Upon entering Nitro Fitness in Bangor, it’s quickly evident that this is a place for men only.

Fashion and aesthetics are given short shrift. There are no mirrors on the wall. There are no lockers, just metal shelving. It’s all concrete and steel.

In short, Nitro, which some may view as the male version of Curves, is less about socializing and more about results.

Dan Brown, manager of the Bangor Nitro, located in the Sunrise Plaza off of Stillwater Avenue, explained that Nitro uses circuit training with a focus of core muscles (those between the shoulders and the knees).

“The stronger the center of your body, the less likely you’re going to have an injury,” added Brown, who also serves as trainer at the storefront facility.

At the center of this training program are two traffic lights on the wall. When the light turns green, the men work out for 40 seconds at one of 15 stations. Then a yellow light flashes for 20 seconds, giving them time to move to and set up at the next station. When the light turns green again, they start the cycle over.

The men go through this counter-clockwise circuit twice. The idea, Brown explained, is to keep their heart rates within a pre-determined aerobic range. To that end, the machines are all set at the same weight level, although the number of repetitions varies.

So, in a half-hour, the training “hits every major muscle group twice, and the core muscles four times,” Brown said.

Every four months, the staff will move the equipment around and change the exercises. “It’s another way to make progress,” Brown said.

So who is the average Nitro client? Brown said the average age is 481/2, with a range in age from 12 to 79.

“It’s for the guy who feels a bit intimidated in a ‘big-box gym’ atmosphere,” he said. “We try to create an atmosphere where they feel welcome.”

Brown works with the client for the first three visits, then lets him work out on his own if he feels comfortable. Clients have 24-hour access to the facility thanks to a card scanner beside the front door.

What is the Nitro experience like? Since there was only one way to truly tell, I suited up in the Spartan locker room, in the de rigueur apparel for middle-aged men, baggy shirt and shorts.

Now, a little history. I’m a yo-yo exerciser, with years off between shorter, faithful periods of activity. Not surprisingly, my weight follows suit. I recently did a couple of years of fairly regular exercise, but I’ve been less active for several months.

Brown started out by having me fill out an assessment card, which included a medical history, in order to help establish my workout. He also took weight, chest, waist, thigh and arm measurements (measurements are taken every six weeks, to check progress). He had me grab a device which measures body fat, and my number fell in between poor and fair for my age group (not a startling development). Using another chart, he figured out what my aerobic zone should be.

Many of the cable-pulling machines were similar to ones I’d used in the past, so the transition wasn’t too difficult. The handful that weren’t familiar were disorienting, but I muddled through.

While he was assisting me, Brown was also helping and chatting with other clients, creating a collegial atmosphere for the workout.

After two circuits around, I had worked up a good sweat, but when I rested my hands on a bar that measured my heart rate, it came in below my target aerobic range. Brown explained that he had purposefully set my weights lower to start, just as a precaution for a first workout. I’m not feeling it much directly afterward, but ask me again tomorrow.

The Bangor location, which opened Jan. 11, is the third Nitro Fitness that owner Paul Bernier has opened in Maine (he has the franchise rights for the state, and is looking to seven other towns as potential sites). His Oakland location, opened nine months ago, was the first franchise granted nationally by the Kansas City-based Nitro. The Lewiston club opened seven months ago.

The Bangor Nitro is closing in on 200 members.

Members of the new facility were pleased that this fitness option exists in Greater Bangor.

Jeff Jordan, 55, of Lincoln, has been coming to Nitro since shortly after it opened.

“I’d lost a lot of weight, about 75 pounds, and I needed to get in shape, to tone up,” he said. “There’s not much [for fitness clubs] up in my area, so I came and talked to them, and it sounded like what I needed.”

As far as results, “I feel pretty good,” Jordan said. “I have a lot more energy, and can do things a lot better than I could before. It gives your whole body a workout, and that’s what I needed – a whole body makeover.”

Britt Wetmore, 58, of Hermon, has only been working out at Nitro since April 4, but he’s already seeing results.

“My blood pressure has gone way down, to the point where I’m off the small dose of blood-pressure medication I had been taking,” he said. “It certainly does work on your core strength and lower back. It was hard to do it first, but it’s started getting easier.”

Already trim Carl Bergman, 53, of Orono, who has been coming since January, lost 5 pounds and 5 percent of his body fat over his first six-week period.

Bergman summarized the attraction of the Nitro experience.

“It’s convenient and here when I need it,” he said. “It does everything I need it to do in 30 minutes. The light on the wall keeps you going. It’s great.”

Membership rates are $34.95 a month for a one-year membership, or $29.95 a month for a two-year membership. A special father-son rate is also available. For more information, call 942-0020. Gov. John Baldacci will be taking part in a ribbon cutting at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 6, at Nitro. Dale McGarrigle can be reached at 990-8028 and dmcgarrigle@bangordailynews.net.

(Pull quote) “It’s for the guy who feels a bit intimidated in a ‘big-box gym’ atmosphere.” Dan Brown, Bangor Nitro manager

Dan Brown, manager of the Bangor Nitro, says a half-hour training session “hits every major muscle group twice, and the core muscles four times.”

BANGOR DAILY NEWS PHOTO BY KATE COLLINS

Nitro Fitness clients work through a circuit consisting of 15 stations.

Hed: Circuits maximus

Subhead; Nitro Fitness system promises results for men in 30-minute workouts