Keeping the Fountain of Youth Bubbling Along

Dottie Nelson has seen and done it all when it comes to group exercise classes.

Aerobic classes in which the instructor had to change records after each song?

“I’ve done that,” she said.

Leg warmers and sequined leotards?

“I’ve been there, and I still wear the leotards,” she said, with a laugh.

Nelson, 76, has been teaching classes for 23 years--the last 14 in Los Alamitos at 24 Hour Fitness. You can find her whooping and hollering and encouraging people to lift their arms, suck in their stomachs and pick up their knees every Monday through Thursday at 10 a.m. Her classes draw more participants than any other, said Breann O’Toole, the gym’s group exercise coordinator.

Nelson said she started exercising to ease stress caused by her mother’s illness.

“A friend of mine gave me a three-month gift certificate to a women’s-only gym,” Nelson said. “That’s how I got started. They didn’t have aerobics in those days . . . but it helped my stress. My mother even said, ‘You keep that up. That’s good for you.’ ”

A couple of months later, Nelson switched to a gym where she began working out on a regular basis. The owner of the gym asked her to teach a calisthenics-based class. Nelson warned the owner that she might not like how she taught the class and said she would agree to teach only on a trial basis. The owner, and the members, loved her teaching style.

Nelson taught at two more gyms before coming to Family Fitness, now 24 Hour Fitness, in 1986. And the people keep following her.

Nelson teaches step classes on Mondays and Wednesdays and low-impact classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Nelson keeps her routines basic so that no one is intimidated and everyone in class can enjoy it. Most of her choreography moves the class from side to side, but there are some front-to-back routines that include punches and kicks.

“Do only what you can do,” she tells the mostly senior citizen group in her Tuesday low-impact class. “I don’t care if all you can do is tap your toes,” she said. “At least you’re moving.”

Nelson’s regulars are a caring group.

“Hi, welcome to the class,” one of her longtime participants said as she shook my hand. “You’re really going to enjoy yourself. Dottie’s a wonderful teacher.”

“We do have a very social bunch here,” Nelson said. “And when one person misses a class or two, someone else always calls to make sure that person is OK.

“The support I get here is wonderful. The people give me so much love.

“This is such a wonderful way of keeping healthy, not just physically, but mentally. Women especially want to keep their youth, and this [exercise] is as close to the fountain of youth that anyone is going to get.”

I’ve been writing this column for more than two years. And in that time, I have had a chance to rub elbows with and tell readers about some of the celebrities in the group-exercise industry. These are people whom instructors like me turn to for motivation and inspiration.

But none of them comes close to Dottie Nelson. She’s the best thing going at this 24 Hour Fitness.

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The 14,000-square-foot gym opened in 1980. The cardiovascular area doesn’t get much room on the first floor, and there’s a lot of equipment crammed into it: 17 LifeCycle bicycles, 10 Cybex stairsteppers, three StairMaster stairsteppers, 15 StarTrac treadmills, 11 Precor elliptical cross trainers and seven LifeFitness cross trainers. Next to the cardio area is the spinning room (a converted racquetball court) with 17 Schwinn spinners.

The weight room on the second floor is filled with quality equipment from Body Masters, Strive, Nautilus, HQ Line, LifeCircuit and Paramount. Ivanko and Iron Grip are the free weights of choice here. There is one racquetball court, an outdoor pool and Jacuzzi and only two water fountains--one on each floor.

The Rat Trap

On a rating of one to four rats, four being best, here is how the Gym Rat rates 24 Hour Fitness in Los Alamitos:

* Parking: Spaces are available behind the gym. A security camera watches over you, and the lot is well-lighted too. ****

* Locker rooms: The men’s side was clean enough, but eight doors were missing from lockers, and I saw a lot of bent latches. There are no benches, just plastic step stools. Three of the six showers had “out of service” signs. On the women’s side, a member groused about the prevalence of bent latches on lockers and that one person could not put on makeup at the sink while another used a hair dryer because there just wasn’t enough room. *

* Juice bar: Lots of smoothies and protein shakes, plus your choice of a chicken bowl, a veggie bowl or a rice bowl. ****

24 Hour Fitness, 4141 Katella Ave., Los Alamitos (714) 826-7172. A day pass costs $10. The club is offering free 10-day passes and a membership special of $99 for three months. Other rates are available. Child care is $2. The gym is open 24 hours.

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Gary Metzker is a certified aerobics instructor who has taught for six years at various clubs.

If you know of a gym or health club you think the Gym Rat should scope out, fax it to (213) 237-4712 or e-mail: gary.metzker@latimes.com. The column runs the third Monday of every month.