Serene colors. Vibrant plant life. An abundance of natural light. This is what you can expect to experience when walking into any Life Time Work. The atmosphere aims to help members be productive while supporting every aspect of a healthy workday — including ways to create greener environments.
Life Time is committed to having a positive impact on the health and wellness of its members and team members, as well as the communities in which it operates and on this one planet we have to call home — and that includes sustainability efforts happening at all Life Time Work locations.
“We want to make sure we’re doing our part and being conscious of our collective responsibility to take care of the earth,” says Ashley Bracey, director of Life Time Work. “We’re raising awareness and taking action where we can.”
We spoke with Bracey to learn more about the eco-friendly practices happening at Life Time Work locations across the country.
1. Reducing and Reusing
All Life Time Work locations provide several filtered water bottle refill stations to cut down on single-use plastic water bottles.
“We are always thinking about healthy cues throughout the space, and one of those is water refill stations,” Bracey says. “We want our members to stay hydrated throughout the day while also reducing their plastic use. We have reusable water bottles available for our members and guests and encourage them to use the refill stations.”
Learn more: “The Problem With Plastic — and What We Can Do About It”
2. Going Digital
Life Time Work takes a digital-first approach to member communications to cut down on printing, making copies, and unnecessary paper use.
“Instead of distributing flyers and other paper materials throughout our spaces, we use QR codes and digital signage to encourage our members to stay in-the-know and sign up for various events,” Bracey explains. “We also have a paper-free process for when new members sign up.”
3. Maximizing Natural Light
“Our design team uses energy-saving lightbulbs, and we try to maximize natural lighting in every way that we can to cut down on electricity use,” says Bracey. “You’ll find expansive windows, and our offices are designed with glass enclosures to allow light to easily travel throughout the space. In some of our original designs, our communal kitchen space was called a solarium because of how the light flowed through it throughout the day.”
4. Decorating With Plant Life and Greenery
According to numerous studies, decorating with live plants has benefits for the environment as well as your health. In fact, even basic house plants can help detoxify the air, raise the humidity to a more comfortable level, and reduce dust and air particulates.
Life Time Work spaces are designed with live plants and greenery throughout the offices and communal areas to improve the air quality and enhance productivity.
Plants have also been found to boost concentration and reduce mental fatigue. “We had an Earth Day event this year where we provided materials and invited members to plant their own succulents and get their green thumb on,” Bracey adds.
Learn more: “5 Health Benefits of Indoor Plants”
5. Encouraging Green Commuting
Green commuting — a.k.a. using public transit, carpooling, biking, or walking — is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint.
“Many of our Life Time Work locations are in very walkable areas that are close to public transportation, specifically our Ardmore, Greenstreet, Downtown Minneapolis, and River North at One Chicago locations, to name a few,” says Bracey. “We also have bike racks available for members who prefer to bike into work.
“Most of our Life Time Work locations are also in close proximity to our athletic country clubs, which means if you are driving in, you only have to park once for your work day and your workout.”
6. Celebrating Sustainability
Life Time Work offers weekly events and networking opportunities, and some of these events take the opportunity to highlight Life Time’s sustainability efforts and let members know how they can contribute.
“We recently had a friendly competition across all of our locations where we logged the number of plastic water bottles saved by each water refill station — the winning location received a prize,” says Bracey.
Learn more about what Life Time is doing as a company to conserve for the planet and how you can help: “Going Green”
