Shape Up, Mid-Hudson Valley, New York!

Many years ago, when the Mid-Hudson Valley was merely a blip on the New York State map between Manhattan and Albany, you didn't have that many choices if you wanted to join a health club. You could either plunk down the dues for the shiny, swanky place or join the good old local "Y."

Now that the population has mushroomed, you can work out in more places (and in more ways) than ever before. Finding a place you and your gear can call home can be as complicated as, well, finding an actual home.

After doing an extensive tour of the area's fitness facilities (and scamming as many free workout passes as I could), here is only a taste of the many places you can get in shape in the area. I've also included a few of the alternatives available if outdoor fitness is your preference.

STAY IN

• Allsport - The "cream of the crop" of Mid-Hudson Valley health clubs now comes in three flavors, with locations in Fishkill (17 Old Main Street, 845-896-5678), Poughkeepsie (243 North Road, 845-452-5050) and its newest facility in Highland (3425 Route 9W, 845-691-6161). They offer more types of classes than you want to think about, more cardio and weight equipment than you will ever need in order to turn you into a Greek God (or Goddess) or merely get your basic RDA of aerobic conditioning. They also have racquetball courts. And a pool. And a lot of rules about what you can and can't wear to work out. While the fees are higher than other clubs, they are more reasonable than you might think. But no one gets in for free - for a trial workout, you must be accompanied by a member and pay a guest fee. Be warned: if you do this, they will call you twice a week until your defenses are shot and you join just to get them off your tail. Just kidding. I changed my phone number for other reasons.