya Midori
Umm with ‘Midori’ in the title, this place immediately had our attention. A Reedy Creek based trove of plant-based Japanese food, Izakaya Midori is a winner winner vegan dinner. There are dishes like Spicy Lime Karagee, Japanese Curry Rice, Midori Ramen (not the booze just to clarify), and Smoked Edamame to name a few. You can also grab things to takeaway and the service is next level. Sold? Of course you are!
Where: 50 Woodland Drive, Reedy Creek
Words by Bianca Trathen.
