it's really not a scary place

I was teaching a boot-camp in Forest Park and working full-time as a realtor when I got an offer to be an instructor at a Boxing Gym.  I accepted the position but honestly, I was terrified.  I put off my first class for a couple of weeks until I couldn't escape it.  I went to the Boxing Gym (for the very first time...I was hired blindly by the nephew of my then real estate partner), I was scared.  My first class went well and from there on out I swore to myself that I'd never work out at a "regular" gym again*.  I loved the grit, the sweat and the rawness of the gym.  People weren't there to talk, they weren't there to look cute...they were all there for the same reason....to get in a great workout.

Red Nose MMA (or Berger MMA) is a great place...if you're a fighter.  Unfortunately the space we are in can really only be that...an intimidating "fighter's" gym.  That's great, unless you are like most of the people that come in and are immediately faced with 20 guy's wrestling on the mat and another five guys beating each other up in the ring.  This is not a gym that people just happen upon.  It is not publicly friendly. I have seen many people walk in the front door and right back out. 

Our goal for the new gym is to create a place that is welcoming to everyone of all ages, shapes and sizes.  Our MMA program will continue to be a driving force for Steve, but our other programs will allow us to grow into a full fledged gym.  We want people to come to our gym because we offer what no other gyms offer* and we don't want anyone to be scared to just walk in and join a class.

If you are reading this and you have ideas or something that you think your "ideal" gym should have, please leave a comment so that we can take everything into consideration.

*Most MMA, boxing and kickboxing gyms don't offer childcare services, I was forced to join Gold's.  This was number one on my wish list when we were planning our new space.  Most of our students have family and we don't want MMA training to get in the way of that.  This will also allow me to begin teaching again...watch out guys!  I've been on the bench too long!

Drumroll please......

We are happy to announce ...

that fit or fight will have even more group classes for members.  We will now be holding BODYPUMP™, the original LES MILLS™ barbell class! It's a great class and so much fun for everyone.  If you want to learn about the class, click here.  The program won't begin until our grand opening, but its definitely something to look forward to.

Speaking of opening, there will be a "soft" opening monday, July 2nd for all of our current students.  Anyone can come join the MMA program starting Monday(enjoy a special construction discount), but our group classes will not begin until our grand opening later this summer.  That will be a fun event, so we'll make sure to keep everyone in the loop!

making a list and checking it twice

i make lists.  a lot of lists.  i rarely follow them to a tee, but i find it therapeutic to "get everything out of my head".  as the deadline gets closer, my lists are getting longer.  steve and i are a great team because we both take turns having panic attacks about getting everything done.  one of us freaks out, and the other talks the other into a happier place.

on a more positive note, we have placed almost all of our instructors!  stay tuned for a really exciting program announcement that is going to be a perfect addition to our cardio programs!

look how far we've come since we started this journey:

even though we have come so far, we still have a long way to go to the finish line.  here's the very very unfinished sections we still have to tackle: 

the tiny bit of demo that still needs to be done before our locker rooms can be finished

this is jim, our electrician.  he's 83 years old and still works every day.  never slow down, you never grow old!  he is standing in the part of the cage that will soon be a cubby wall for all the gear and bags that always find their way to the middle of the floor.  ...and if you can't tell that is indeed parrot wallpaper. 

i've mentioned before that we really wanted to reuse as many things as possible not only for our pocketbooks, but for the environment.  here is a little project i did the other day to save us a few bucks:

i'm actually not finished yet.  i am putting a thicker top on it and i have a decal of our logo to go on the front. total cost: $40

since I'm on a roll posting new pictures, here's different angles of the main room.   the cage will be finished tonight!  cannot wait. 

launched

our new website is finally finished!  thanks a million times over to our super talented friends tim and samantha, we couldn't have done it without you guys (both the website, the name and our logo). 

you can check out some of tim's design work here and follow his pinterest account here.  his wife is one of my best friends and she is super talented as well.  you can check out some of her work here and follow her pinterest here.  they both do custom work so don't be afraid to shoot them an email for requests. 

if you haven't seen the finished website and would like to:  http://fitorfight.com/

glimpses of the future

 instead of a wordy post, i've decided to show our progress through pictures.  keep in mind, these are as of last week, so i'll have new pictures of everything that was done this past weekend and what will be done this week! i apologize for the randomness of the pictures.  hopefully, they will make sense.

main room before

main room before

yoga/pilates studio before (standing in cage)

main room before

yoga/pilates exterior wall before

right side of cage before (yet to be tackled-stay tuned for the after of this one next week)

inside cage before

main room before

main room before

main room before (kind of)

main room in progress

kid's club before

kid's club before (doors and trim were black)

trim and doors done

making progress..go jen!

getting there-i still need a picture of the finished product-stay tuned

back room started (yoga/pilates/cage room)

main room progress

yoga studio painted, flooring started, next up trim and mirrors

nasty doors and trim started

paint in progress

main room

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

main room almost done...trim and floor and touch up

main room

main room

paint done...next up, finish cage walls and get the flooring and wall pads installed

main room

main room

if you can't remember what a mess is was before, click here for a refresher.

hard work and sacrifice

hard work and sacrifice don't always pay off, but they pay off more often than laziness--unless you were born silver spoon in hand.

it's crunch time for the new gym space and stress has set in.  we are busy.  fining the balance to do everything while having family time and continue to be the best mom i can be has been a challenge.  today, the baby went to daycare for the first time.  i was sad, but i know she had a blast and i got a lot done at the new gym not having her there. 

our space was once a dog training facility and to say the former tenants were unkempt is such an understatement. every single surface in our space needs to be re-covered or re-painted, this is going to get expensive and very time consuming (i spent over an hour cleaning one set of french doors so that i could paint them). 

sacrifice: 
steve is working a full-time job, coaching at the gym full-time and working on the new gym every chance he gets. 
i have put my real estate license on referral only and i have given up the role of stay-at-home mom
we have decided to move into steve's old house that we had previously used as a rental house---downsizing is again, an understatement. 

tomorrow i'll get a few before and after pictures for a more tangible post, but tonight i'll leave you with a couple of quotes that i find very inspiring:

"Worry is not a sickness but a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough." -anonymous
 
 “Play the game for more than you can afford to lose… Only then will you learn the game.”-winston churchhill