Health and fitness goals are by far the most common New Years resolutions. Oxford has a range of options for people looking to start their fitness journeys in 2025.
It’s 2025, and with the new year comes a slew of New Years resolutions.
Roughly a third of Americans made resolutions last year, including nearly half of young adults ages 18 to 29. According to Pew Research, health- and exercise-related goals are by far the most popular, regardless of age. Nearly 80% of those who made resolutions last year focused on health.
If your goal is to exercise more in 2025, Oxford has no shortage of opportunities to help you stay active this year.
Anytime Fitness
- Address: 5276 College Corner Pike
- Hours: 24 hours/day, limited office hours
- Cost: $25.95 to $28.95 biweekly
- Website: www.anytimefitness.com
Like the name suggests, Anytime Fitness is open 24 hours a day for people looking to get a workout in. The Oxford location features red light therapy and a wide range of cardio, strength and functional equipment.
New members of Anytime Fitness can set up a free fitness consultation to set goals for their membership, and the gym also offers coaching programs for members to join. Oxford’s location also has an ageless fitness program focused on improving balance and mobility for older adults.
Anytime Fitness offers free trials, and the two standard plans are for 12 months, billed at $28.95 biweekly, or 24 months, billed at $25.95 biweekly. The gym’s website also offers a tool to set up a custom membership.
While the Oxford gym is open 24/7, office hours are more limited. Members of Anytime Fitness have access to more than 5,000 locations internationally for no extra cost.
CrossFit Implore
- Address: 97 W. Chestnut St.
- Hours: Variable, based on class schedule
- Cost: $75 per month for 12 classes, $125 per month for unlimited classes
- Website: www.crossfitimplore.com
CrossFit is an international network of gyms that specialize in the CrossFit fitness program. Gyms are led by coaches and lead CrossFit classes, and the organization website describes the workout approach as “constantly varied, high-intensity- functional movements.”
Oxford’s gym, CrossFit Implore, has six coaches and is open to people of any fitness level. CrossFit classes are an hour long and led by a certified coach. CrossFit Implore also offers goal-setting guidance, nutrition coaching, a fundamentals program and personal training.
CrossFit Implore classes are held Monday through Saturday each week, with most weekday options between 6 and 9:30 a.m. or 4 to 6:30 p.m. Saturday classes, including foundations classes, are generally held between 8:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.
New members can book a free trial and learn more about the program through CrossFit Implore’s website. The gym’s membership plan is monthly and costs $75 per month for 12 classes or $125 per month for unlimited classes.
Prime Fitness
- Address: 507 S. College Ave.
- Hours: 24 hours/day
- Cost: $45-50/month
- Website: www.primefitnessoxford.com
Prime Fitness is a family-owned Oxford gym on College Avenue, located in the same building as Oxford Community Yoga. The gym features aerobic and resistance machines and weights and is open to both Miami University students and locals. The location is particularly close to student housing complexes including Gaslight Avenue and Miami Preserve.
Members of Prime Fitness can get a workout in at any time of the day thanks to the gym’s 24/7 hours. The gym is not part of a chain.
Prime Fitness offers a few different payment options, including a yearlong membership. Yearly memberships can be purchased for $45 per month plus a $50 setup fee, or a lump sum payment of $550 with no setup fee. Members can also go for shorter terms by paying $50 per month (plus a $50 setup fee) or try the gym for a day with a $10 guest pass.
Miami University Rec Center
- Address: 750 S. Oak St.
- Hours: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat., 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sun. (through Jan. 26)
- Cost: Varies depending on employment/length
- Website: miamioh.edu/athletics-recreation/recreation
The largest fitness center in Oxford belongs to Miami University. Beyond standard gym machines and weights, the university’s Rec Center features multiple pools, basketball courts, outdoor sand volleyball, a climbing center and a racquetball court.
While the Rec Center is open to the community, its hours change based on the university’s schedule. From now until Jan. 26, the facility is open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, with limited climbing wall hours on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Aquatic Center hours are available on the Miami Recreation website.
A standard rec membership costs $40 per month, while Miami faculty and staff can sign up for memberships at $20 per month. Qualifying members including Miami alumni and retirees and Oxford Chamber of Commerce members can sign up for $32-per-month memberships. Nearly four dozen other membership options are available on the university website, including annual memberships, family passes, couple discounts and day passes.
Members at the rec also get access to member events and programming discounts and can use Miami’s other fitness centers at Martin Dining Hall and Clawson Hall. Past member events have included intro to pickleball, a desk stretch fitness class, rock climbing intros and more.
Oxford Community Yoga
- Address: 507-C, S. College Corner Ave, Oxford, OH 45056
- Hours: Variable, based on class schedule
- Cost: First class free, $13-18 per class depending on package or $99-119 per month for unlimited plans
- Website: www.oxfordcommunityyoga.com
If you’re looking for a more spiritual approach to wellness, Oxford Community Yoga may be for you.
According to the Oxford Community Yoga website, “Yoga practice is the skillful combination of movement, postures, conscious breathing, concentration, and meditation with the intent of bringing the practitioner closer to their true nature.” While Oxford Community Yoga describes the physical benefits of yoga as a side effect to the mental and emotional impacts, Johns Hopkins Medicine describes the practice as beneficial to strength, balance and flexibility. Yoga can be especially beneficial for people with chronic health issues like back pain and arthritis.
Oxford Community Yoga offers nearly a dozen different classes each week, ranging from 45 to 75 minutes. Gentle yoga, the most frequent class, meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9 a.m., plus Saturdays at 11 a.m. Several classes including evening flow and yin yoga — a practice that focuses on long-held, passive poses — meet after 5 p.m.
The first class at Oxford Community Yoga is free. After that, you can purchase class packages including a single class for $18, or you can purchase unlimited passes by the month. One month of unlimited classes costs $119, while a six month unlimited plan costs $99 per month.
Oxford Area Trail System/Miami University Natural Areas
- Address: 5401 Corso Rd. (Black Covered Bridge); 4830 Oxford Trenton Rd. (DeWitt Log Home); 4346 Millville Oxford Rd. (Peffer Park)
- Hours: Dawn to dusk
- Cost: Free
- Websites: https://www.oxfordareatrails.org and miamioh.edu/life-at-miami/natural-areas
Oxford has nearly 30 miles worth of trails to explore if you’re looking to get a taste of natural scenery while working out.
The Oxford Area Trail System (OATS) is a paved multimodal path created by the city which currently boasts 4.3 miles. The OATS was envisioned as a trail surrounding the entire city and could eventually reach 12 miles in length. The longest continuous stretch reaches from the Black Covered Bridge to Talawanda High School, passing through Peffer Park, and work is substantially completed on a separate section connecting the Oxford Community Park to Talawanda Middle School.
The OATS path is biker and pet-friendly, though pets must be kept on leashes. Class 1 and 2 electric assist vehicles that travel under 20 miles per hour are also permitted.
The OATS links up to Miami University’s own network of trails at multiple locations. Miami’s trails are primarily unpaved paths through wooded areas. Bikes aren’t permitted on these 23 miles of hiking trails, the longest of which can be found at Bachelor Reserve near the DeWitt Log Home. A full list of Miami’s trails, including their lengths, can be found on the university’s natural areas website.
