a big flex

High-powered fitness brand ups the game with massive new luxury resort-country club in booming Houston 'burb

Lifetime Fitness has made a splash in Texas over the last five years, opening clubs all over the Lone Star State. Dedicated to fitness, health and overall lifestyle needs, the brand straddles the space between gym and country club.

As members know, the fitness center offers everything from yoga classes to cafes with healthy choices, indoor and outdoor pools, rock-climbing walls, children's programs. The brand's aim: making it easier for families to stay healthy together, and a host of other high-end amenities (think spas and personal trainers).

Now, the brand's 30th Texas location has opened its doors in Missouri City and is changing the game in a big way. The 124,000-square-foot Life Time Sienna facility at 8421 Highway 6 offers seven pickleball courts; six studios for Pilates, yoga, barre, group fitness and cycle classes; and a huge work-out floor with options for cardio and resistance training.

The beach resort has water slides for the kids, a leisure pool, a six-lane lap pool, a zero-depth entry pool, comfy lounge chairs and cabana seating, and poolside bistro service. Those wanting their aquatics out of the sun can channel their inner Michael Phelps in the indoor lap pool or chill out in the indoor leisure pool.

Always a brand that touts its commitment to a whole healthy lifestyle, Life Time's new location also has luxury spaces for recovery with steam and saunas within dressing rooms, along with a spa, cafe, and a host of programming designed to help guests and members achieve their health goals.

How? Member can train for a marathon, increase strength, make lifestyle changes with exercise and nutrition, or stay fit as they age. More than 90 different classes at all levels are offered every week, and the Life Time Kids Academy has space for 90-day-olds to 11 year olds to play, work out and have fun in a safe and supervised environment.

The new club and resort is members-only, and those who wish to learn more can check out options here. Day passes are available for those who want to try before they buy. Life Time Sienna is open Monday through Friday from 4 am to midnight and Saturday and Sunday from 5 am to 11 pm.

Life Time Sienna in Missouri City exterior with outdoor pools in the foreground

Photo courtesy of Life Time

The new Life Time Sienna offers a resort-style experience, with outdoor leisure and lap pools, lounges and cabanas, and poolside service.

Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”