Life Time Fitness coming to Westwood

The 128,000-square-foot club at the University Station development will be the first in the state by Life Time Fitness Inc., a national chain promising to shake up the health and fitness industry in Massachusetts.

“There is nothing like us in this market,” said Bahram Akradi, the founder and chief executive of the Minnesota company.

The facility, still under construction, will be part of a wave of shopping and entertainment businesses to open at University Station over the next several months.

The 120-acre project near Route 128 will include more than 2 million square feet of residences, office space, restaurants, and retail stores, including a Target and a 125,000-square-foot Wegmans supermarket.

Executives at New England Development, the company leading the project, said they hope University Station’s shopping and entertainment options will draw people from around the region.

“Life Time is the type of use that will blow away the residents of Westwood and surrounding communities,” said Douglass Karp, the president of New England Development.

The first stores at University Station are scheduled to open in March, while the Wegmans will open later in the year.

Akradi said he wants to open at least three clubs in Massachusetts over the next few years. One will be built in Framingham, but he said he could not yet disclose the other location.

“We’re super-anxious to get into the market,” he said. “The Boston metro area could easily host six, seven, or eight clubs. Of course, that’s an easy thing to say and a difficult thing to execute.”

Life Time has been looking for locations around Boston for many years, Akradi said, but it was difficult to find sites large enough to accommodate the company’s facilities.

Typically, Life Time centers are the size of a Home Depot. But they are outfitted more like a Four Seasons Hotel, with granite countertops, cherry wood lockers, a full-service spa, and indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

Individual memberships cost about $150 a month; couples pay $200 to $250, and family memberships start at about $300. There is an up-front enrollment fee, but members are not required to sign a contract and can end their memberships with 30 days notice.

Akradi, a native of Iran, founded Life Time in 1992. He said its mission is to help members pursue a healthy way of life for themselves and their families. The company went public in 2004 and now operates 114 facilities in 25 states.

Akradi blanches when people refer to Life Time as a gym or a health club. He said he has sought to create a more complete set of services that encompasses fitness, nutrition, and relaxation.

“We think of it as a healthy-way-of-life company,” said Akradi. “Anything any member of your family would want, we try to put it in our facilities.”

In addition to adult fitness equipment and programming, Life Time also offers a “kids academy” featuring infant yoga and ball skills, as well as gymnastics, Zumba, and basketball for older children. The academy also includes Spanish immersion classes and sessions on computer skills, music, and nutrition.

The Westwood club will be laid out over three floors. The first floor will include a lounge, cafe, and spa; the second will feature cardio and weight equipment, two full-size basketball courts, and studios for yoga, pilates, and other activities. The third floor will contain the academy for children, high-intensity fitness training, boxing, and a cycling studio.

Akradi said members will have access to metabolic testing, fitness trainers, and nutrition specialists who can help craft a diet and workout plan. “It’s not forced on you, but we focus on getting to know our customer.” he said. “We can help you track your workouts, track your nutrition. It’s extremely comprehensive.”

Casey Ross can be reached at cross@globe.com.