By TORONTO LIFE MAGAZINE
SHAPE Health and Wellness Centre

A petite counterpoint to sweat-gleaming fitness factories, this is a pristine boutique gym for the sashimi-fed midtowner. Early-rising execs read files on the treadmill, while aesthetes d’un certain age drop in for shiatsu. The pretty one-year-old health and wellness centre offers both therapy and training: group a private Pilates lesson with a pedi and then a counselling session with a resident naturopath; each “treatment unit” is sold separately or in packages of 12, 24 and 48. Small and luminous, the cardio room is gussied up with plasma flat-screen TVs, halogen lighting and floating hardwood floors. Class studios (for yoga, Pilates, stability and boxing) hold a max of six people. Owner Sender Deutsch’s qualifications alone (chiropractor, acupuncturist, personal trainer, sports therapist, strength and conditioning specialist) will make you lose your breath. Members get a complimentary health and wellness assessment, in which Sender prescribes a biomechanical treatment plan; and he swears by a personalized approach, asserting that “everybody should be treated like a star or an athlete.”

Owner of sleek midtown gym Shape Health and Wellness (416-929-8444), Sender Deutsch has a whack of accreditations: chiropractor, acupuncturist, personal trainer, sports therapist, conditioning specialist. Home sessions integrate muscle therapy and postural alignment with high-performance workouts. For a Rocky-style boxing class, Deutsch arrives with gloves and target pads. Pilates and yoga fusion training suit the more mild tempered.

In-home spa treatments are also available.

Where: 261 Davenport Rd. (at Avenue Rd.), Suite 100, Phone: 416-929-8444.
When: Mon.–Thurs. 6:30 a.m.–9 p.m., Fri. 6:30–6, Sat. 8–6, Sun. 9–4.